Do you oil/grease the lock work in revolvers?

[Flechette]

Considering that most revolvers are kind of a pain in the butt to open and get to the lock work, and considering that the major manufacturers test fire their revolvers before shipping, does anyone ever lubricate the lock work when buying a new revolver?

After 1000 rounds? At all?

 

[ewlyon]

Anytime I open up a revolver I put a couple drops of oil in there, but I usually open them up only if I am fixing/improving/cleaning something.

 

[CZ9shooter]

I let a drop or two of oil run down the front of the cocked hammer after a normal cleaning (cylinder and barrel). I figure it will soon migrate into most of the nooks and crannies that are difficult to get to.

 

[Armored farmer]

Pro Shot products has this handy oiler with long tube for getting drops of oil right on target......dont forget the firing pin. I had one stick in the "fire" position one time.
This is what i use.

 

[Slamfire]

I let a drop or two of oil run down the front of the cocked hammer after a normal cleaning (cylinder and barrel). I figure it will soon migrate into most of the nooks and crannies that are difficult to get to.

This is all you really need to do. Let a drop of oil slide down to the hammer notches and spread around internally. The only time you need to pop the side plate when the oil gums up, and it is time to use carb cleaner on the internals.

 

[bassjam]

I let a drop or two of oil run down the front of the cocked hammer after a normal cleaning (cylinder and barrel). I figure it will soon migrate into most of the nooks and crannies that are difficult to get to.

I do the same. Sometime's I'll even use a can of compressed air and blow any dust/lint out of there first.

 

[fireman 9731]

On a newly acquired revolver, I perform a thorough cleaning and lube of all the internals and polish or smooth anything that needs it. I put a drop of lube on all the pivot pins, rebound slide, and trigger engagement surfaces then wipe off the excess(which there is plenty of). After that the only thing that gets regular lubrication is the yoke and extractor rod assembly.

 

[Rio Laxas]

Several years ago, I bought a Smith & Wesson Model 1950 (Pre-26) .45 ACP revolver that was in very good shape on the outside but was bright red with rust on the inside where the lockwork resides. Since 99% of my revolver purchases are used and 50+ years old, I always remove the sideplate and clean and lubricate the lockwork. That being done, I doubt I will need to do it again. Depending on the revolver, I'd probably hesitate to use grease (though I admittedly don't have a good reason other than it just doesn't seem like the best place for grease).

 

[doubleh]

Yes, I do and I use a true needle oiler. I bought a pack of the smallest syringes and a pack of 22 guage needles at the local farm & ranch supply. I ground the points off the needles. I keep different weights of oil in three syringes and they allow you put a tiny drop down in tight places.

 

[AZAndy]

Like Rio Laxas, most of my revolver buys are of used guns. Some of them are old; several are from fifty to seventy years, and one's a hundred. You would not believe what the insides look like sometimes. So yes, I pull everything out of there, brush the cavities and all the parts down with CLP and a nylon brush, and sometimes do a little stoning. Then I spray the gunk away, lubricate the contact areas, and re-assemble. I wouldn't do all that with a new one, though I do pop the plate off to get that pesky lock out of there with recent S&Ws.

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

Considering that most revolvers are kind of a pain in the butt to open and get to the lock work, and considering that the major manufacturers test fire their revolvers before shipping, does anyone ever lubricate the lock work when buying a new revolver?

After 1000 rounds? At all?

Haven't bought a Brand Spanky-New in the Box revolver in a long time

Last time I did, yes I opened it up and did a little bit of cleaning and a little bit of smoothing up inside.

Not all that much of a 'pain in the butt' but you do have to know what you're doing.

Is it necessary with a Brand Spanky-New in the box revolver?

No.

Old revolvers, 50, 75, 100, 140 years old - yup, I usually open them up to get rid of old hardened oil and lightly relubricate.

Hint: The more you over lubricate a firearm, the more the oil is likely to polymerize and turn into varnish over time.

 

[mcb]

I don't clean mine too often ever few hundred rounds or if they get really wet or dirty. After I do clean them though, I put CLP on the cylinder axle and ejector rod. I let some CLP wick down the hammer and cycle the revolver a few times. A little CLP on the firing pin (frame or hammer mounted). Turn the revolver over and repeat that for the trigger. I put a drop or two on the cylinder lock and the slot for the pawl and cylinder release pin. I fill the star and the end of the ejector rod if it lock there with high pressure bearing grease. Open and close the cylinder a few times and dry fire the cylinder around two or three times. Wipe any excess off with a clean rag and away I go.

 

[IWAC]

I open up (side plate, trigger housing, depending on maake) clean, stone if needed, replace whatever springs I need to, then spray it with Remington DriLube. Seems to do the job, and works fine on my aluminum-receiver 10-22.

 

[sgt127]

If you ever opened up a new S&W revolver, you would be shocked at how dry they are inside. Literally, just a dab of light oil on the pins and crane.

At armorers school, years ago, the instructors told us that over oiling and greasing revolvers caused more problems than anything. It turned sluggish, trapped dirt, crumbs, lint, sand, whatever.

