Can I leave Rem-Oil on my gun?
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Snake Doctor
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Can I leave Rem-Oil on my gun?
After cleaning all parts of my gun well, can I spray it down with Rem-Oil, let it sit out for awhile, and then be ready to put it back into action?
Nemo me impune lacessit.
Rem oil is excellent. It has been around for yrs. I use it.
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I don't know what Remoil is, but I don't ubderstand why someone would want an oily gun. I use a bit of oil on the inside, wipe the outsides down with a silicone cloth. Wouldn't a spray make the gun tend to drip oil.
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"Today, we need a nation of Minutemen, citizens who are not only prepared to take arms, but citizens who regard the preservation of freedom as the basic purpose of their daily life and who are willing to consciously work and sacrifice for that freedom." John F. Kennedy
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G.C.Montgomery
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A long time ago, a guy who shot for a living...Scratch that. A guy who shot to live told me that an oily is a happy gun and any oil the gun does not need, it will surely rid itself of that oil when you start shooting. It took a long time but today, I understand that on a very personal level. Granted, dipping the gun in oil just to make it oily makes no sense. But I think it is wise to "liberally" apply a high quality lubricant to all critical areas.Liberty wrote:I don't know what Remoil is, but I don't ubderstand why someone would want an oily gun. I use a bit of oil on the inside, wipe the outsides down with a silicone cloth. Wouldn't a spray make the gun tend to drip oil.
While Rem-Oil generally works fine for it's intended purpose. I personally don't use it as a lubricant because I find it a bit too thin and it evaporates too easily for the way I use my guns. I use CLP/Rem-oil and the like only as a surface preservative but I run a light grease or heavier oil for lubricants on most of my guns.
In practical terms, Rem-Oil is just fine for a gun that only sees range use or might be taken to the field for hunting for a day. The reason is, we conveniently know ahead of time when and where you'll be shooting and can take the time to lubricate just before it's put to use. For hard use guns that can't be conveniently relubricated in the seconds or minutes before they are deployed to defend life and limb, light oils that run out of the gun or evaporate quickly may not be the best lubricants. YMMV.
When you take the time out of your day to beat someone, it has a much longer lasting effect on their demeanor than simply shooting or tazing them.
G. C. Montgomery, Jr.
G. C. Montgomery, Jr.
G.C., what do you recommend for a light grease or heavier oil? I have used the white lithium spray grease for slide rails, Tri-Flow or Rem-Oil for the other moving parts and spray silicon for the outside. They seem to work OK, but always looking for suggestions from knowledgeable folks.G.C.Montgomery wrote:A long time ago, a guy who shot for a living...Scratch that. A guy who shot to live told me that an oily is a happy gun and any oil the gun does not need, it will surely rid itself of that oil when you start shooting. It took a long time but today, I understand that on a very personal level. Granted, dipping the gun in oil just to make it oily makes no sense. But I think it is wise to "liberally" apply a high quality lubricant to all critical areas.Liberty wrote:I don't know what Remoil is, but I don't ubderstand why someone would want an oily gun. I use a bit of oil on the inside, wipe the outsides down with a silicone cloth. Wouldn't a spray make the gun tend to drip oil.
While Rem-Oil generally works fine for it's intended purpose. I personally don't use it as a lubricant because I find it a bit too thin and it evaporates too easily for the way I use my guns. I use CLP/Rem-oil and the like only as a surface preservative but I run a light grease or heavier oil for lubricants on most of my guns.
In practical terms, Rem-Oil is just fine for a gun that only sees range use or might be taken to the field for hunting for a day. The reason is, we conveniently know ahead of time when and where you'll be shooting and can take the time to lubricate just before it's put to use. For hard use guns that can't be conveniently relubricated in the seconds or minutes before they are deployed to defend life and limb, light oils that run out of the gun or evaporate quickly may not be the best lubricants. YMMV.
Keith
Texas LTC Instructor, Missouri CCW Instructor, NRA Certified Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun Instructor and RSO, NRA Life Member
Psalm 82:3-4
Texas LTC Instructor, Missouri CCW Instructor, NRA Certified Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun Instructor and RSO, NRA Life Member
Psalm 82:3-4
Just speaking for myself here . . .
