WD-40 is not the firearm Cure-All

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WD40 is neither good nor bad. When sprayed on and allowed to gel into a glutinous mass, it is akin to the AntiChrist. When sprayed on and wiped off, it works OK, but leaves virtually nothing behind to protect the firearm. It's the shooter that needs correcting, not the product.

I still wipe down all my rifles and pistols with a RIG-Rag (sheepskin coated with gun grease).
 
This might be interesting. I used to use a roller rest on my bow. If you shot it would continue to spin after the arrow left making a whirring noise. Cure, just spray a little WD40 in it and it would slow to a stop quickly after the arrow left. And, it would work for a very good while.

It works fine to rub down the outside of a gun, get your salty finger prints off of it, and prevent rust. As far as a lubricant there is better stuff.
 
In a pinch it can work as wasp killer. The new can with the fold-down nozzle will spray about 6' and give you room to retreat. It's a slow death for them and they are determined to make a last stand. :D
 
Great post. WD 40 is not a panacea for every piece of machinery. As you said, it's a penetrant, nothing else. It needs to be cleaned off of anything it's been used on before adding a lube. If not, your equipment will collect dirt and gum up to uselessness.
Probably the most over/missused product on the planet.
 
WD-40 is perfect for its intended purpose, Water Displacement, formula 40: use it to displace water after the gun, or other metal, gets wet, wipe off, then lube as normal.

Anything else is a misuse.
 
That's funny-I use it all the time. I have never had a problem with it in almost 40 years. I wonder why?
Any oil will dry and "gum." Spraying a little more WD 40 will simply flush out the old residue.
Knowing how and when to use any lubricant is important. Most people don't have a clue.
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Same here. Not 40, but certainly more then 30 years using it without adverse results or anything gumming. My first revolver ever- a K22 which I got when I was twelve -33 years ago, has seen almost nothing but WD40 over the years and is in top-tier shape, despite tens of thousands of shots.
 
And, a well known AR instructor took the time to show that a feminine hygiene product could be used as a weapons lubricant. Worked great.

Doesn't make the .Gov list for approved lubricants just for that. Plenty of folks use the wrong stuff daily in life and have no problems with it, that doesn't make a blanket recommendation for all users valid. As pointed out by an equal number of posts, bad things CAN happen, too.

People throw gasoline on brush piles to get them going. Having done it safely, would I recommend it? Ask the guy in my squad who missed deployment soaking in a saline pool in rehabilitative treatment.

I've yet to hear from a professional who carries guns loaded on duty they recommend the practice. When it really is a matter of the gun working reliably no matter what, I don't see much WD40 in the arms room or in the field.

Rather than promote a practice that's a known hazard, let's just list which makers recommend it for gun use. I've yet to find any.
 
I would hapily grab the can of WD-40 if I had a gunked up firearm and nothing else around. But it's not a lubricant and you shouldn't treat it as such. Given the enormous variety of suitable lubricants available, it seems absurd to me to use it in that role.
 
This has me thinking. when I was young I used Rem Oil on everything. I figured if they make good guns they would make good oil for the guns. I was taken to task by many of the "old" guys for using such junk on my guns and that Rem Oil would freeze up in the cold. they told me to use WD40 ! I did not and now use Shooters Choice. What do you guys think of the old Rem Oil ? should it be advoided or not ?
 
My dad used nothing but WD-40 for years. I got his guns after he died. They weren't gummy and didn't have varnish built up. They were dry but that's all. I use WD-40 to displace water after cleaning my bp guns followed by Remoil.
 
habuch, I've followed my use of WD40 with a rub-down of RemOil for decades. Zero problems.

By and large, I avoid slobbering a bunch of any sort of mouse milk on my guns.
 
I use it on my tractor (3pt hitch) and some implements to prevent rust. I wouldn't even allow one of my guns to be down wind of the spray.

I think we should send some to Al Queda to use on their AK's. Imagine WD40 and desert sand. :eek:
 
WD-40 is the WORST stuff ever created by man. After spraying it on something in a couple of days it gets sticky. And it's supposed to lubricate.
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Actually it's not really supposed to lubricate. That's a common use but it's really more of a corrosion protection product than a lubricant. I like to use it on my garage door torsion springs - keeps the surface rust off and extends their life. Ive heard that the WD stands for Water Displacement. It's great at that and it's a good solvent for loosening up old grease and light rust but it's not a very good lubricant and it's not intended to be.
 
I like to use it on my garage door torsion springs - keeps the surface rust off and extends their life.
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Do yourself a favor and get some Garage Door Lube (that's the name of the product) from your local home improvement store. It's silicon based and will not only protect from corrosion but also lubricate. I have a noisy garage door... after hitting it with that stuff I can barely hear it inside the house.
 
:D

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never really had a problem with wd40 myself seems to work ok have used it for a long time is it the best probably not but who cares, most everyone has a can laying around.
 
I like WD-40 for spraying down my Savage 110 after being in rain or snow. I towel dry it and then spray the heck out of it to make sure all of the water is removed.
 
My suggestion is to never use WD-40 for anything other than a quick coat on the outside. I've seen a bunch of triggers totally gummed up by the stuff.
 
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