The old Dallas PD armorer would get brand new Model 64’s. Lightly cleaned and tuned the insides, corrected timing, and then hosed them down with silicone spray and blew it out with compressed air. He swore the dry lube worked better on a duty gun than anything.

We tinker. We oil, get a new oil, figure it’s better than the last oil, change the oil out, dry fire it, swear it took 2 ounces off the trigger pull, tell our friends, play with it son more, take it apart, see how all the little parts move around....etc.

A duty Revolver sat in a holster. Exposed to all the elements until it was needed.

Same reason most revolvers are oversprung. They were made to go the full 30 years with the cop it was issued to with little or no maintenance. And, they actually did it remarkably well.

 

[jaguarxk120]

I though that hole in the left side of the new S&W revolvers is for a zerk fitting.
easy to lube just screw in the fitting and a couple of pumps from the ole grease gun.

 

[chicharrones]

I though that hole in the left side of the new S&W revolvers is for a zerk fitting.
easy to lube just screw in the fitting and a couple of pumps from the ole grease gun.

Lol.

 

[NMPOPS]

Personally, I clean and oil all my revolvers at least once a year. The ones that get shot regularly get the side plate popped 2-3 times a year, thoroughly cleaned and lubed. One of the first things I learned when I got my first revolver 40+ years ago was how to properly clean and maintain them. You shouldn't be afraid to remove the side plate, if more people did you wouldn't be buying 50 year old gunked up guns.

 

[bikerdoc]

Wandering a flea market years ago I found a guy with oilers like Amored Farmer shows. Bought several. The are fantastic.

 

[beag_nut]

I only buy Ruger revolvers, which do not have sideplates. Besides having superior designed-in strength, the normal lubing during cleaning is enough to get the "lockwork" its required attention. Overthinking not required.

 

[entropy]

When I buy one, (used, I have yet to buy a new revolver) I often pull the sideplate (Or trigger assembly on Rugers) and do as some of you have said, clean out and re-lube, very lightly. The only ones I didn't do that to were the two Pythons I bought from my Dad, because the Armorer for the SPPD set them up right for Dad in the first place, plus I had redone the 4" when his hammer broke from my (patent pending) Hammer Breaker 125 gr. compressed Blue Dot loads.

 

[Oldman11]

WD40 has caused more guns to be sold or traded than anything else. I use graphite on the inside of my revolvers,nothing else.

 

[robhof]

WD40 has caused more guns to be sold or traded than anything else. I use graphite on the inside of my revolvers,nothing else.

I totally agree, as I found out first hand with a DW model 15. There's been many discussions and even a few YouTube videos to disagree that WD40 kills primers, but I know for a fact they do. I hunted with my DW in Louisiana and wanted some water repellent quality for the damp environment, what a mistake WD 40 was. My gun shot great before I used it, but didn't after and then shot great after I cleaned with carb cleaner and re oiled with Auto trans oil. Lesson learned, I still use WD 40 for many things, JUST NOT GUNS!

 

[Carl N. Brown]

Oil a revolver's lock works sparingly with a non-gumming non-oxidizing oil.

Water Displacement Formula Forty was designed by NASA for use on electrical contacts exposed to water. It has a wax dissolved in a penetrant solvent that evaporates. It is good for a lot of purposes including cleaning parts that you can wipe clean with a cloth. As an experiment I sprayed WD40 on ammunition and sprayed some WD40 in a metal cup and set it to air out. The penetrant solvent will kill primers. As the solvent evaporated in the cup, the wax got sludgier and sludgier. This is terrible inside the lock works of a revolver The good news is the wax is dissolved by fresh WD40.

I would try removing the grips from a gummed up or dirty revolver, spraying the lock works down with a cleaner, then blowing it out with compressed air, and seeing if that worked before taking the side plate off.

 

[tbob38]

Oil a revolver's lock works sparingly with a non-gumming non-oxidizing oil.

Water Displacement Formula Forty was designed by NASA for use on electrical contacts exposed to water. It has a wax dissolved in a penetrant solvent that evaporates. It is good for a lot of purposes including cleaning parts that you can wipe clean with a cloth. As an experiment I sprayed WD40 on ammunition and sprayed some WD40 in a metal cup and set it to air out. The penetrant solvent will kill primers. As the solvent evaporated in the cup, the wax got sludgier and sludgier. This is terrible inside the lock works of a revolver The good news is the wax is dissolved by fresh WD40.

I would try removing the grips from a gummed up or dirty revolver, spraying the lock works down with a cleaner, then blowing it out with compressed air, and seeing if that worked before taking the side plate off.

You don't even want to see what it does to a fine camera shutter, in very short order!

 

[Jack B.]

Use a drop of synthetic oil. Won't ever gum up. One little drop goes a long way. I use Pro Shot Zero Friction. Used this one little bottle for 4 years so far and still have some left.
http://www.proshotproducts.com/Zero-Friction-1-oz-Needle-Oiler_p_618.html