Brownells Busts WD40

[FISH4BUGS]

I protect my Hensley & Gibbs bullet moulds by spraying them with WD40 and wrapping the mould in a plastic bag and taping it, leaving the handles exposed.
I have done that for some 40 years. Works like a charm.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

I use Birchwood Casey's Barricade on my Steel molds. Clean them of with Gunscrubber.

[todd9.3x57]

i use pb blaster to take off rusted nuts. i use kroil for the stubborn ones. i use 3 in 1 oil for everything else. my rifles are either g96 gun treatment or ballistol.

[PopcornSutton]

I have read WD isn't the best for long term storage. I rarely use it when machining aluminum, as many suggest. I use my usual cutting oil when machining, it keeps chip weld down, I also keep a spray of air while cutting. For storage, I haven't had much problem, but WD isn't my go to. I wipe things down with a rag that has something more substantial than WD.

[1hole]

I've seen guns gummed up with old varnish, I mean WD40, too. Years ago a friend of mine asked me to look at his wife's deer rifle. They had been getting ready to hunt, and the first round chambered went off without pulling the trigger! The rifle had previously been "cleaned" with WD40, then stored in the closet for a couple years. The WD40 had congealed in the trigger group.

I've long suspected it was WD40 (or a similar quick-drying oil) that gummed up the excellent Rem 700 hunting rifle trigger and caused some accidental discharges and even a few deaths. Dry oil is called "varnish" ... and varnish is NOT a good gun (or fishing reel) lube!

... it had been pointed in a safe direction (thank you hunter's safety education!) so no harm done. I did just what that Brownell's article says, and used WD40 to clean out old WD40. Another time I bought a beautiful vintage Ruger Standard for a bargain, then spent a couple hours cleaning the decades old WD40 varnish out of it. I'm sure most of us who have tinkered with guns for a while all have similar stories.

As I was learning to never use WD40 as a precision lube I used cheep spray brake cleaner (Walmart's brand) to remove the sticky mess I had sprayed in; that worked great so I've not had any trigger troubles. (I'm not very smart but I CAN learn!)

I thought it had become common knowledge that WD40 was not a do-all household "oil", but I guess not. I still like and use it from time to time, for specific purposes. It works pretty good as a solvent for dissolving and digging gunk and gunpowder residue out of the nooks and crannies, but I always wipe it off and apply real lube afterwards.

You're right; used correctly, WD40 is a great spray but it often gets used incorrectly.

The right way to use that stuff to prevent rust is to liberally spray down any gun AND bore that's been exposed to water. I do it in camp, as soon as possible. And then wipe it with paper towels to remove any surface water before leaning it (muzzle down, to drain everything) in a warmish corner to dry for a few hours. Finish with a high quality light oil that is a good lube but doesn't dry gummy.

I've found the very best light oil that safely lubes my guns (and reels) very well and protects the metal from rust while it's very slow drying and leaves no discernable residue (it's also quite cheep by the Walmart quart) is any automotive ATF (automatic transmission fluid).

[1hole]

That was my experience, I used to drench my guns in it before the internet and I didn't know better...

Actually, if you keep your parts well wetted it can't dry so it can't congeal as a varnish! But it's really just a water "lifter" anyway! As a very light oil it does have some short term lube qualities but it's not intended to be much of a long term lube.

The question of how long before WD40 gums up is unanswerable; what's the storage temp, what's the humidity, what's the air circulation around the wet surfaces, etc., all come into play.

[Rcmaveric]

.
I'm told if you really want to protect metal from corrosion, you need Boeshield. I've never tried it because it's expensive. An 8oz pump spray bottle is about $11. That's a couple of cans of WD-40 for short term, or a quart of most any good oil. There are lots of chemicals that will damage or destroy plastics. Kroil contains some of them, too.

Gotta be careful about what you use where, and what effect it has. Compare the SDS data sheets for WD-40, Kroil, and PB Blaster Penetrant. Lots of similarities, and a few differences. I'd say which one is best depends on exactly what you need to do. None of them are good for everything, as I think I've said before.

Bill

I got a can of Boesheild. Its a lacqure type cpc similisr to the cpc type 1 from the military aviation. Expensive amd works great aslong as yhe surface doesnt move. What i want is some CPC type 2 or 3. I did find this fluid film stuff st Lowes that is a lube and cpc (corrosion preventstive compound) its exactly the same stuff we used in helocopters called Fluid Film. I use that on moveable parts that need corrosion protection.

I was just using WD40 as a penetrating oil earlier today on my saw. Had to break the blade guard loose to get the blade off.


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[Alstep]

I've tried just about everything mentioned here on old rusted bolts on farm machinery that's been left outside for years. Nothing penetrates it. My solution is a red wrench (torch). When I get it to break loose, non of the penetrants even got under the bolt head, much less the threads.

[BucketBack]

It works great in a duck blind when weather is nasty and the shotgun is dirty was swamp.

But, yeah clean the gun when you get home.

[Handloader109]

Bill, you seriously underestimate Kroil. It’s what PB Blaster and Knock-er-Loose want to be. Boeshield is worth every penny. Most of my woodworking machinery is old cast iron and was purchased with anywhere from a little to completely covered in rust. After I removed the rust every bare cast iron surface was treated with Boeshield and paste waxed after the Boeshield dried. The machines remain rust free in the Gulf Coast humidity.



That works with WD-40. I made the mistake of lubing a single boolit with Kroil once and had a terrible time getting the boolit unstuck from my sizer. Kroil makes a lousy lubricant.

Yep, Wd40 is crap. Kroil is a very good penetrating oil, and Boeshield is as good as it gets fir protecting metal surfaces

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[alamogunr]

I keep a can of WD-40 in the shop. Every time I have to use the toilet auger, I spray the spring or whatever it is called well with WD-40. I used a borrowed auger one time and had a terrible time removing the rust marks it left.

