can i use wd-40 if out of rem oil?

[Walkalong]

I doused a padlock in WD-40 and let it sit for two weeks. Here's the result:

The key went in, turned easily and it unlocked. No gum, no varnish, why it was as if it had been lubricated.

Heck, bacon grease would hold up for two weeks, it needs to be quite a bit longer than that.

"Oil" the hinges on two doors side by side, one with WD-40 and one with the Tri-Flo I mentioned. See which one lasts longer, much longer, every time.

That doesn't mean you can't use WD-40 to "lubricate", it just means lubrication wasn't its primary goal or best attribute. WD-40 has been proven to protect from rust well, but that isn't lubri9cation, that is rust protection, and fresh WD-40 can break up old gunk (Fresh most anything can) and get things moving, but that doesn't mean it's a great lubricant.

 

[Coogs.]

Didn't read any of the previous posts, but I'll put in my two cents. Traveled a lot back in the day to gun shows displaying Ruger single actions. Had a display, guns traveled in single synthetic lined zipper gun bags in an old footlocker. At a show in Detroit, came back home, found out I was getting divorced, go figure. Footlocker went to the gun room in the basement. % years went by before I ever opened it back up. You could still see my fingerprints on some of the guns. That's right, WD-40. Sprayed on to a silicone cloth and then just wiped the guns down. I'm sold on it for that type of protection. I found out the hard way yerars ago not to spray it directly on the gun without wiping it. I believe there is some moisture content in the spray propellant. It will stay trapped under the WD if you do not wipe it. As I am sure it has been stated, it doesn't work good for a long term lube as I have seen it gum and varnish. Like I said, just my two cents, Coogs.

 

[natman]

Heck, bacon grease would hold up for two weeks, it needs to be quite a bit longer than that.

Well it's been six weeks now since I doused the lock with WD-40 and it's still working fine. How long is it supposed to take?

There's a lot of solvent in WD-40 and I suppose it's possible that the solvent could interact with something else to form gum, but in actual tests spraying WD-40 on clean parts it hasn't happened.

"Oil" the hinges on two doors side by side, one with WD-40 and one with the Tri-Flo I mentioned. See which one lasts longer, much longer, every time.

It's funny you mention Tri-Flo because it's what I do use on my guns. I think it's a better lubricant than WD-40 too. However the question at hand is the oft repeated meme that "WD-40 is not a lubricant". That simply isn't true.

That doesn't mean you can't use WD-40 to "lubricate", it just means lubrication wasn't its primary goal or best attribute. WD-40 has been proven to protect from rust well, but that isn't lubri9cation, that is rust protection, and fresh WD-40 can break up old gunk (Fresh most anything can) and get things moving, but that doesn't mean it's a great lubricant.

From the WD-40 website:

A Question of Lubrication

Myth: WD-40® Multi-Use Product is not really a lubricant.

Fact: While the “W-D” in WD-40® stands for Water Displacement, WD-40® Multi-Use Product is a unique, special blend of lubricants. The product’s formulation also contains anti-corrosion agents and ingredients for penetration, water displacement and soil removal.[emphasis added]

The factory seems to think that lubrication was indeed one of the primary goals. Try the evaporation test mentioned in post #58 and see what you think.

 

[Walkalong]

You win the prize for being the biggest WD-40 fan.

 

[Bama Drifter]

Amen to BSA; a retired LA Sheriff's Range Master uses the Mobil 1 trick (has for at least the last 10yrs) on his arsenal. When I asked him once about these 50/50 blends of Raven Gall with Unicorn pee he laughed as only he can, and said "Why not use what race cars use?" The Rem oil as well as any petroleum distillate will disappoint you in extreme cold or heat.

I personally use and recommend Ballistol... yes it smells like rotten licorice, but you grow to love it. Just take care on nickel and gold. Enjoy below MSDS excerpt about it:
Ballistol is an alkaline, emulsifying oily cleaner, and lubricant, and corrosion inhibitor
Non-Toxicity:
In experiments with rats and rabbits the animals' entire intestinal tracti and stomachs were filled with Ballistol. The animals showed signs of uneasiness. After the Ballis tol had been evacuated from their bodies as provided for by nature, the animals without exception appeared to be in excellent condition and showed no adverse prolonged side effects.

