3-in-1 Oil

[Acmemfg]

I suggest using WD40 for just about anything you choose, except gun maintenance. I know two guys who almost died as a result of doing so.
Reader's Digest version..
Armed robbery, officers on scene. Bad guys pull shotgun on officers. Officers draw and..."click". 2nd round, "click".
Officer #2..."click". 2nd round "BANG!"
End of incident.
Both officers used WD40 to clean weapons (S&W revolvers).
As a penetrating lubricant, WD40 leached into the cartridges through the flash hole. Fouled powder. No bueno
Moral..avoid WD40 in your firearms.

 

[jj_sharp]

Oil seems to have medicinal effects.
Examples include: chapped, dry & abraded skin, mineral oil Laxative.
Nutrugenia make a good dandruff shampoo that uses oil as an ingredient.

Plus Ps. 23: "...You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. ...";
The significance of oil anointing I do not understand.
It may be purely symbolic or ceremonial; but I wonder if oil was used medically.

There are a number of kinds of oil to boot (I am looking at Oregano oil on my desk, aromatic).

Anyhow, I digress. If I had a minor cut or abrasion, and all I had was kerosene, I believe I would use it (but it would not be my first choice for treatment).

 

[jj_sharp]

As a penetrating lubricant, WD40 leached into the cartridges through the flash hole. Fouled powder. No bueno

I believe this could happen.
One wonders if they sprayed their loaded guns with the stuff.

 

[Acmemfg]

No...they did not. The subsequent investigation proved they only used it as one may apply Hoppe's or a similar product. Actually back when (70's-early 80's) using WD40 to clean service weapons was common practice in my neck of the woods.

 

[BigFoot]

I used 3 in 1 on all my guns as a lad. I have used Rem Oil for probably the last 20 years or so.

 

[shavefan]

I suggest using WD40 for just about anything you choose, except gun maintenance. I know two guys who almost died as a result of doing so.
Reader's Digest version..
Armed robbery, officers on scene. Bad guys pull shotgun on officers. Officers draw and..."click". 2nd round, "click".
Officer #2..."click". 2nd round "BANG!"
End of incident.
Both officers used WD40 to clean weapons (S&W revolvers).
As a penetrating lubricant, WD40 leached into the cartridges through the flash hole. Fouled powder. No bueno
Moral..avoid WD40 in your firearms.

Scary. And a good lesson.

 

[Raissermesser]

Oil seems to have medicinal effects.
Examples include: chapped, dry & abraded skin, mineral oil Laxative.
Nutrugenia make a good dandruff shampoo that uses oil as an ingredient.

Plus Ps. 23: "...You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. ...";
The significance of oil anointing I do not understand.
It may be purely symbolic or ceremonial; but I wonder if oil was used medically.

There are a number of kinds of oil to boot (I am looking at Oregano oil on my desk, aromatic).

Anyhow, I digress. If I had a minor cut or abrasion, and all I had was kerosene, I believe I would use it (but it would not be my first choice for treatment).

Before I learned about O'Keeffe's, I used a combination of petroleum jelly and mineral oil on my hands. Messy, and had to wipe off, leaving just a residue. I think it just helped prevent further chapping. Since I have to use electrically insulated gloves in the field, that meant washing it off my hands, as getting any petroleum product on the gloves is dangerous no-no.

 

[Raissermesser]

Ballistol, Break Free, and Rem Oil are my go to lubricants. I avoid WD40 like the plague. Knox County (TN) Sheriff's Office was using Mobil 1 exclusively on all their weapons last I heard ...and those guys know what they're doing.

Have to wonder about the weight of the oil, and yes, that's a serious question. Thinking about how multi-weight oil changes viscosity with temperature.

 

[mtnredhed]

Ed's Red is really designed to be more a cleaner (although not very effective for metal fouling). The tip was to reserve off a small amount of 50/50 Kerosene and ATF Dexron type II (not sure if they still make TII). This predates many advances in lubricants. If you really want to go down the lubricant rabbit hole, bring it up in a watch forum.