BTW, that toilet auger that cost less than $50, has saved me several hundred over the years. Someday, I'm going to get the transitions replace in my waste lines under the house. Old time plumbers sometimes didn't know the difference in vertical to horizontal transitions. At least that is what I've been told.

[azrednek]

In the early 70’s I was an outside salesman for an automotive warehouse. We sold WD-40 by the case and sold a lot of it. Back then WD-40 was great for moisture displacement. It was often used for wet distributor caps. The formula was changed after pressure from the feds to eliminate its Freon based evaporant. It was changed to an alcohol evaporant similar to brake clean and would leave an oily mess inside of distributer caps.

We also sold competitive products that the factory reps tried everything imaginable to disparage WD-40. The early WD-40 formula was 90% or more kerosene with fish oil and a strong perfume according to the competition. Best I recall two competitors showed us what they claimed were lab reports. Like a window sticker on a new car it would be hard to verify the veracity of their lab reports. Both claimed the NASA involvement was extremely exaggerated and mostly BS. The kerosene content was inconsistent lot to lot with 12oz cans having more than the 16oz. Give me a brake, been a lot of years ago and maybe it was visa-versa. I sold a lot of cases to gun shops but they insisted on 12oz cans only. The complaint was 16oz cans after being 2/3 or 3/4 used the remainder was to oily and gummed things up. The perfume giving WD-40 its unique and somewhat pleasant odor was often depleted when the 16oz cans were near empty and the fishy odor was noticeable. Gun retailers used WD-40 on blue steel parts. It could be wiped dry usually with a rag sprayed with it. Leaving just a tad of oil on the surface enough to prevent rust but covered up fingerprints from handling. The WD-40 also left a bit of shine on the blue surfaces.

I was on to another occupation when the formula changed and the Freon was removed. I was told it fell out of favor with gun retailers. The new formula was no longer used to dry out wet distributer caps by auto mechanics. It was still being utilized to take the squeak out of noisy leaf springs. My guess it turned the gummed up lubricant between leafs back into an oily solution. The new formula as was the old favored by auto mechanics to wipe clean their chromed tools such as sockets and wrenches bringing back some of the new shine. I’m also told as I can’t say for sure. WD-40 does not dissolve Lock-Tite as something like PB Blaster will. IMHO I wouldn’t hesitate using WD-40 on a gun dropped in water and as said in the Brownell’s video to loosen gummed up parts as a temporary fix. During my stint in the uniform business late 80’s and early 90’s. I sold a bunch of the surplus Brazilian 1917 revolvers. I used WD-40 under the side plate of many with a gummed up action then lubed the parts with conventional gun oil. I recall two of them having what appeared to be cosmoline under the side plate.

[243winxb]

If you buy/use WD-40, Brownells can't sell you there high priced lubes. When i bring the old Rem 760 punp 30-06 rifle in from a rainy day hunt, it gets hosed down with WD-40. Same when season is over. #9 goes down the BBL. All done.

Love WD-40 & will use it for the next 50 years , if i live that long. Age 77+ 50 =

[Mal Paso]

There are a lot of combination locks here, on gates, pump houses and lockers. Graphite is THE LUBE for Locks but someone will hose a lock with WD40. It will work until the solvent evaporates then it needs another shot. WD40 is Crack Cocaine in a can and it's not allowed on the property!

LOL

[Eddie Southgate]

After it dries on a gun it still absorbs water and causes more rust than it ever prevents . I keep a can on both my old Ford tractors and any car or truck that uses points. Spray it inside the cap and on the wires of a drowned out engine and it will start . That's all it's good for at my house. Stuck or gummed up stuff gets a spray with PB Blast . Guns get an oil made specifically for guns .

[azrednek]

After it dries on a gun it still absorbs water and causes more rust than it ever prevents . I keep a can on both my old Ford tractors and any car or truck that uses points. Spray it inside the cap and on the wires of a drowned out engine and it will start . That's all it's good for at my house. Stuck or gummed up stuff gets a spray with PB Blast . Guns get an oil made specifically for guns .

I tried racking the grey matter. When I was peddling WD-40 one of the WD-40 competitors had a formula specifically for that problem but I just can’t remember the brand name. It worked really good nearly instantly drying out wet ignition systems but best I recall they didn’t push it as a lubricant.

The demo I saw had worn plug wires cross firing after he spayed a water mist on them. After he sprayed on his formula the cross firing stopped.

[Rcmaveric]

My brother swears by WD-40 for cat fishing.

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[Patrick L]

I must be in a minority. I have used WD40 for decades with no issues. But, I only use it as an exterior wipe down, and occasionally to clean something that is then lubricated with something else. If you simply spray it inside your action, sure you're asking for trouble.

As I said, decades as an exterior wipe and never any rust on my guns. It has a place on my bench.

[fatelk]

I must be in a minority. I have used WD40 for decades with no issues. But, I only use it as an exterior wipe down, and occasionally to clean something that is then lubricated with something else. If you simply spray it inside your action, sure you're asking for trouble.

As I said, decades as an exterior wipe and never any rust on my guns. It has a place on my bench.

You’re far from alone. A lot of people use and like it, for what it is. I’ve always had decent success with it, within the confines of what it was designed for. If it was as terrible and useless as some say it is, I can’t imagine it would be as popular as it is if it was really that bad.

[popper]

WD-40 was invented by gunsmiths to generate more business.
No, it was developed by the same guy that invented a good rivet lube for military aircraft manufacturing. He went on to develop some automotive lube stuff, IIRC, the slick stuff.