WD-40 and Guns

RoosterTim

RoosterTim

New member
I have been told never under any circumstances use WD-40 on a gun. Then others say that it is perfectly fine and a great product to wipe you gun with for storing (WD stands for water deplacement). Note: this is for the exterior only. I was wondering what others thought on this. I may be of the opinion it was not made for firearms so use the right tool. Any thoughts on this topic?
 
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I for one don't use it I would rather use Rem-oil or some other good oil made for guns. That can be used inside and out. There are a lot of other good products made by people that know guns. Go ask a good gun dealer or somebody that shoots a lot. I think they would agree with me. One product to stay away from is Tetra Gun Grease it causes rust.........Bob
 
when i saw the title.. i thought, oh god.... WD-40 is flammable... a no-no. like Bob mentioned, use Rem-Oil.. its designed for guns, dont use WD-40 for guns, ever. i dont care how squeaky your gun is, never use WD-40.
 
RoosterTim said:
I have been told never under any circumstances use WD-40 on a gun. Any thoughts on this topic?
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3X - WD-40 is a no-no.

I've been told the same by people who make their living making and repairing fine firearms. WD-40 will also blanch ie discolor expensive case coloring, the real thing. Also leaves a sticky gummy residue on a guns internals eventually.

Rem Oil is a good protectant and lubricant.

NB
 
I believe the problem with wd-40 is that it contains an amount of propane....we had a problem with maintenance mechanics using it here as it makes everything rust in time. It is no longer allowed on site for that reason. It's penetrating properties can cause some serious pitting.
 
I've never used WD-40. For the exterior of the gun I use a good gun oil and for the internal parts I use Break Free. When it would get extremely cold the action in my auto would get sluggish and slow, then I found Break Free. Never had another problem. http://break-free.com/
 
RoosterTim said:
I have been told never under any circumstances use WD-40 on a gun. Then others say that it is perfectly fine and a great product to wipe you gun with for storing (WD stands for water replacement). Note: this is for the exterior only. I was wondering what others thought on this. I may be of the opinion it was not made for firearms so use the right tool. Any thoughts on this topic?
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wd- 40, wd stands for water Displacement number 40. It was developed by the Dod,to removed water from parts of aircraft etc. As others have stated not good for guns, as it is not a lubricant.:)
 
WD-40 on a Wet Gun?

If WD-40 gets rid of water, how about using it on a wet gun, then wiping it down good with gun oil?
 
I've been using WD-40 to wipe down the exterior of my guns forever, including one which was new in 1963. Several of them have been wiped down with WD-40 a thousand times.

None of them have ever had a speck of rust.

I have used Mobil 1 synthetic motor oil to lubricate internal parts for about 25 years, and have yet to wear out any part or see any reason to change to something else. My skeet gun must have near 100K rounds through it and shows no wear at all, it still locks up like the day it was new.

Different strokes for different folks. I would guess that there are dozens if not hundreds of good gun care products available.

The simple truth is that guns are simple machines which operate infrequently, at relatively low speed and moderate temperatures. It's a simple problem to lubricate them compared to, say, a turbocharger which operates at 50,000 rpm and 1200F.
 
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I have used WD-40 on guns, internal and external, blued and camo finishes for 35 years. Never had a case of pitting or corrosion. Used to work in a gun shop and we used WD-40. Plenty of other options available as well. On the other hand, of the other options available I have not heard many positives about Rem-Oil.
 
jnormanh said:
I've been using WD-40 to wipe down the exterior of my guns forever, including one which was new in 1963. Several of them have been wiped down with WD-40 a thousand times.

None of them have ever had a speck of rust.

I have used Mobil 1 synthetic motor oil to lubricate internal parts for about 25 years, and have yet to wear out any part or see any reason to change to something else. My skeet gun must have near 100K rounds through it and shows no wear at all, it still locks up like the day it was new.

Different strokes for different folks. I would guess that there are dozens if not hundreds of good gun care products available.