--So, it is mostly mineral oil and totally non-toxic in case my toddler were to lick my freshly oiled 1911s (sarcasm implied). YMMV

 

[jimmyraythomason]

Drenching in WD-40 is the perfect final process before assembly of freshly blued gun parts. Compressed air to remove the excess and a final buffing with 4-0 steel wool to bring out the sheen and the end results are beautiful!

 

[Carl N. Brown]

WD40 as Gun Oil - an old experiment of mine letting WD40 sit in a metal cup (try it yourself):

16 Dec 2006, I sprayed some WD40 in a metal cup. It looked and ran like thin oil. By the end of the two weeks ... the WD40 in the cup looked and ran like hot honey. At the end of three weeks, it was even thicker and more sluggish. By 21 Jan, five weeks, the WD40 was the consistency of cold pancake syrup. By 2 Feb, nearly seven weeks, WD40 ran like moleasses (and you know how slow moles run). Think of WD40 as a wax in a solvent: it is a penetrator, a cleaner and a protectant, but it is not a lubricant. Use WD40 only where you can wipe it off and leave only a thin film. I do not recommend spraying WD40 into complex mechanisms and letting it dry ... It is cheap and readily available, and used within its limitations, it is good stuff.

Water Displacement formula 40 for NASA. Not a gun lubricant.

 

[X-Rap]

Carl I don't understand how that happened, I have had WD 40 in a gallon metal can for many years and it pours fine when I fill up pump bottles.Is it the exposure to oxygen?
Of course the product mostly ships in metal spray cans.

 

[orionengnr]

I started using WD-40 back in '78 or '79. At the time I thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread.
Maybe it was, at the time. Times change.

There are a number of better products out there today.

My garage no longer contains a can of WD-40, and although I reach for it (by habit) at times, I have better alternatives..although they are probably more expensive.

Last time I really used a can of WD-40 was when me and my S&W 340 went swimming (inadvertently). When I got home I lasted it with WD to drive the remaining water out, hit it with compressed air, lubed it properly and moved on.

Funny how people reel against wd-40 but you'll see another thread about the merits of Ed's Red acetone and tranny fluid mix.

First off, Ed's Red is made up of four components in equal measure. You have only listed two of them.
Second, it has worked well for 50+ years. It is a far better lubricant than WD.
It is a better cleaner, and a much better protectant.

Only thing is does not have is it doesn't come in pressurized, nicely-marketed and widely distributed cans.

Correctly mixed, Ed's Red is the original CLP.

 

[Carl N. Brown]

From the Wikipedia article on WD-40:
"The long-term active ingredient is a non-volatile, viscous oil which remains on the surface, providing lubrication and protection from moisture.
"This is diluted with a volatile hydrocarbon to give a low viscosity fluid which can be sprayed and thus penetrate crevices.
"The volatile hydrocarbon then evaporates, leaving the oil behind."

viscous, adj, def: Having a thick, sticky consistency between solid and liquid

Spray or pour some WD40 in a metal cup and sit it exposed to the air and check it once a week. As the solvent evaporates, the oil gets thicker and thicker.

The good thing is that if you have a mechanism gummed up with old viscous WD40 (and maybe dust and lint), fresh volatile WD40 will loosen it up, until the hydrocarbon evaporates leaving the viscous oil behind again (or you can use compressed air to blow the now liquid sludge out of the mechanism, leaving only a thin film behind).

Don't get me wrong. For quick and fast prep, I have a spray can of WD40, and still have some 4 oz bottles of WD40 (which stay capped when not in use). I also have for lubricant and long term protection some bottles of Mobile 1 passed out by the match officer and a bottle of Hoppes gun oil.

 

[natman]

You win the prize for being the biggest WD-40 fan.

Not really. I have a small can I use mainly for getting water off of gardening tools and removing tape residue, with the occasional spot lubrication use. I use Tri-flo for lubricating my guns, Breakfree Collector or Hoppes #9 oil for rust protection and Gunscrubber as a solvent.

As I said in my first post in this thread:

Just to make it clear, I don't use WD-40 on my guns because when I want a solvent I use a product that's just a solvent and when I want a lubricant I use a product that's just a lubricant.