I generally prefer to avoid lubrication products containing Teflon, such as Break-Free/CLP and Rem Oil, however I am not opposed to using various sprays on the frame/stocks of my handgun. On my handguns' polymer frame/stocks, I first use a patch wetted with Hoppe's to get rid of any major powder residue, then follow up with polymer-safe Gun Scrubber. The Gun Scrubber strips away both the Hoppe's and lubrication from everything (so nothing overaccumulates), so I must follow up with a lubricating/rust inhibiting spray (I use one from the same manufacturer as Gun Scrubber). That said, I believe it is *really* important to shake off and wipe away all excess spray-on lubricant/rust inhibitor. I have become very particular about keeping the breechface and chamber dry, to prevent lubrication from oozing in and deactivating my ammunition's primer or powder. (I do not know the exact chemical or physical mechanism of how this can happen, but I know I do not want it to happen.) And I want my (plastic) stocks dry so that my firing grip does not shift or slip. The barrel pivot point, frame rails and slide grooves have to stay lubricated somehow. I like to use FP-10 here.
More briefly stated, one wants lubrication only where needed, rust protection only where needed, and dry surfaces everywhere else. Ideally, the lubrication and rust protection should stay exactly where it is applied. Smearing and spraying everything with RemOil or Break-Free/CLP is not a effective way to accomplish these goals, in my opinion.
I second the request for light grease/heavy oil recommendation, by the way; the concept seems to have a lot of merit.
I generally prefer to avoid lubrication products containing Teflon, such as Break-Free/CLP and Rem Oil, however I am not opposed to using various sprays on the frame/stocks of my handgun. On my handguns' polymer frame/stocks, I first use a patch wetted with Hoppe's to get rid of any major powder residue, then follow up with polymer-safe Gun Scrubber. The Gun Scrubber strips away both the Hoppe's and lubrication from everything (so nothing overaccumulates), so I must follow up with a lubricating/rust inhibiting spray (I use one from the same manufacturer as Gun Scrubber). That said, I believe it is *really* important to shake off and wipe away all excess spray-on lubricant/rust inhibitor. I have become very particular about keeping the breechface and chamber dry, to prevent lubrication from oozing in and deactivating my ammunition's primer or powder. (I do not know the exact chemical or physical mechanism of how this can happen, but I know I do not want it to happen.) And I want my (plastic) stocks dry so that my firing grip does not shift or slip. The barrel pivot point, frame rails and slide grooves have to stay lubricated somehow. I like to use FP-10 here.
More briefly stated, one wants lubrication only where needed, rust protection only where needed, and dry surfaces everywhere else. Ideally, the lubrication and rust protection should stay exactly where it is applied. Smearing and spraying everything with RemOil or Break-Free/CLP is not a effective way to accomplish these goals, in my opinion.
I second the request for light grease/heavy oil recommendation, by the way; the concept seems to have a lot of merit.
glocks and other polymer guns do not require much oil at all, but for those of us who have and carry 1911s, we need a good amount of oil for the metal on metal moving parts. i treat my 1911 like the motor in my car. i mobile 1 synthetic on all 1911s. only use remoil on my glockLiberty wrote:I don't know what Remoil is, but I don't ubderstand why someone would want an oily gun. I use a bit of oil on the inside, wipe the outsides down with a silicone cloth. Wouldn't a spray make the gun tend to drip oil.
Rem Oil is great stuff, but I rarely use it because it is thin. If you shoot a lot, that oil is going to be gone in no time.
I prefer Mobil One 10W30 apply lightly with a cotton Q-tip. It lubes all the neccessary parts in all my firearms very well. I figure if it's good enough to handle high temps an internal combustion engine puts out, it's good enough for my firearm.
I prefer Mobil One 10W30 apply lightly with a cotton Q-tip. It lubes all the neccessary parts in all my firearms very well. I figure if it's good enough to handle high temps an internal combustion engine puts out, it's good enough for my firearm.
Larry Vickers is the author of this article regarding weapon lubrication. Most of you will recognize him as a legend both in the military (Delta Force) and the firearms training field.
Weapon Lubrication
Far and away the most common problem I see when instructing is lack of proper lubrication. This goes for civilians, LE, and military. Of the groups I train on a regular basis military Spec Ops definitely understands the importance of lube the most but it is still common to find weapons not lubricated properly. And what I mean by properly is having lube in/on the working parts of the weapon.
Many weapon systems will not tolerate lack of lubrication and continue to function for any length of time. The US military M16/M4 family and M9 pistol are prime examples of two weapons that do not work well or for long without lubricant. Another example is tightly fitted custom or semi custom 1911 pistols. Simply put these weapons and others REQUIRE lubricant to function reliably - no way around it.
There are weapons that do not require alot of lubricant to function reliably. The AK family and Glock pistols come to mind. Also HK does extensive testing for reliable function with little or no lube so by and large HK weapons are very forgiving to lack of lubricant by design. However too many shooters rely on that as standard operating procedure and don't assess the situation correctly; these guns are designed to continue to function without lube in EXTREME (not daily) conditions but every weapon works better with lubricant.
