SR9 lubrication suggestions

[ltbarber]

could you please provide some guidance on the level of lubrication you use on the SR9? Please include the brand of lube used. thank you all for your help.

 

[DenverSR9]

Well it looks like no one bit on this so I'll take a stab at it. The SR9 in not some magical firearm that needs any more care than any other gun so you don't have to be picky with what you use. The way I see cleaning materials is if my local shop sells it then it's good enough for me. Make sure you have solvent, oil, a brush, cleaning pads and an old toothbrush for scrubbing. Clean it the same as you would any other SA and in time you'll learn what your gun likes.

As for amounts, I always think less is more. If you over oil your gun you're going to make a haven for dust and powder to gum up your action. After I clean with solvent I put one drop anywhere I see a spring, a couple of drops on the barrel, a couple on the slide spring, and one drop on each side of the slide. After that it slides together nicely as I await another day at the range. Good luck with your SR9.

 

[fivefold]

Try Mobile 1 synthetic. All you need is a few drops and a quart will last a LONG time.

 

[gregnauman]

mobile 1 synthetic. Never even thought of using motor oil to lube a gun....

Then again I am a newbie... so what do I know.

With that said though, you made my day if that is truly what you could do, I am a BIG mobile 1 oil fan and have THOUSANDS of miles to prove it.

thanks for the tip

 

[timjo1955a]

I like Shooter's Choice Bore Cleaner and FP-10. Q-tips are very useful.

 

[JohnKSa]

With that said though, you made my day if that is truly what you could do, I am a BIG mobile 1 oil fan and have THOUSANDS of miles to prove it.

Mobil 1 will work ok. On the other hand, BreakFree CLP is made of the same base ingredient as Mobil 1** and also has additives for corrosion prevention that make it one of the best corrosion prevention gun products on the market. In addition, it makes a decent cleaner in a pinch.

**Actually, it's not entirely correct to say that BreakFree CLP has the same base ingredient as Mobil 1. It is correct to say that BreakFree CLP has the same base ingredient as the ORIGINAL Mobil 1 before Mobil 1 was reformulated due to the shortage of PAO.

 

[ltbarber]

thanks guys!!!!

 

[Forty-Four Fan]

I like Shooter's Choice Bore Cleaner and FP-10. Q-tips are very useful.

+1

 

[poncaguy]

another mobil one guy here.........

 

[gregnauman]

anyone try weapons shield clp

 

[Mike J]

Don't have a SR-9 but +1 on the Breakfree CLP-Good Stuff

 

[gregnauman]

I dont think breakfree is the same stuff is it?

Weapons shield is made by the guy that originally made fp-10

Here is a link about him starting up the new company.

http://www.fnforum.net/viewtopic.php?t= ... cc2e7577e8

There are more about this stuff, just google weapons shield clp

 

[Forty-Four Fan]

IMHO, after over 20 years of involvment with LE firearms, I have yet to see a "CLP" all-in-one product that does all three functions extremely well, even under controlled conditions, which rarely exist. All of the ones I have seen and sampled are OK for light (sporting) duty, or in a pinch as a single product to simplify supply in the field. I've used some of them myself for certain sporting guns.

But if you want to properly clean and maintain your firearm for serious reliability, or serious accuracy, you need:
1. a dedicated solvent(s), and
2. a dedicated lubricant.

As far as rust/corrosion goes, a durable finish on the firearm coupled with regular maintenance is more important than any rust/corrosion-inhibiting product. Nothing you can put on your weapon will protect it if it takes a dunk, or gets snowed on, or lands in the muck, and you fail to maintain it afterwards.

Why many people, most of them hobbyists who have the interest and leisure to maintain their firearms, find this too much trouble escapes me. But the search for the holy grail of maintenance products does keep people employed.

 

[JohnKSa]

I have yet to see a "CLP" all-in-one product that does all three functions extremely well

True. However Breakfree CLP does corrosion protection extremely well per the tests I've seen, does lubrication very well (after all it's the same base ingredient as the original Mobil 1) and is pretty decent as a cleaner (based on my own experience).

I agree on using a dedicated solvent, but for a general purpose light lube you're not cheating yourself or the firearm with Breakfree CLP or any other decent gun oil for that matter. I do use a light moly grease for heavy contact surfaces like sears or hard sliding friction.

Nothing you can put on your weapon will protect it if it takes a dunk, or gets snowed on, or lands in the muck, and you fail to maintain it afterwards.

I think that perhaps this is overstated. There are certainly products that will do a much better job in this situation than others. It's not hard to test this sort of thing and the results are widely available and pretty conclusive.

I have a wide variety of lubes, protectants and cleaning products at home, but when I go to the range, there's only one bottle in the range bag. That's the point of a CLP type product, I doubt that there are many people who really rely solely on it.

 

[Forty-Four Fan]

Agreed, in the range bag a small bottle of all-in-one is a good idea, I do the same thing. But it's like having a can of flat-tire fix in your trunk... not something you'd use to fix a flat if you had a choice.

IMHO, Break-Free CLP is an example of product that works OK in some applications, mostly light-duty (like pistols) and on an individual basis. It doesn't remove copper fouling, nor does it clean carbon as well as a dedicated solvent, eg. Shooters Choice, Hoppes, etc. As a lube I have seen it fail in extreme conditions in tactical rifles over and over again, so I'd prefer not to use it on my pistols. It probably works for corrosion resistance, if properly mixed. That's the point... for the dedicated individual who remembers to shake the bottle every time before he uses it, it's OK. Handed out en-masse, you're not getting the results intended.