None of which probably matters to the typical gun owner. Unless you're packing guns away for multi year storage, most any well refined lube (synth or mineral based) should work. I've read comments about not using teflon containing oils in gun barrels, but I've yet to see anything more than speculation as to why.

 

[shavefan]

Ed's Red is really designed to be more a cleaner (although not very effective for metal fouling). The tip was to reserve off a small amount of 50/50 Kerosene and ATF Dexron type II (not sure if they still make TII). This predates many advances in lubricants. If you really want to go down the lubricant rabbit hole, bring it up in a watch forum.

None of which probably matters to the typical gun owner. Unless you're packing guns away for multi year storage, most any well refined lube (synth or mineral based) should work. I've read comments about not using teflon containing oils in gun barrels, but I've yet to see anything more than speculation as to why.

Lubrication topics are always dicey for some unknown reason. 'Best' motor oil, trans oil, reel oil, 2 stroke oil, machine oil, etc. etc. threads never seem to get resolved.

I always thought 'Ed's Red' was a cleaner too. I'm sure it provides some measure of lubrication though. Anyway, I've never been sold on all in one "CLP's". All have their strengths and weaknesses in one area or another.

 

[Omarz]

I recommend tough glide comes in a needle point tube and it sort of drys after a awhile and works sort of like a dry lube when it does I use is on my dovo best quality the 3 in one stuff does gum up if there’s a lot of dust and sort of gets thick and glugly

 

[Whiterook]

I use the medical grade mineral oil on my knives. Not only will it easily remove the gum residue from opening packages, but you can cut food with the knife without risk of contamination.

 

[Raissermesser]

I use the medical grade mineral oil on my knives. Not only will it easily remove the gum residue from opening packages, but you can cut food with the knife without risk of contamination.

This was why I tried it. Used to use 3-in-1 oil for that, then happened to think of the times I've used a pocket knife for cleaning fish and game. That had me re-evaluating my sharpening oil.

 

[jkingrph]

I use medical mineral oil to treat some of my cast iron cookware & grill that is not used very often to prevent rust. Pots and large skillet gets wiped out before use. Never enough residue to affect taste.

 

[jj_sharp]

I always thought 'Ed's Red' was a cleaner too.

Yes, but the instructions recommend saving a bit of 50-50 ATF/K1.

"You can divert a small quantity, up to 4 ounces per quart of the 50-50 ATF/kerosene mix for use as an "Ed's Red-compatible" gun oil. ".

My guess is that the kerosene thins the oil down OR perhaps adds some sort of oil-wet capacity with respect to metal. That was a college flash back (water-wet verses-oil wet... a subject that I do not recall in any meaningful way).

Jody

 

[nortac]

Eds Red recipe:

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[nortac]

I use what has been referred to as "USMC Red" and there are probably many variations of the recipe.
1 qt Mobil 1 synthetic 5w 30
1 lg bottle of Hoppes #9 (instead of kerosene)
1 qt. ATF
1 can STP

Slick as all get out!

 

[Bhugo]

You folks are hardcore mixing up those concoctions. That would make a ton of gun oil!

 

[shavefan]

I use what has been referred to as "USMC Red" and there are probably many variations of the recipe.
1 qt Mobil 1 synthetic 5w 30
1 lg bottle of Hoppes #9 (instead of kerosene)
1 qt. ATF
1 can STP

Slick as all get out!

Ah ha, I see now. There's Ed's Red cleaner and Ed's Red lube. Thank you sir, great info.

Ive never made Ed's (maybe I'll give a try sometime) but I do make a home brew "rust penetrant" for out in the shop. 1 part acetone to 1 part ATF. Super cheap and super effective.

 

[jkingrph]

Have to wonder about the weight of the oil, and yes, that's a serious question. Thinking about how multi-weight oil changes viscosity with temperature.

Unless you are running a full auto to get extremely hot, I don't think you will have to worry about viscosity changes, and then it would probably be beneficial.