The golden rule in weapons lubricant is you can run a gun dirty and wet, but not dirty and dry. Truer words have never been spoken about weapons lubricant. Guns always work better the cleaner they are but most modern designs are far more forgiving about carbon fouling than they are about lubrication. Remember to keep it lubed always and clean it when you can and you will be much better off over the long haul.
The topic of keeping a weapon dry in desert environments comes up quite often. Sand is the ultimate enemy of guns and can wreak havoc with modern small arms. I have been part of extreme weapons testing and can tell you that I have no doubt in my mind that in sandy environments you are much better of with a gun that is wet than one that is dry. Having sand coat your small arm like a sugar cookie with some lubricant still in place is a better situation than a completely dry weapon in a sandy environment. Your weapon may still malfunction but not anything like it would if it was bone dry. It is unbelievable how non functional a dry weapon can become in an extreme sandy environment. It will become manually operated at a bare minimum. Your best bet for a functional weapon in extreme conditions is to keep it lubed and keep it covered. It may take longer to employ the weapon depending on the cover used but it will most likely work when you need it to.
Last thing I will cover is choice of lubricant. First off any lube is better than no lube. Just because you don't have your favorite synthetic gun oil doesn't mean you don't lube your weapon. With that being said in my experience the thin light lubes like WD40 and RemOil are to be avoided. They will provide a rust barrier and that is about it; they are not suitable for moving parts lubricant. There are alot of lubes on the market but I still like TW25B for a grease type lube and Militec for a wet lube. My friend Ken Hackathorn swears by aircraft grade Lubriplate and has used it for years as a grease type lube. The grease type lubricants require more effort to apply but tend to stay put longer. TW25B is superb for crew served weapons like belt feed machine guns and is the best lubricant I have ever seen for sandy or wet environments. In my old unit we affectionately call it 'desert jizz' because once we started using it the reliability of our belt fed weapons increased dramatically in extreme environments such as the desert. Highly recommended.
There are times where applying a grease lubricant is a pain such as high volume range fire sessions. For those applications as well as general purpose use I have used and like Militec wet lube. From my experience it works well even in temperature extremes and is the right balance between being too thin to do the job and so thick it gums up when cold. Keep in mind it is easy to apply so it is easy to come off also. With wet lubes like Militec you have to lubricate your weapon more frequently than with a grease like TW25B.
Please don't get your panties in a bunch since I did not mention your pet lubricant. I am sure there are dozens of excellent lubricants on the market I am not aware of that do a great job; I am simply stating what has worked for me with very good results for many years. In parting I would remind you to remember two key points about weapons lube; any lube is better than no lube and you can run a gun dirty and wet (or lubed) but you cannot run one dirty and dry. Abide by these two rules and they will do you right.
Weapon Lubrication
Far and away the most common problem I see when instructing is lack of proper lubrication. This goes for civilians, LE, and military. Of the groups I train on a regular basis military Spec Ops definitely understands the importance of lube the most but it is still common to find weapons not lubricated properly. And what I mean by properly is having lube in/on the working parts of the weapon.
Many weapon systems will not tolerate lack of lubrication and continue to function for any length of time. The US military M16/M4 family and M9 pistol are prime examples of two weapons that do not work well or for long without lubricant. Another example is tightly fitted custom or semi custom 1911 pistols. Simply put these weapons and others REQUIRE lubricant to function reliably - no way around it.
There are weapons that do not require alot of lubricant to function reliably. The AK family and Glock pistols come to mind. Also HK does extensive testing for reliable function with little or no lube so by and large HK weapons are very forgiving to lack of lubricant by design. However too many shooters rely on that as standard operating procedure and don't assess the situation correctly; these guns are designed to continue to function without lube in EXTREME (not daily) conditions but every weapon works better with lubricant.
The golden rule in weapons lubricant is you can run a gun dirty and wet, but not dirty and dry. Truer words have never been spoken about weapons lubricant. Guns always work better the cleaner they are but most modern designs are far more forgiving about carbon fouling than they are about lubrication. Remember to keep it lubed always and clean it when you can and you will be much better off over the long haul.
The topic of keeping a weapon dry in desert environments comes up quite often. Sand is the ultimate enemy of guns and can wreak havoc with modern small arms. I have been part of extreme weapons testing and can tell you that I have no doubt in my mind that in sandy environments you are much better of with a gun that is wet than one that is dry. Having sand coat your small arm like a sugar cookie with some lubricant still in place is a better situation than a completely dry weapon in a sandy environment. Your weapon may still malfunction but not anything like it would if it was bone dry. It is unbelievable how non functional a dry weapon can become in an extreme sandy environment. It will become manually operated at a bare minimum. Your best bet for a functional weapon in extreme conditions is to keep it lubed and keep it covered. It may take longer to employ the weapon depending on the cover used but it will most likely work when you need it to.
