f.....taker:
I like RIG grease just for that purpose. Lubing two sliding surfaces (i.e. 1911 rails). It isn't intended as a protectorent for all over a gun.
Agreed...RIG is a lubricant, and a very good one...
I think RIG does make greases now for lubrication, but I am not familiar with them. The original RIG was NOT intended as a lubricant and WAS intended as a protective coating. The name stands for
Rust
Inhibiting
Grease.
Don't take my word for it-
Birch wood Casey RIG gets recommended a lot but I understand it's a grease and will have an obvious greasy tacky ness to it. Is this something I should consider slathering on my safequeens for long term storage or is Ren Wax in a silicone bore store sock sufficient?
That is not how it is used.
A friend turned me on to RIG decades ago.
One of the best bits of knowledge I have ever received! He collected engraved German sporting guns. He assembled a large collection of very high end vintage combination guns and doubles. He also shot and hunted with them. We shot his Vierling at my place one summer day. He wiped it down with a Rig-Rag, oiled the bores lightly, and cased it for the trip home.
This is how it is used-
Rig-Rags are a piece of acid free tanned sheepskin, wool on. The gob of grease that comes on a new one is rubbed into the wool by folding it and rubbing it around. Then, you wipe your gun vigorously, getting the wool onto all surfaces. A new rag will make a gun slightly greasy IF you did not rub the grease in sufficiently. If there is too much, wipe it off the Rig-Rag with a clean cloth.
Done properly with a seasoned Rig-Rag, you can't even tell the grease is there. You can lay a gun wiped PROPERLY on a white linen tablecloth and your wife won't even know it unless she sees it. The grease layer is so thin you can't see it.
I've literally worn the hair off many over the decades. I buy them by the dozen every decade or two.
When the grease gets thin in the rag, I apply more. Just a tiny dab rubbed in by folding and then rubbing it around. Shown is one of several cans I have bought. You might note this one precedes the current ownership.
I do not wax guns. Got no problem with those who do. Rig is easier, faster, and I believe, more dependable under varying conditions.
Dozens of Reg Mags, several 1926 Targets, Factory engraved S&Ws (new and old), custom rifles by some of the great old makers, English doubles, and the thousands of S&Ws that I have owned or brokered have met the Rig-Rag. It is all I need, and I won't even look for something else. I'm too old, and I don't think anything could be better.
YMMV.
...Ben
