1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
Since the talk often turns to the best lube for the job...I may have been selected to test the answer to that question in the form of a small batch of an as yet unmarketed lubricant that arrived in a freebie package from Dave Berryhill of Berryhill Custom Guns.
Now...everybody kinda knows that I'm not much for new gadgets...and that applies to the miraculous new Wunderlubes that have been makin' their debut of late. Me? If it's oil, it's oil. Slap it on.
Oh...I tried a few of the new goops that promised to slick'em up to the point of defying the laws of physics, and while they all lubricated...I felt that they were pretty much another gimmick that the marketeers would use to convince us that we always needed it...but just didn't know it yet.
Along with a beautifully finished wide-spur hammer and sear for me to put through the wringer to see what they'll stand...there was a small, capped tub of a strange-lookin' and stranger-feelin' reddish/purplish goop with a hand-written name on the top of the cap..."Gun-Goo." (Cute)
Day before yesterday, with "Okay, Dave...Impress me" still fresh on my lips, I went out to the little shop of horrors that I laughingly refer to as my workshop...thoroughly degreased two of my more tightly-fitted beaters...and applied a little "Gun-Goo" to the rails and a light smear to the disconnector rail and barrel OD, up at the muzzle.
The first thing that I noticed was that the gun immediately felt smoother. No surprise there. It's grease. That's what it's supposed to do. Then I tried to wipe it off of my fingers...and no matter how hard I wiped, my fingers stayed slick. They were still slick at bedtime last night, in spite of the fact that I use Dawn dishwashing liquid for most of my hand-washing chores.
Yesterday, I took the pistols to the range for a 500-round workout. The guns were noticeably smoother when functioning, and at roughly the halfway point in the session...they felt like they started to ride on ball-bearings.
When I got home to wipe and clean...the stuff was still on the rails, and the steel felt like it had been coated with a thin film of teflon. I sprayed my usual carb cleaner spritz...wiped and brushed to remove the carbon gunk that cast bullet shooters know and love...and the stuff was STILL there, and still made the steel feel like a goose-greased doorknob, even though I couldn't visually detect any remaining lube. Since I used only a tiny amount, as per Dave's instructions...a 2-ounce tub of the stuff will last me well into the next decade.
Okay, Dave. So far, I'm impressed...and that ain't a small feat. The next phase will tell the tale. I intend to run the guns dry for the next range session...probably the middle of next week...and we'll just see how it holds up, buddy.
FWIW, my pistols will run well when they're dry, and though I always put a few drops on'em after the cleanup following each session, I don't normally re-oil on range day...which can be up to a week later. By the time the usual extended sessions are done, the oil has pretty much turned into a thick, carbon-based slurry...what little of it there is left...and even though the guns don't stop, they do start to feel a little sluggish by the time I get'em home. This time was different. If anything, they felt smoother during hand-cycling than they did when the "Gun-Goo" was fresh.
I'll report back on the performance during the upcoming "Run'em Dry" session, along with a later report on the hammer and sear.
Now...everybody kinda knows that I'm not much for new gadgets...and that applies to the miraculous new Wunderlubes that have been makin' their debut of late. Me? If it's oil, it's oil. Slap it on.
Oh...I tried a few of the new goops that promised to slick'em up to the point of defying the laws of physics, and while they all lubricated...I felt that they were pretty much another gimmick that the marketeers would use to convince us that we always needed it...but just didn't know it yet.
Along with a beautifully finished wide-spur hammer and sear for me to put through the wringer to see what they'll stand...there was a small, capped tub of a strange-lookin' and stranger-feelin' reddish/purplish goop with a hand-written name on the top of the cap..."Gun-Goo." (Cute)
Day before yesterday, with "Okay, Dave...Impress me" still fresh on my lips, I went out to the little shop of horrors that I laughingly refer to as my workshop...thoroughly degreased two of my more tightly-fitted beaters...and applied a little "Gun-Goo" to the rails and a light smear to the disconnector rail and barrel OD, up at the muzzle.
The first thing that I noticed was that the gun immediately felt smoother. No surprise there. It's grease. That's what it's supposed to do. Then I tried to wipe it off of my fingers...and no matter how hard I wiped, my fingers stayed slick. They were still slick at bedtime last night, in spite of the fact that I use Dawn dishwashing liquid for most of my hand-washing chores.
Yesterday, I took the pistols to the range for a 500-round workout. The guns were noticeably smoother when functioning, and at roughly the halfway point in the session...they felt like they started to ride on ball-bearings.
When I got home to wipe and clean...the stuff was still on the rails, and the steel felt like it had been coated with a thin film of teflon. I sprayed my usual carb cleaner spritz...wiped and brushed to remove the carbon gunk that cast bullet shooters know and love...and the stuff was STILL there, and still made the steel feel like a goose-greased doorknob, even though I couldn't visually detect any remaining lube. Since I used only a tiny amount, as per Dave's instructions...a 2-ounce tub of the stuff will last me well into the next decade.
Okay, Dave. So far, I'm impressed...and that ain't a small feat. The next phase will tell the tale. I intend to run the guns dry for the next range session...probably the middle of next week...and we'll just see how it holds up, buddy.
FWIW, my pistols will run well when they're dry, and though I always put a few drops on'em after the cleanup following each session, I don't normally re-oil on range day...which can be up to a week later. By the time the usual extended sessions are done, the oil has pretty much turned into a thick, carbon-based slurry...what little of it there is left...and even though the guns don't stop, they do start to feel a little sluggish by the time I get'em home. This time was different. If anything, they felt smoother during hand-cycling than they did when the "Gun-Goo" was fresh.
I'll report back on the performance during the upcoming "Run'em Dry" session, along with a later report on the hammer and sear.