I don't clean guns in the middle of a shooting event. The weapon should go without maintenance for as long as the shooting package continues- if that's all day and 800 rounds so be it. Properly maintained, a good gun will do that. The all-in-one is not bad as a topical for the rails, etc during a break, esp in bad weather conditions. At the end of the event I'll go back to the maintenance area and strip it and clean it and for that duty I prefer a dedicated solvent and a dedicated lubricant. And if need be, I could do without the all-in-one in the range kit and just have a small bottle of lubricant handy.

There are many all-in-one fans out there and it must work for them. I say to each his own!

 

[JohnKSa]

But it's like having a can of flat-tire fix in your trunk... not something you'd use to fix a flat if you had a choice.

In my case, at least, that's overstated. I used CLP as a corrosion protectant and light lube even when I'm at home and have access to other products. For heavier lube requirements I use a very light moly grease. I never use CLP as a cleaner at home, but will sometimes put some on a warm gun at the range which makes cleanup MUCH easier when I get back home.

I have never cleaned a gun in the middle of a range visit, but on a few occasions I have cleaned a gun at the range after I've finished shooting for one reason or another.

In general I'm NOT an all-in-one fan, but once in a great while I have found all-in-one things that work really well, Breakfree CLP is one of that rare breed in my experience.

It probably works for corrosion resistance, if properly mixed. That's the point... for the dedicated individual who remembers to shake the bottle every time before he uses it, it's OK.

Actually the corrosion protection isn't dependent on shaking the bottle. CLP had teflon particles in it that added to the lubricant properties and that's why the bottle had to be shaken for best results since the fine particles would settle out of suspension in storage. The "C" aspect of the product is in solution and shaking or not shaking won't affect that. I'm not entirely sure if the teflon is still part of the current formulation.

I'm curious about the repeated CLP failures you've seen in tactical rifles, what sort of failures have you seen, also what kind of rifles and what do you mean by "extreme conditions"? Also, what product do you find doesn't fail in the same situations?

Thanks,

John

 

[Forty-Four Fan]

Actually the corrosion protection isn't dependent on shaking the bottle. CLP had teflon particles in it that added to the lubricant properties and that's why the bottle had to be shaken for best results since the fine particles would settle out of suspension in storage. The "C" aspect of the product is in solution and shaking or not shaking won't affect that. I'm not entirely sure if the teflon is still part of the current formulation.

I'm curious about the repeated CLP failures you've seen in tactical rifles, what sort of failures have you seen, also what kind of rifles and what do you mean by "extreme conditions"? Also, what product do you find doesn't fail in the same situations?

Thanks,

John

Everything about CLP is dependent upon shaking the bottle. The miniscule amount of teflon is not the point. It is a combination lubricant and solvent... if you dont shake the bottle before each use you are not getting the consistency the product was designed for. You might, for example, be getting 80% solvent when you wanted 90% lubricant.

http://groups.msn.com/TheMarylandAR15ShootersSite/clpinformation.msnw

As far as weapons failure, I've seen enough M4s and AR15s of various configurations stop functioning reliably when "maintained" by their operators with CLP and subjected to cold, hard rain and/or heat, that I wish I had a buck for each instance. The varying formulas, all touted as "CLP", might be part of the problem: do you really want to "lubricate" your critical weapon with something that is 40% solvent? In nearly every case, those weapons were restored to function with the application of a decent lubricant.

Also, save the grease for your M1 Garand and M14 bolt roller, which needs it. Everywhere else it attracts and holds dirt and fouling.

 

[JohnKSa]

Everything about CLP is dependent upon shaking the bottle.

Well, I can't be dogmatic, but unless you have some information indicating that the solvent used will not go into solution with PAO (something I find highly unlikely) then the shaking has no effect on anything but the teflon particles which will otherwise settle out of suspension.

Solutions do not separate unless there are solubility issues (e.g. oil & water) in which case it's not really a true solution. Suspensions are particulate ingredients that will generally separate unless the particles are extremely small in size.

Regardless, all one needs to do is shake the bottle (as the label states) in order to get the full benefit of the product.

do you really want to "lubricate" your critical weapon with something that is 40% solvent?

The PAO in Breakfree CLP is an extremely good lubricant, it is the same oil that used to be in Mobil 1 before the shortage caused by Katrina. The solvent will evaporate out of the application leaving only the lubricant in place, so that's not really an issue. In fact, the solvent helps the lubricant penetrate better before the solvent evaporates so you actually get a minor benefit from its initial presence. If you look on the bottle, this property is vaguely alluded to by the comment that maximum lubrication properties are achieved 2 hours after the initial application.

In nearly every case, those weapons were restored to function with the application of a decent lubricant.

I'm curious as to what lubricants you recommend as being "decent", do you have some examples?

Also, save the grease for your M1 Garand and M14 bolt roller, which needs it. Everywhere else it attracts and holds dirt and fouling.

I use the grease very sparingly and only in high wear points such as sear contact points and other areas where there is sliding contact causing significant wear. I don't recommend grease as a general lubricant for the reasons you mention, but the judicious application of small amounts of a light grease in strategic locations will not cause any problems.

 

[Jerry W]

 

[Al James]

What does the military use in the field for cleaning the M4, M9, Saw?