Last thing I will cover is choice of lubricant. First off any lube is better than no lube. Just because you don't have your favorite synthetic gun oil doesn't mean you don't lube your weapon. With that being said in my experience the thin light lubes like WD40 and RemOil are to be avoided. They will provide a rust barrier and that is about it; they are not suitable for moving parts lubricant. There are alot of lubes on the market but I still like TW25B for a grease type lube and Militec for a wet lube. My friend Ken Hackathorn swears by aircraft grade Lubriplate and has used it for years as a grease type lube. The grease type lubricants require more effort to apply but tend to stay put longer. TW25B is superb for crew served weapons like belt feed machine guns and is the best lubricant I have ever seen for sandy or wet environments. In my old unit we affectionately call it 'desert jizz' because once we started using it the reliability of our belt fed weapons increased dramatically in extreme environments such as the desert. Highly recommended.
There are times where applying a grease lubricant is a pain such as high volume range fire sessions. For those applications as well as general purpose use I have used and like Militec wet lube. From my experience it works well even in temperature extremes and is the right balance between being too thin to do the job and so thick it gums up when cold. Keep in mind it is easy to apply so it is easy to come off also. With wet lubes like Militec you have to lubricate your weapon more frequently than with a grease like TW25B.
Please don't get your panties in a bunch since I did not mention your pet lubricant. I am sure there are dozens of excellent lubricants on the market I am not aware of that do a great job; I am simply stating what has worked for me with very good results for many years. In parting I would remind you to remember two key points about weapons lube; any lube is better than no lube and you can run a gun dirty and wet (or lubed) but you cannot run one dirty and dry. Abide by these two rules and they will do you right.
"Conflict is inevitable; Combat is an option."
Life Member - NRA/TSRA/GOA
Life Member - NRA/TSRA/GOA
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G.C.Montgomery
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At some point in time, I've tried just about everything. I even ran 90w gear oil in an open gun for a while. It stunk to high heaven but it worked! I can't claim to be an expert or terribly knowledgeable. I ask around just like everyone else and if someone is using something and it's obviously superior, I'll try it.Keith B wrote: G.C., what do you recommend for a light grease or heavier oil? I have used the white lithium spray grease for slide rails, Tri-Flow or Rem-Oil for the other moving parts and spray silicon for the outside. They seem to work OK, but always looking for suggestions from knowledgeable folks.
The lubricants I like best these days are MilComm's TW-25, Militec's Militec 1 and Tetra's Gun Grease and/or Gun Lubricant. I've been running a combination of Tetra Grease and Lubricant for the last two years with great results. Keep in mind these are only my lubricants. I still tend to use Breakfreee CLP just to wipe down the exterior surfaces to prevent corrosion.
Another item of note is that Tetra grease can be too thick for some guns. As a result, I have been known to apply a very thin coat of grease to all bearing surfaces then liberally apply the Tetra Lubricant over the grease. This has worked well for me. Other guys have their own ways of doing things and I'm not one to fault them if it works.
When you take the time out of your day to beat someone, it has a much longer lasting effect on their demeanor than simply shooting or tazing them.
G. C. Montgomery, Jr.
G. C. Montgomery, Jr.
Thanks for posting Vickers' essay, CHL/LEO, some interesting comments there.
One idea I want to float is that the ideal lubrication scheme for a crew-served weapon (not really applicable here) or a 1000+ round weekend handgun training seminar (very relevant here) may not be the same way one may clean and lubricate a carry gun in preparation for a confrontation which would come at an unknown time (or never).
Modifying Vickers' parlance, the wet part of dirty+wet (training seminar or extended range practice) may not be the same as the wet found in clean+wet (ideal for carry). Keeping a warm gun functional for immediate use in training, and keeping a cold gun functional indefinitely while loaded, may be two slightly different things.
Just something to think about. Thanks for posting the grease info, G.C.
One idea I want to float is that the ideal lubrication scheme for a crew-served weapon (not really applicable here) or a 1000+ round weekend handgun training seminar (very relevant here) may not be the same way one may clean and lubricate a carry gun in preparation for a confrontation which would come at an unknown time (or never).
Modifying Vickers' parlance, the wet part of dirty+wet (training seminar or extended range practice) may not be the same as the wet found in clean+wet (ideal for carry). Keeping a warm gun functional for immediate use in training, and keeping a cold gun functional indefinitely while loaded, may be two slightly different things.
Just something to think about. Thanks for posting the grease info, G.C.