Shoot Those Carry/Nightstand Guns!

[Jeff Higgins]

Every now and then, even with as much shooting as I do, I either learn a new or re-learn an old lesson. This one has the potential to be more "serious" than most, so I thought I would swallow my pride and share my embarrassment with you folks in the hopes of saving you some potentially serious trouble.

You guys have probably guessed by now that I might own a few guns. I hate to admit it, but sometimes it may actually border on "too many", at least from the standpoint of keeping all of them in the shooting "rotation". Some of them sit for years between range sessions. Not a big deal, as I usually take them out and give them a cursory once-over, maybe run a patch down the bore just to chase the spiders out, and stuff like that before I actually shoot them.

So, the other day when my younger son and I went shooting, I brought along a couple of handguns that normally sit in the nightstand or in a concealment holster. I almost never shoot the things. Granted, that in and of itself might seem like a bit of a bad idea, but I do own many just like them that I do shoot quite often. I can operate either in my sleep. That is, of course, assuming they are actually operational...

Well, one of them was not. My Charter Arms Bulldog Pug in .44 Special ran flawlessly, which is typical for revolvers. My Kimber Ultra Carry in .45 ACP, however, jammed repeatedly. So I asked my son to watch and see if he could see what was happening.

"Dad", went his observation, "the slide is kinda 'oozing' forward. I can actually see it creeping forward almost into battery". Turns out the gun oil I had applied the last time I had it apart and cleaned it had dried into a golden tar. Just a sticky mess. So I quick field stripped it, cleaned it up, reassembled, and it was back to running like its old self.

It's been unfired for probably a couple, maybe three years. I cannot remember which gun oil I applied back then. I'm sure something I bought at the gun store, like Birchwood Casey, Hoppe's, or something similar. I have run into this on other pistols and rifles in the past, most notably a couple match rifles that sat unfired for about a decade.

I've posted this here before, but I'll mention it again. In light of this tendency for dedicated "gun" oils to dry out and gum up, I switched to using what I consider to be the best I have yet tried. I guess I must have missed cleaning the Kimber and re-oiling with the stuff... like I said, maybe "too many" guns...

Well, it turns out it's not a "gun" oil at all. It's Mobil 1 in 5W-20. I learned of its use as a "gun" oil about ten years ago, from the airgun crowd. The pistons in spring piston guns are apparently particularly susceptible to gumming up when lubed with "gun" oils so, after much trial and effort, they settled on Mobil 1. I have personally had it in several guns now for almost a decade, with no signs of drying out and gumming up.

After this episode, I'm making a concerted effort to go through the inventory and clean and lube all of them with Mobil 1. I cannot remember which ones I've used and subsequently cleaned since I "switched over", so I'm just going to do them all.

So, um, yeah - valuable lesson here. I know a lot of guns sit far too long and we don't get to shoot them as much as we like. Maybe take a look and see if yours is in the same boat.

[911Ghia]

I use it on all my guns. Also used it for 30 years on 16mm Bolex film cameras. All my mowers and our generator.

Rich

[cabmandone]

I use it in all my cars! Why not add it to the guns too?

[onewhippedpuppy]

Very true Jeff! Also why my “nightstand” contains a revolver.

[Eric Coffey]

M1 will definitely work. Many make a "home brew" and mix the V-twin MC variety (20w50?) with ATF. There are a couple reasons that it's likely not ideal for guns though. Probably too much sulfur/phosphorus and other "acidics" that maybe harmful to certain finishes over time. And you probably want something with a better (or higher concentration of) rust inhibitor additive. There is also a (potential) issue of toxicity. And it smells bad.

YMMV...

[wildthing]

I don’t have enough guns to have that problem. They are all on rotation at the range. My problem is that the ranges were closed for a while so I haven’t really shot since Covid lockdown...

[Por_sha911]

Thanks for the PSA. This is a life or death reminder when you are dealing with your EDC. Some folks forget to rotate out old ammo as well. Prolly will never be a problem but I don't like "probably" when it comes to that SHTF moment.

Knowing that Jeff has far more experience than I do, I have to defer to his preference to M1 5w20. That said, I tend to want everything to be stock. Especially stock replacement. I find that when you stay with Glock factory parts, the more reliable the gun is.

I guess my way to resolve my hesitation to M1 is I'll just have to shoot all guns on a regular basis. "Honest dear, the experts say I need to go to the range more often" Now I just have to make sure there is enough food for all my children when I get to the range.

[Superman]

The loading gate on my single action .45 suddenly became troubling. (This firearm is on my home work desk, empty, just for handling and fidgeting and dry-firing) Turns out it needed oil. I am not a fanatic about cleaning guns, but I think the lesson here is clear. Jeff says fire them, which is good advice. Disassembly, cleaning and a LIGHT coat of oil is also good advice.

I sure enjoy Jeff's wisdoms and story-telling.

