Iraq report on Militec gun lube products

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It works, yes, it do -

My former neighbor, who was in the Secret Service, turned me on to this stuff a while back.

Whenever I buy a new (or new to me) gun, the first thing I do is clean it thoroughly and give it a good once-over with MilTec-1 - that is, all lube points and swab the bore and chamber well. IME, it seems to simplify break-in, and it absolutely helps cleaning. It seems to soothe all steel, alloy/steel, stainless, polymer, whatever - they just motor well. Slick-50 for guns (at least in concept), is a good analogy.

I'm a hobbyist /duffer who just likes handguns- I carry when it suits me and I have no real 'hard use' handguns, but I do have several with a couple of thousand rounds thru that look barely worn, FWIW.

I've also used it on a couple of knives, seems to compare to Sentry Solutions lube for day-to-day maintenence.

YMMV
 
OK, maybe I'm misunderstanding all of this... could someone clear it up for me?

It sounds to me like the intended purpose of this stuff (when properly applied - pour on and EZ-Bake oven and everything) is to treat the metal of the gun, make it (for lack of a better term) 'slicker', more rust resistant, and easier to clean, right?

So once you apply this stuff, are you not supposed to use any lubricant (CLP, for example) at all? Or can it be used in conjunction with a normal cleaning/lubricating oil? Seems to me like this stuff would work best when used to make your standard cleaning procedures easier and more effective, but everyone seems to be referring to it as an alternative to regular cleaning and lubricating with CLP.
 
'Card, it is a lubricant. When used according to directions, it seems to make the next cleanup easier than the Remington, Outers or what-have-you gun oils I've used previously. Others will know more about this than I.

I've been very pleased with the performance of Militec-1 on my M1s over the past few months. I don't have the extensive data set that others of you have collected. I coated all of the metal parts and fired the rifle a lot, as many have described. Works great, and the carbon seems to come off from the gas piston quite nicely when I clean it.

I have noticed something I didn't expect in cold weather with Militec GREASE in an M1, as follows.

Late last fall, I applied Militec GREASE in the same way I'd been taught to use Lubriplate or Plastilube: I glopped it on around several spots on the bolt and at the other places on the rifle that are indicated in various tech and field manuals. I used lots of grease. This is normal. However, note that the manuals clearly specify running the weapon in "dry" condition (no grease) during "very cold weather."

This is Wisconsin, and the M1's a WWII and Korean veteran. Around here, "very cold weather" begins somewhere below zero Fahrenheit. I figured that the same would be true for this rifle.

I had several failures to feed while firing in air temperatures right at freezing. The failures were consistent with what I expect to see if the bolt's travel is slowed during its cycle. The Militec Grease was noticeably more viscous -- it felt thicker -- than when I'd fired at air temps in the 50s and 60s Fahrenheit.

I cleaned most of the Militec-1 grease from the rifle, used a very small amount of Lubriplate and it functioned flawlessly again.

My point is simply to suggest that, with Militec GREASE on an M1 rifle, "very cold temperatures" begin at around freezing.

Not a complaint, just a data point.
 
Cold weather performace is a big deal for me, though.

I mean, range time is nice and everything, but for a lubricant to be effective for me it has to work when it counts, and when it counts most for me is in late November or early December, high up in the Appalachian mountains, when the snow is a foot deep and a nice buck just blasted his way out of a laurel thicket cruising along at about Mach 4.

So you feel like treating a rifle with Militec-1, and then using a more common product like CLP as the daily lubricating/cleaning agent would be a better solution?
 
Sorry, 'Card, I probably didn't make the distinction clear in my post. Militec-1 lubricant is not the same thing as the Militec Grease that I over-lubed my M1 with (for the cold conditions). In that rifle, with a known bolt-travel issue -- known for six decades or more -- I needed to lighten up on the Grease.

I think that it's an M1 issue, not a Militec issue, and the Militec-1 oil that people are writing about through most of this discussion is a different product than the grease from the same company. They sent me a tube of each last fall when I requested them. Good stuff.

The Militec-1 oil that I use all over the rifle to protect it seems to be doing a marvelous job. Works great on all of the other weapons, too.
 
I understood. I just had the impression that you were using the grease as a 'routine lubricant' after having treated the rifle with the other, non-grease stuff. :)

Thanks for the info, though. This is a pretty interesting topic to me.
 
Instead of interviewing soldiers deployed in a combat area about weapons, they should have interviewed the internet commandos and got the real story.
Click to expand...

My comments about CLP were based on my experiences in Kuwait '91. Sand wasn't that big of a problem since we took common sense measures: light coats of CLP allowed to dry, dust cover closed, muzzle cap, black pantyhose on occasion to cover other parts. Plus, the pantyhose feels so nice against your skin... :neener:


Again, I'm sure that Militech is wonderful when properly employed. I'm just saying *my* M16 and M60 didn't become a dust magnet from *my* use of CLP. Tht being said, no matter what you do, you gotta do a quick swab of that chamber with a Q-tip to make sure no big grains of sand snuck in there. Doesn't matter what lube you use. Kilo-two-echo out...

(444, don't take my quote as offense against your comment. I feel what you're saying. :) )
 
Every grease out there that I have seen is primarily composed of lithium soap then there are additives like molydisulfide, graphite, and lots of other exotic and secret stuff.

Grease is designed to function in a sealed environment, its designed to lubricate areas that acheive a high temperature without boiling or running out, think sealed applications like grease fittings bearings etc.

When you use grease outside of a sealed environment, it picks up moisture because lithium soap is hydroscopic. It picks up dirt and grit and and holds it.
Grease also thickens when it gets cold.

