Once & for All-Do you or do you not oil your firing pin?

T

Tropical Z

New member
On any gun?
Rifle or handgun
One person says to make sure i get oil inside the bolt,and the next one has a cow when i do.
I would think you would want some oil around the firing pin for corrosion protection,but who knows?:confused:
 
No oil. Oil attracts debris, congeals over time and could cause slamfires. Using an impregrnating lubricant like CLP (and wiping it off) or nothing at all would be my choice.
 
I've head of using oil for sliding surfaces, external exposed metals, internal springs, and even as a very light coat in the barrel. But I can't imagine why you'd need to put oil on the actual pin. To prevent rust, just make sure you keep it dry and clean. Unless I'm wrong, firing pins are supposed to function without any lube on them.
 
Omitting crawling around in mud or desert sand, or wandering around in heavy rains, okay?

For average use, and storage between hunting seasons or on a month to month basis, a minimal amount of rust preventative on a firing pin won't hurt a thing. That is, wipe lightly with a patch which has on it a small amount of whatever "stuff" you love and cherish. Reassemble. Quit worrying.

Repeat every now and then.

In normal hunting use, or casual range use, very little glop gets back past the firing pin hole in the bolt of a rifle. Maybe a smidgen of glop in blowback pistols. Not enough to really cause serious worry.

Art
 
I concur with the old guy on this one.

One thing to add: If you clean your gun regularly (after every or every other shooting session or hunt), congealing of lubes shouldn't be a problem.

Hell, I oil everything. Even gas pistons. Be concerned about how much oil you use, not whether or not to use oil. A light coat of oil on everything is never a bad idea.
 
Geewhiz, and here all the time I thought I was reputable. (My wives and girlfriends would disagree, of course. :D )

This is one of those deals where about all I can say is that if my way has worked for over fifty years, and no problems, I ain't too concerned about other folks' notions...

johnwill, we ain't talkin' about gettin' that sucker all slobbered down with two quarts of 20-50, fer crissakes!

Basically, the idea is "the thinnest of thin films" as a protection against rust from condensation over time. I have rifles whose bolts haven't been disassembled but maybe once every ten or more years. No rust, no grunge, no failures to perform.

Art
 
Art said:
...over fifty years...
Click to expand...

See, what'd I tell ya? Ooooollllllldddd! :D


Sorry Art, I don't what's gotten into me today. Must be the nice weather. I better get outside and smell some fresh air before I start on that comment about "...wives and girlfriends would disagree, of course..."

Been working on a set of store plans since 3:30 this morning :(. Too much coffee, and on my 2nd pack of smokes already. Maybe I'm gettin dizzy.....

;)
 
What!? You guys actually take your bolts apart?

Think I last did one (Rem 700) in about 1970 or so.

Usually, I'll flush 'em out with Gunk Out (or somesuch) here 'n there. A single drop of BreakFree into the firing pin hole, bolt back into rifle & stored upright in the safe.
 
I sometimes put several drops of CLP into firing pin hole, and regrets quickly since those oil splatter to my face everytime I shoot,
but I am lazy to take apart bolt and clean it, :p
 
On a semi-auto rifle with no firing pin spring, such as an SKS, AK variant, M 1, etc., it may not be such a good idea, as it could reduce friction enough to allow a slam fire.

When I was with NRA we had several reports of slam fires, all of which involved people who oiled the firing pins on a military-style rifle using one of the wonder lubes. This apparently reduced friction enough to allow a slam fire with commercial ammo.
 
You mean you can take a bolt apart??? :D

Seriously folks...........down here if its metal (carbon steel) and you don't oil it in a matter of days it will look like the handrails on the Titanic (now...........not in 1912). Sure you can over do it, but it must have some type of rust preventive.

The USAF used to issue what was called the "Air Force Premium Grade" 45 Auto. It was a 1911 stripped down to the frame with all the parts being thrown in the junk pile, then completely rebuilt, by hand , with match grade parts, by the armorers at the gunsmith school at Lackland. It was a thing of great beauty,,,,,well really it was ugly as hell but shooting the way it did made it beautiful. It was guaranteed for 1" at 50 yards (Yea like I could tell with my 3 inch wobble). Anyway, when they came from the shop they were tight I mean tight, as tight as well lets just say tight:D. Took at least 500-600 rounds to get them to be reliable. One of the best ways to shoot them we found was to literally douse them in 3 in 1 oil. I mean squirt gobs of it in the slide, in the magazine, on the cartridges, on the recoil spring. I used to go through a can of the stuff while firing the 90 rounds of 45 caliber during a 2700. Team mates did the same. Hell we were the main reason the BX stocked the damn stuff (3 in 1). Now we DID clean em off after a match, but rest assured it was oiled, well oiled (the firing pin too)! Course they were not combat weapons and never (well almost never) got dragged in the dirt, mud, or sand. Sure oil it but don't over do it.
 
All I can say is that I've been shooting and taking guns apart longer than may of the forum members here have been alive, and I've never seen the need to oil a firing pin. I've also never had any problem associated with my lack of firing pin lubrication. I guess you do what works for you...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top