[Por_sha911]

I am OCD about cleaning after every range visit. It is good therapy for me.

Gun cleaning and oil products are like engine motor oils for air cooled. Everyone has a very strong opinion on what is best. I've been using Breakfree CLP to clean and lube and then TW25b synth grease on key spots on the rails.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by Superman

The loading gate on my single action .45 suddenly became troubling. (This firearm is on my home work desk, empty, just for handling and fidgeting and dry-firing) Turns out it needed oil. I am not a fanatic about cleaning guns, but I think the lesson here is clear. Jeff says fire them, which is good advice. Disassembly, cleaning and a LIGHT coat of oil is also good advice.

I sure enjoy Jeff's wisdoms and story-telling.

Supe! Great to hear from you.

Originally Posted by Por_sha911

I am OCD about cleaning after every range visit. It is good therapy for me.

Gun cleaning and oil products are like engine motor oils for air cooled. Everyone has a very strong opinion on what is best. I've been using Breakfree CLP to clean and lube and then TW25b synth grease on key spots on the rails.

Oh, believe me - I'm beyond OCD regarding cleaning and lubrication. A lifetime of shooting black powder will do that to you.

This isn't about cleaning and lubricating, though. This is about how long they sit. This is about some products not being well suited to sitting for extended periods, since they dry out and gum up if they are allowed to sit for too long. This is about choosing those products that, if your guns do have to sit for extended periods of time, will not gum and harden and leave you in the state in which I found myself. If those products do that for you, you have nothing to worry about. I would check, though. Often.

[Por_sha911]

Jeff: agreed. I'd rather use standard gun products and have the excuse to go the range more often.

[Pazuzu]

Be thankful guns don't have batteries. If they used AA cells, many/most of them would now be filled with fuzzy green battery acid, from sitting on a shelf/cabinet/safe for 2 or 3 years unused.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by Por_sha911

Jeff: agreed. I'd rather use standard gun products and have the excuse to go the range more often.

Heh heh heh... yup...

Originally Posted by Pazuzu

Be thankful guns don't have batteries. If they used AA cells, many/most of them would now be filled with fuzzy green battery acid, from sitting on a shelf/cabinet/safe for 2 or 3 years unused.

Yet plenty of modern accessories do require batteries. I've never understood the thought process behind that. It's kind of like the guy who crawls under his car when it's up on a floor jack, with no jack stands. Trusting his life to a three cent Korean o-ring...

[Evans, Marv]

This may be a real no-no, but a good chance to ask. I use Boeshield T-9 on mine. I use it on lots of things in the garage & around the house. It seems to do a very good job putting on a lubricating film that doesn't gunk up. I'm no gun expert though.

[Eric Coffey]

T-9 is an excellent (water-displacing) rust inhibitor, but not really a great "lube". It's sort of like a better version of WD-40.

My go-to is Lubriplate (food grade) PAO synthetic oils/greases.
Slip2000 EWL/EWL30 is also great. Have used both for years.

[jyl]

I’ve often thought, with no proof, that semi autos where the slide runs on short sections of frame “rail” should be less lube sensitive than semi autos where the slide and the frame “rail” make contact over a long section. Former would be Glock, latter would be 1911.

I only have one 1911 and it is very lube sensitive. It has to be visibly wet to be reliable.

I have a Luger which is not lube sensitive at all, despite having long sections of interlocking upper (not really a slide) and frame. But the upper moves very little, almost all the movement is the toggle, and you’d need Locktite to slow that thing.

Further, shorter sections might make the gun more tolerant of sand as the groove in the slide could be more easily cleared.

So I wonder if anyone has cut away pieces of the frame rail on a 1911.

I’m not using the right terms here.

[rfuerst911sc]

Aren't there synthetic gun specific oils ? I would think an oil that is formulated from the beginning to be synthetic based AND for guns would be the perfect solution . I would expect excellent rust resistance and the ability for long term storage without turning to a gummy mess . I remember many moons ago I used a product called Tri Flow and it was synthetic based . It was not marketed specifically as a gun oil but it worked great from what I remember . It was a long time ago .

[Seahawk]

It was a rainy, monsoonal afternoon here yesterday so I did a search on "Mobil 1" and firearms.

Wow, gun guys sure are a bunch of wall flowers They went ugly early.

There were some really good articles as well.

Jeff is my go to guy on fire arms (I own a Ruger revolver based on his suggestion) so I am going to give it a try.

How to you apply and how much, Jeff? Then, how often to you recommend?

[legion]

Anything that I think I might depend on is in the rotation for annual range time/cleaning/lubing.

Just about any lube will degrade over time.

[Rick Lee]

I've been using the M1/ATF mix for years because most of my semi-auto pistols are refinished in NP3 and I've heard Hoppes 9 can damage nickel. But the only pistol that sits for great lengths of time is my model 29, which I just take out for friends who've only ever seen guns in the movies.