Those properties make any grease much less than ideal for use on a firearm IMHO.
 
Less than ideal? I agree absolutely.

The best available option for some applications (such as the specified lubrication points on M1 rifles in moderate temperates; 1911 rails; some others)...I think so.

That's why engineers have designed a lot of current weapons not to need grease.
 
I have used MiliTec for a few years plus....BUT read the directions.... remove all plastic etc. parts, place the metal parts in a black plastic bag, and place in the sun, for a few hours..... then apply the MiliTec...or use a hair drier to heat the metal....and then apply. Log onto their web site, and they will send you some FREE...for the asking...try it out....then decide for yourself. ( Thanks SunDance)
 
Unless you're operating in environments colder than -58*F or so, you'll find that Mobil 1 will flow and lube any weapon you own as well or better than any other product on the market. One caveat about Mobil 1, though: If you're operating in a temperature greater than 450*F or so it might begin to bubble and thin out a little.
 
TW-25b is pure GARBAGE. I don't care what Gunsite thinks about it. For them to push a product like that makes me suspect their expertise.

I used to use TW-25b on my pistol. I never had a problem really, it lubricated well, and it did minimize wear. Whenever I'd shoot, I'd clean my firearms immediately after. I would reapply it, and my pistol would usually stay inside my house for a month before I would go to the range again.

A family member of mine used this on his pistol. I gave him a tube to use. He doesn't shoot as often as I do. He cleaned his firearm (a 1911) and applied the TW-25b. He keeps this particular pistol in his trunk. Note, this is Florida, trunks can get up to 140 degrees easily, and it is very humid. After 1 month, not a day more, he took out his 1911, tried to cycle it, and it was gummed up beyond belief.


The TW-25b turned into muck. It hardened and dried up. It was like a thin layer of caulking...kind of rubbery. If you've ever taken off an old CPU from a computer's motherboard, and saw the old, sticky, hard heatsink paste...that's exactly what it was like. It took a wirebrush and a couple of hours to get it all out. I was shocked when I heard this, and when I saw it, I was quite disappointed.


He didn't apply too much, or too little. If anything, I apply much more to my pistol (HK USP) and never had this happen. The key difference, is that my firearm was kept indoors where it is cool and there is low humidity. His was not fired once, but was kept in a quality lined gun case, in his trunk.


For me, TW-25b has failed the ultimate test. It has failed to even remain a lubricant. It actually is worse than other lubes that dry up, at least those vanish, this became a caulk-like deposit on the internals. When I saw his firearm, I took mine out, blasted it with brake-cleaner, got it spotless, then applied CLP and have never looked back.

I still have a tube and a half left. Been keeping it around incase I need to ever lube something not-important. What a waste of $.
Click to expand...



I use TW-25B cleaner/degreaser, oil, and grease as my primary gun care products. I live in central alabama wher ei get high humidity,and high temps for my trunk gun. Not to mention the problem the heat causes for my sweating on the gun. If used properly this is the best stuff going in my experience. During the winter I use the oil not the grease. I have had zero problems with this stuff. I am very exacting in how I take care of my weapons and wouldn't use garbage. In the field I use an otis kit with the otis clp, everywhere else i use the TW-25B. As to the "salt" test conducted by the member above I am aware of several such informal tests that had the exact opposite results with TW-25B working well for surface protection. To each his own I can find cases of every oil/grease/cleaner failing.
I also use the TW-25B products on my duty weapon year round , I go in and out of high heat, high humidity arears to cool, low humidity areas several times a day as well as often having to go out in the rain and my duty weapon has yet to show any signs of corrosion or lube failure.
 
Unless you're operating in environments colder than -58*F or so, you'll find that Mobil 1 will flow and lube any weapon you own as well or better than any other product on the market. One caveat about Mobil 1, though: If you're operating in a temperature greater than 450*F or so it might begin to bubble and thin out a little.
Click to expand...
I wholeheartedly agree. I've been using a 50/50 mixture of Mobil 1 15W-50 and synthetic ATF to lubricate all of my firearms since Day 1, and have yet to experience any kind of lubrication-related failure.

(And since I don't foresee myself using any of my firearms on the surface of Mercury, I don't think I have to worry about the lubrication bubbling and thinning out. ;) )
 
+1 on militec in Iraq. A complimentary case was given to us as we
deployed and our supply sgt had no problem getting more in theater.

Now that I'm home, I treat it like liquid platinum....
 
Interesting info in the original post, though I doubt I'll switch from CLP on my "social" firearms.

All my milsurps get Ed's Red to clean and Mobil 1 to lube & protect. If I tried to use pricey products on them, I'd go broke.
 
"I don't think I have to worry about the lubrication bubbling and thinning out."

That is something that I feel that I have to contend with. I frequently train in an area that is within a easy hour's drive from Death Valley. It isn't unusual for summer temperatures here to be in excess of 110 degrees. So, before the first shot is fired, my black rifle is at 100 degrees. Add the heat of firing, or possibly the increased heat of firing with a suppressor and IMO you need a grease to keep the lube where you need it.
My problem (I think) was using that same grease in the winter. Even though it doesn't get "that" cold here, it still seemed to gum up in the colder (40s) temperature.
As was already mentioned, there are a number of firearms which require grease such as the M1 rifle and the M1A/M14 rifle. The military specifies grease as well as the civilian manufacturers of the semi-auto copies.
Point being, there is definitely a place for grease in firearms lubrication.

"My comments about CLP were based on my experiences in Kuwait '91. Sand wasn't that big of a problem since we took common sense measures:"
I wasn't really talking about the CLP. I was making a smart comment about the M4 carbine which the internet commandos love to bash.
 
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