The simple truth is that guns are simple machines which operate infrequently, at relatively low speed and moderate temperatures. It's a simple problem to lubricate them compared to, say, a turbocharger which operates at 50,000 rpm and 1200F.
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This is great info. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
 
I've had several gunsmiths tell me that WD-40 leaves a residue that only WD-40 can remove. It continues to build up with each application. With the tight tolerences on firearms, that residue eventually causes malfunctions. Case in point, I inherited my father's pump shotgun. He had used WD-40 on it for years. When I got it it wouldn't lock in the closed position due to the buildup. Took it to the gunsmith and received a good chewing after hours of effort to remove the residue. I did get it out early that season and harvested a rooster with "DAD'S" gun. The tail feathers are still on the visor of my truck. I do like Rem Oil.
 
I've used WD40 to wipe down the exterior of all the guns I've used for 20 years (since I was 10 and got to help out in cleaning them). I'd guess dad has been using it for close to forever. All of our guns look fine, no rust, no pitting, no operational issues. We don't use it as a lubricant. Also switch around to various other items such as Rem-Oil, Break-Free, motor oil, Ed's Red, Kroil, and on and on. All seem to do their job, but just about anything would if you take care of your stuff by cleaning them up after being in the elements. If its a sunny day in the pheasant fields we won't touch them, but they do get wiped down or fully pulled apart and cleaned if its wet or they're going into the safe for another week or two.
 
Can't say that I use it. Have a bunch of CLP around. Here is what the manufacture of WD says.

"Use WD-40 to clean and protect your gun. It will prevent corrosion and it won't damage bluing."
 
moellermd said:
Can't say that I use it. Have a bunch of CLP around. Here is what the manufacture of WD says.

"Use WD-40 to clean and protect your gun. It will prevent corrosion and it won't damage bluing."
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companies sometime use quotes like that to sell. it could be a flat out lie, could be a horrible thing. i know one thing...


WD-40 may be a water repellent but it does NOT repell dust and dust is what will rust your gun once the WD-40 and Dust combines and you having it in your gun case during the off season, it'll be rusty.
 
moellermd said:
Can't say that I use it. Have a bunch of CLP around. Here is what the manufacture of WD says.

"Use WD-40 to clean and protect your gun. It will prevent corrosion and it won't damage bluing."
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moellermd

CLP, is the same as breakfree. It's the same thing. All of you that want use Wd-40 on your weapons, go ahead. It does leave a flim that, as stated by many, will cause problems. Clp/ or breakfree is the only product that the military will use on their wepons. if wd-40 works for you good luck.
 
jnormanh said:
I've been using WD-40 to wipe down the exterior of my guns forever, including one which was new in 1963. Several of them have been wiped down with WD-40 a thousand times.

None of them have ever had a speck of rust.

I have used Mobil 1 synthetic motor oil to lubricate internal parts for about 25 years, and have yet to wear out any part or see any reason to change to something else. My skeet gun must have near 100K rounds through it and shows no wear at all, it still locks up like the day it was new.

Different strokes for different folks. I would guess that there are dozens if not hundreds of good gun care products available.

The simple truth is that guns are simple machines which operate infrequently, at relatively low speed and moderate temperatures. It's a simple problem to lubricate them compared to, say, a turbocharger which operates at 50,000 rpm and 1200F.
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I've also used WD-40 in the past, I just don't use it anymore. I've never thought about Mobil1 synthetic for the internal parts, heck if it's good enough to run in my Hemi it should be good enough to use on my Winchesters.
 
kiotehntr said:
I've also used WD-40 in the past, I just don't use it anymore. I've never thought about Mobil1 synthetic for the internal parts, heck if it's good enough to run in my Hemi it should be good enough to use on my Winchesters.
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And one quart will last for a lifetime. :)
 
try WD40 yourself- I've been using it since the 50's
Break Free I like- but good ole WD40 is a great cleaner preservative-
mine get wet I used WD40 first
spray clean your gun with WD40- never seen it harm the insides or outsides- wipe everything down or you could blow dry it

what you might like to do- coat it pretty good and wipe all parts but leave a film- then stick it in your freezer- you might be surprised

ask the gun folks what they used way back in the 60's when they say never under any circumstance use WD40- doubt they've ever tried it- it's pretty darn good actually

displaces water- you can take an old vehicle with a distributor and head to a car wash- spray the heck out of the engine- remove the distributor cap- spray the cap inside real heavy- put it back on- spray the coil and spark plug wires- vehicle will start and run fine- catch on fire- before you say so- try it

use it or don't- there are all sorts of products out there- but it works- and isn't harmfull to guns- or many other things
 
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