Who uses WD-40?

Do you use WD-40 when cleaning/lubricating your weapons?

  • Yes

    Votes: 76 21.8%

  • No

    Votes: 272 78.2%
  • Total voters
    348
Heres a couple of the others, if you havent already seen them.

http://www.6mmbr.com/corrosiontest.html

http://www.thegunzone.com/rust.html
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Just get some Eezox or Corrosion X and lose the WD.


Seems to me just common sense to wipe the excess of anything off before storage, and most other similar things of this sort, tell you to do exactly that.
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My grandpa used to use WD-40 and it gummed up the trigger mechanism on his 700 Rem, twice. How do you 'wipe off' the inside of a trigger mechanism?

If WD-40 is all you have spray some on a rag and it will work to wipe of fingerprints and protect the metal, but as far as trigger assemblies, actions, and anything else with moving parts goes, it isn't worth a..flip.

I used to use Break Free CLP and it is a fine product, but since I started using Corrosion X I have not had a rust problem. I even use it to clean my black powder firearms, never have a rust problem.

If you read this article that AK103K posted a link to, it looks like for long term storage, Eezox has a slight edge over Corrosion X, but both are great.

P.S. I get the 16 oz pump spray bottle of Corrosion X, the 4 oz Corrosion X for 'guns' is the exact same material in a smaller more expensive bottle.
 
but as far as trigger assemblies, actions, and anything else with moving parts goes, it isn't worth a..flip.
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I used it for years in my HK trigger groups and carriers, both semi and full auto guns, and never had any kind of issue.

My standard routine with the HK's was, I would blow out the crud with Gun Scrubber until it ran clear, allow it to evaporate, then hit everything with WD40, shake out the excess, and put them back together. Now maybe because I shoot most of my guns on a fairly regular basis, and clean them immediately after, nothing ever had a chance to gum up, I dont know. Did this with all my other guns, bolt, pump, autos, and never had any issues there either.

Like I said earlier, if your loading it up, and allowing it to set, especially for long periods, maybe thats why. If so, I'll bet a lot of other thing will act the same way. You can shake out the excess with little troubles, so it doesnt have to "stay" there in pools. I would also assume your blowing out all the crud thats in there with something like Gunscrubber before you use the WD40, or anything else for that matter, or you may just be compounding the problem. Firearm hygiene seems to differ greatly from person to person. One mans clean, is another mans filthy. I've bought used guns that looked great at first inspection, but a few long blasts of Guns scrubber showed that the majority of the previous owners cleaning methods were just mostly surface and what was easy to get at.
 
WD-40 won't gum up anything. If it does it's because there's something else in there it dissolves but doesn't get flushed out. I've used it for years to flush out actions and I use it to displace water after cleaning bp guns. It won't hurt bluing or do any of the other bad things it's been accused of. However it's not a lube and shouldn't be used as such.
 
WD 40 works fine for a lot of things, as long as you know what you are doing with it. I'm a lot smarter than most people, apparently! ;)
 
AK- try soaking with WD 40 first, to loosen crud, THEN using Gunscrubber (or brake parts cleaner), and then WD 40 again. Works great.
BilltheWD40smartguy.

If WD 40 had been sold in little tiny squeeze bottles, for $10 each-people would think it's great. It's just so "available" in the spray cans that people abuse it, and expect it to do amazing things. WD 40- the "slut" of lubricant/solvents. It does what it does well, for little money.
 
Interesting...

It sounds like if you remove the WD40 after using it or ONLY use WD40 that it doesn't gum up.

There also seems to be a consensus that it's not a lube...

The two things would seem to be hard to reconcile. If it's not a lube then in many parts of a gun (e.g. trigger groups) one would have to use it with another lube (that will gum up if exposed to WD40 and left in place) or you'll have to leave that part lubed only with WD40 (which is not a lube).
 
Interesting...

It sounds like if you remove the WD40 after using it or ONLY use WD40 that it doesn't gum up.

There also seems to be a consensus that it's not a lube...

The two things would seem to be hard to reconcile. If it's not a lube then in many parts of a gun (e.g. trigger groups) one would have to use it with another lube (that will gum up if exposed to WD40 and left in place) or you'll have to leave that part lubed only with WD40 (which is not a lube).
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Exposing a lube to WD-40 won't make it gum up. If you have old dried up crud and don't get it all out then theoretically it could cause it to gum up but I've never had it happen. WD-40 evaporates but I don't wait for that to happen. I follow it up with RemOil or whatever I have on hand.
 