What I am a big fan of are facts and tests over gossip, old wives tales and internet memes. Which is why I asked for a test to prove that WD-40 gums up. Back in June Drail said that a lock would gum up after two weeks. So I tried it and it still hasn't gummed up after 6 weeks. I'm still open to further suggestions on how to get it to gum up. But until someone comes up with a repeatable test that produces that result, as far as I'm concerned the myth is busted.

 

[OilyPablo]

Just cleaned my guns from a range session yesterday. Yep WD-40 used as a intermediate rinse. I like how I can get it to foam and bubble in a AR pre-chamber, helps float out some black bits.

BTW Amsoil ATF really smells like nasty amines. Which is a good thing.

 

[benEzra]

Carl I don't understand how that happened, I have had WD 40 in a gallon metal can for many years and it pours fine when I fill up pump bottles. Is it the exposure to oxygen?

It's the fact that the petroleum solvent in the WD-40 exposed to air will evaporate over time, leaving behind the thicker components that don't evaporate. Eventually all of the solvent is gone, and what is left is pretty thick. It would be as if you dissolved some wax or grease in paint thinner and left it in an open pan for the thinner to evaporate. In an enclosed can, the solvent can't evaporate away so it stores fine for years.

When used for its intended purposes, the fact that WD-40 evaporates away is actually a benefit; that way, you don't have flammable liquid hanging around for years in your electrical circuits.

Regarding the OP, as a short-term gun lubricant for a few days until you can clean and re-lube, it works fine because it takes time for all the solvent to evaporate. For flushing crud out of a mechanism that will be re-lubed again in a short time, it's fine too (my dad gave me a can as a kid to clean my bike chain with). For a gun that won't be cleaned in a while, though, though, you'll want something without solvents to evaporate away.

For me, my preferred gun lubricant (internals only) is Mobil 1 5W-30 EP. It produces a thick film that stays put for months, and lubricates extremely well. For externals, I usually use Rem Oil for short term protection, or Boeshield T-9 for long term storage or severe weather. I've also used Hoppes Elite and Rem Oil at the range when I didn't have a squeeze bottle of Mobil 1 handy, though in my opinion Rem Oil is too thin for long term use on bearing surfaces. In a pinch, I'd certainly have no qualms about using WD-40 as a gun lube, even for an extended period, but I'd clean the mechanism and refresh the film every few days to prevent gumming, and I'd be careful not to get it on ammunition.

 

[Nebraska12]

Agree with what many have said here. I keep a bottle of Mobile 1 on the shelf for this very reason. Also, perhaps, a can of lithium grease.

 

[Walkalong]

the fact that WD-40 evaporates away is actually a benefit; that way, you don't have flammable liquid hanging around for years in your electrical circuits.

It is indeed highly flammable, and a spark will set it off. Found that out the hard way.

Not really........What I am a big fan of are facts and tests over gossip

I can't argue with that but I have never said it gums up, as I have no idea if it does. I just don't consider it a lubricant because there are so much better products for that. True lubricants made for that exact purpose. So we can just disagree on that. It isn't the best for breaking free gummed up or rusted up bolts/mechanisms either, and I prefer other products, but it is cheap, does either of those things decently to reasonably well, is popular, and will always be around. Just because a product has lubricants in it doesn't make it a good "lubricant" by some folks definition.

So, the answer to the OP is yes, use it to get by until you get a better product. But I think I said that much earlier.

 

[susieqz]

i personally haven't seen a better penitrating oil than wd40.
i wanted to remove the front sight on my 22/45. i couldn't get it to budge. i sprayed it with lots of wd40. 3 days later it almost fell off.
cleans my barrels fine when i'm out of kroil.
i use it on locks n hinges all the time.
i'm never without it.
i don't understand why people here seem to hate it.
my guns don't.

 

[Walkalong]

There is a huge difference between not preferring something and hating it. That is a very, very big jump.

 

[Horsemany]

It takes so little lube for a clean gun to function almost anything will work. Where people get into trouble is spraying WD into actions and not wiping out all excess. I was guilty of this in my youth and it gave me fits. I consider that a user problem more than I blame WD40. I now mostly use RemOil and never spray it liberally into an action like back then.