Exotic lubrication? and the Bauer .25 Auto

B

boxjeff

New member
I came across a post discussing the Bauer .25 auto's slide. Apparently it's made of the same type/grade of stainless steel as the body, therefore the gun will eventually begin to jam. The post explained, the only way around this is to use exotic types of lubrication.
What would be classified as an exotic oil?

After 20 years and only shooting it once...looks almost new:
gun25.JPG
 
Last edited:
I came across a similar post while searching either this forum or some other gun forum. The posts were 8-10 years old. I have heard before that rubbing two identical pieces of stainless together will cause galling. Can't offer any more than that.
 
Last edited:
Early stainless steels often had a tendency to gall [ cold welding ] .Today they are using more appropriate steels . There were special lubes made for that . These are high pressure lubes like you have for a hypoid gear in the rear end of a rear wheel drive car ! Another use for these lubes are the high pressures seen in hinge pins and locks of O/U shotguns. The one I have is RIG +P though I don't know if that's still available.
 
This is definitely problematic. :) You could try something like Never-Seez Pure Nickel Special Anti-Seize compound, available here (just an example--shop around):

http://www.neverseezproducts.com/antiseize.htm

It's the second product listed. It should do the trick as well as anything else will, I think (hope). Common copper-based anti-seize compounds, molybdenum disulphide greases, or graphite-based greases may also work, but probably not quite as well. Stainless steel galling can be quite pervasive when the same grade is involved, so I wouldn't skimp on the lubrication if you plan to shoot the gun more than a few times. Good luck!
 
I seem to remember RIG being recommended, way back when.

"A thin film of RIG + P Stainless Steel lubricant and preservative will help keep your firearm rust-free and working properly. RIG + P is specifically formulated for stainless steel and will not break down under high pressure or heat."
 
mete said:
Early stainless steels often had a tendency to gall [ cold welding ] .Today they are using more appropriate steels .
Click to expand...

Some newer grades help avoid galling, but mainly the issue can be addressed by using different grades with different levels of hardness, or by plating or nitrocarburizing. Unfortunately in this case, apparently the same grade of the same hardness was used in both the slide and frame.

mete said:
There were special lubes made for that . These are high pressure lubes like you have for a hypoid gear in the rear end of a rear wheel drive car ! Another use for these lubes are the high pressures seen in hinge pins and locks of O/U shotguns. The one I have is RIG +P though I don't know if that's still available.
Click to expand...

Anything with good anti-wear and extreme-pressure additives should help, but this application and similar ones are what anti-seize compounds were specially designed for (to prevent galling and corrosion from binding fasteners originally). Maybe that's what was meant by "exotic" lubrication.

boxjeff said:
Where should I apply it...what parts? Or just all over?
Click to expand...

Whatever you end up getting, apply it between any moving stainless steel parts that are in contact with one another, I suppose (and inspect regularly to make sure that the lube is doing its job well enough).
 
Most any good grade high pressure grease will do.
RIG's old +P Stainless grease was good but it's no longer made.
Note that the standard RIG grease is available, but it's a preservative grease for protecting stored guns.

Most gun shops will have a variety of greases that will work fine.
Apply a thin coat of grease on the slide and frame rails, and around the barrel.
 
There are no rails on the Bauer. Grease the firing pin channel, and the "T" shaped part at the front of the slide. Also, grease any visible wear areas on the frame and inside the slide.
 
The old AMT manuals said to use a white lithium grease. They were also accused of galling often. I used the grease, never had a problem.
 
I have never saw a Bauer damaged from galling I used break free on mine back when I carried and shot it a lot. That was a long time ago :rolleyes:
 
Bauer 25 auto

Hello boxjeff, what you want to check out is the area directly beneath the firing pin channel (between the breechface and the rear of slide), and the corresponding contact area of the frame that it slides across. Eventually galling will remove enough metal that you will fire a round, slide will cycle and chamber next round, but striker will remain uncocked.
If gun ever fails to fire after pulling the trigger, and you hear no click, check the rear of slide to see if striker indicator pin is visible. If not, you will have an uncocked gun with a live round in the chamber.
 
I bought a new in the box AMT Skipper .45 cal pistol a few years ago.The pistol was made in the early eighties and in the owners manual it was also described as being made of "exotic stainless steel" and it gave a recipe for a lube made of a mixture of several oils that were made at the time.
 
Whale Oil

I know some guys that have some pre-ban Sperm Whale Oil. They swear it is the best. I would consider that exotic. At least really hard to find. Don't know if it will help with "galling" tho.
BILLDAVE
 
fix

After trying both ball and hollow point ammo and, three other magazines (1 from EBAY used for Baby Browning or Bauer, one new Bauer one from a pawn shop and an aftermarket stainless steel one from Gunclip Depot). The pistol would fire the first round but jammed feeding the second round. It appeared to me the recoil action was not throwing the slide back enough to catch to follow on round to load it successfully into the chamber.

A very experienced friend disassembled the pistol and focused on the recoil assembly. We found that assembly has two springs. The outer heavy gage one and a lighter gage inside the outer spring. e removed the inner spring and reassembled the pistol. Test fire went perfect with both the ball and hollow point ammo. I'm excited I have a correctly functioning "Noisy Cricket".

Check out the Hornady Critical Defense.25 Ballistics Test! WOW! Great penetration through heavy denim and about 12-14 inches into the gel block. This is the round to use. Not the wimpy penetration like some folks claim for the ball ammo.
 
Based on my experience with knives, you might try a chain lube, or a lube like Hornady One Shot. They have worked well in situations where I've had galling in a knife.

Another option already mentioned is to use some kind of an anti-seize product. They are available primarily in copper and nickel variants. I don't think there's a practical difference for this application. A warning about anti-seize--it's messy.
 
Stainless will respond well to lubricants high in nickel or lanolin.
for slides you might use Loctite 771 sparingly or Lanotec. Both are made for use with stainless to stainless lubrication. 771 is an anti seize that won't promote electrolysis (non-ionic). Lanotec is a lanolin based lube that is also non-ionic.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top