What I want to know is, given all the information so far provided in this thread by both the proponents and detractors of WD-40.

Even if everything positive related about it and its use are correct.

Why would it be preferable to Eezox, Corrosion X and Break Free CLP?

I have never used Eezox, but I know for a fact that Break Free and Corrosion X provide good cleaning, lubricating and rust prevention all in one.

Why would I want to use WD-40 and then apply a lube? Why would I use a product that has inferior rust prevention qualities?
Why? Why? Why? If the answer is because its cheap, then thats not good enough.

I have very valuable gun collection and I'm not worried about spending a few bucks for a quality product like Corrosion X.
 
Like some on this thread, I used to be a proponent of WD40 for almost all firearm lubricating/protective duties. I used the stuff from the sixties and on religiously until a few years ago when I belatedly discovered that the stuff really does congeal over time into a tough to dissolve, tacky, hardened varnish-like residue that's extremely difficult to remove. I still use it at times to wipe down a firearm surface as a rust preventative but never again will the stuff get into the inner-workings of any of my firearms-not when, as others have said, other more effective and affordable alternatives are readily available. And nate45 was right when he pointed out (in response to those who advocated simply wiping off any WD40 excess before storage as a problem preventative), how do you "wipe down" trigger groups and other inner mechanisms that require lubrication?
 
nate45 said:
My grandpa used to use WD-40 and it gummed up the trigger mechanism on his 700 Rem, twice. How do you 'wipe off' the inside of a trigger mechanism?
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As you can tell so far nate, you're not going to get an answer because you can't. Look at it this way. How does one control the spray can of WD40 on internal mechanisms so there's not too much used? Only thing I can think of is spraying it in a cup and dabbing the internals with a Q-Tip.

Like it's been said before: So many people can say they still use it but nobody can really say it's the best product without snickering...

I find it kinda counterproductive to go through $7+ cans of Gunscrubber or even $3 brake cleaner, then use $3 cans of WD40. I was pretty frugal when I used these products for my guns and Gunscrubber/Brake Cleaner does not last very long.

The products I use may be expensive up front, but in the long run I SAVE money using superior products. This is where I see no benefit at all using inferior products that take longer to use to protect/clean my guns.

To each his own. I find myself on a different plane of logic as well as the growing majority on this board...not that it's a scientific poll or anything.
 
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Theres no doubt there are now things better than WD40, thats already been said and its obvious that some of us who've used WD40 for years, have switched to other things that now offer more. No snickering at all, just trying to get to the bottom of the so called gumming and varnishing being bandied about, that nobody seems to be able to give a clear answer to either. I believe if used properly, you wont have the issues some seem to have. It also isnt necessarily just WD40 specific either, I wouldnt be surprised if they had the same problem with something else using it the same way.

As for wiping off the trigger mechanism, as I've said a couple of time previously now, its actually quite simple and effective, a quick shake or two will usually clear the excess quite well. Works just as well with Eezox as it does with WD40, or anything else.
 
I do use WD40......On Blackpowder arms after water cleaning-then I wipe them off and lube then the next day. I've also used Wd40 on a wet shoptgun in the same way and I've squirted it into a sticky action to get through the day and then taken the guy's gun apart and cleaned it properly after the hunt.
WD40 is very useful but it is a poor firearms lubricant.
 
I don't use it for much of anything. John

A little Googling turned this up:

"WD-40's main ingredients, according to U.S. Material Safety Data Sheet information, are:

50%: Stoddard solvent (i.e., mineral spirits -- primarily hexane, somewhat similar to kerosene)
25%: Liquefied petroleum gas (presumably as a propellant; carbon dioxide is now used instead to reduce WD-40's considerable flammability)
15+%: Mineral oil (light lubricating oil)
10-%: Inert ingredients "
 
Locksmiths have some interesting things to say about WD-40. Here's one.

"WD 40 only recently included the word "Lubricant" on the can. Prior to 5 years ago or so , this word NEVER appeared on the can. Why? Because it is NOT a lubricant. Spray WD in a lock and it will work well for a short period of time. What happens is that the WD emulsifies the oils and dirt to create a slick environment, but, the WD evaporates creating a glue like substance that really messes with the lock components. It has a similar effect on other objects."
 
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