My process has been: If it slides: Grease. If it rotates: Oil. I've been using Slide-Glide Standard for grease (I don't shoot outdoors in the cold often, if at all) and Wilson Combat Ultima-Lube oil.

But that Slide-Glide on the P210 Target's rails makes makes the slide feel like it's running... "slow?" Maybe it's just because I'm used to sloppier slide-to-frame fits and aluminium or polymer frames? It seems to run fine, at least indoors, but still...

I was wondering if something lighter would be a better match for the P210 Target. I have TW-25B on-hand. Or I could use the Wilson oil--it's fairly viscous. Or if Slide-Glide is the best way to go, I'm not adverse to ordering a tub of the Lite.

What sayeth the Sig wisdom?

I've owned 210s on and off for 30 years; Swiss, German, and now the American version. I just use whatever I happen to be using for any of my other guns. Someone did report their 210, with grease on the rails, malfunctioning in cold weather...

When you check out the equippment used on Swiss pistol ranges where everybody is shooting a P210 you will notice the whole range of lubes from Ballistol, to anybrand gunlube to Swiss Army standard issue lithium grease.

On my P210 I tried everyhing form Ballistol, to motor oil to industrial type grease to MoS2 paste, all without experiencing any problems. Not recommended is light oil for sewing machiens or byciles. It´s to light.

The cold weather issue is not dramatic. It has to be really really rally cold until one will experience problems. Normal winter temperatures are not enough. When the pistol is kept dry it will work. Overthinking this issue is a wast of time.

Using less lube is more. Important places to lube are the rails, the inside of the close cam path, the barrel lugs. A few drops of oil or grease inside the hammer assembly is plenty.

My Swiss P210 rides on Mil-Comm TW-25B.

I've had 2 Dan Wesson 1911's and they came with FP10 oil IIRC.
They were pretty tight pistols so that may work.

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
Using less lube is more.

Interesting you should say that, because I'd wondered if the "Sig common wisdom" of "they like to be run wet" maybe didn't apply to the P210. This pistol seems entirely unlike any other Sig I have--incl. the P229 Sport, which is something of a precision-built Sig.

In fact: It seems more like my 1911 than any of my other Sigs.

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
Important places to lube are the rails, the inside of the close cam path, ...

"Close cam path": What is that?

Essentially I grease or oil anything that moves, or appears to move, against anything else.

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
... the barrel lugs. A few drops of oil or grease inside the hammer assembly is plenty.

Interestingly, it looked like they used TW-25B on the hammer. You could see it in the back when the hammer was up. I put a light dab of Slide Glide on it, last time.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
Using less lube is more.

Interesting you should say that, because I'd wondered if the "Sig common wisdom" of "they like to be run wet" maybe didn't apply to the P210. This pistol seems entirely unlike any other Sig I have--incl. the P229 Sport, which is something of a precision-built Sig.

In fact: It seems more like my 1911 than any of my other Sigs.

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
Important places to lube are the rails, the inside of the close cam path, ...

"Close cam path": What is that?

Essentially I grease or oil anything that moves, or appears to move, against anything else.

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
... the barrel lugs. A few drops of oil or grease inside the hammer assembly is plenty.

Interestingly, it looked like they used TW-25B on the hammer. You could see it in the back when the hammer was up. I put a light dab of Slide Glide on it, last time.

There is to much simplificaton in the SIG common knowledge plus the P210 is a different generation of gun designed by different people in a different factory compared to the popular SIGSauer made in Eckernförde and later in Exeter. Compareing maintenance of a P210 with the P220 series is difficult for that reason.

The close cam path is the DNA of the P210. It´s the hole underneath the battery.

TW25 is lithium grease. I assume Slide Glide is something similar. It´s standard type gun lube. There is nothing wrong with either one.

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
There is to much simplificaton in the SIG common knowledge...

That is probably true

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
The close cam path is the DNA of the P210. It´s the hole underneath the battery.

Thanks for the follow-ups, OTD. Could you perhaps point me toward a diagram or something, because I don't know what a "battery" is, in this context, either.

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:

TW25 is lithium grease.

TW25b is not a lithium grease.

The battery is the square block on the barrel, with the cartidge chamber.

I use a white lithium grease on my P210-6. Any grease will do, really, but a grease is what to use.

quote:

Originally posted by OTD:
The battery is the square block on the barrel, with the cartidge chamber.

Thanks!

Ok, from your description it sounds like I'm doing what I'm supposed to, but I'm probably, almost certainly, over-doing it. I'll do less, next time.

Oh, and it turns out Slide-Glide Lite is what I already have. I think next time I'll go with TW-25B.

yes, that´s correct, but its difficult to conclude a common lubing concept just because the two pistols had been desinged in same company.

The only commons these two pistols have is the long rail and the additional barrel lock at the muzzle. Everyting else, including the manufacturing concept is different.

I believe if the pistols slide to frame rail fit is truely close tolerence, this is where the thinner lube accels. 1911s, when hard fit or machined close tolerence are a good example. Other factors cause a close fit pistol to be even tighter when assembled and loaded. Only mention that because I watched a video a short while back about unboxing thd P210 Super Target. The guy field stripped this P210 and put its slide on the frame. It certainly rode true fore and aft but, there was most certainly wobble and play side to side, up and down. Space between these major componants is where grease is better. Close fit guns like custom 1911s can have issues with grease. I really learned something in 12131s thread shooting 20,000 rounds and that lube he used. Definately going to try it in the future.

quote:

Originally posted by David Lee:
I really learned something in 12131s thread shooting 20,000 rounds and that lube he used. Definately going to try it in the future.

So what lube did he use?

Disregard. Got it: "Slip2000 EWL30 and EWL first 3750 rds; EWL30 exclusively after that."

quote:

Originally posted by David Lee:
I believe if the pistols slide to frame rail fit is truely close tolerence, this is where the thinner lube accels. 1911s, when hard fit or machined close tolerence are a good example. Other factors cause a close fit pistol to be even tighter when assembled and loaded. Only mention that because I watched a video a short while back about unboxing thd P210 Super Target. The guy field stripped this P210 and put its slide on the frame. It certainly rode true fore and aft but, there was most certainly wobble and play side to side, up and down. Space between these major componants is where grease is better. Close fit guns like custom 1911s can have issues with grease. I really learned something in 12131s thread shooting 20,000 rounds and that lube he used. Definately going to try it in the future.

This. Every tight fitting 1911 I bought came with a form of oil, never grease.

I generally will use a q-tip that is wet with lube to spread it on frame rails and such as it will give a nice even thin coat (I turn it as I run it down the frame rail or re-apply) and the q-tip gets in hard to reach places as well and they're cheap. You don't need grease or oil oozing out of the gun everywhere for it to be properly lubricated.


As for the 210, I'd follow what SIG says in the owners manual as to what to use for lubrication and where to put it.