To my dismay, my TW25B syringe went empty. Happened to go to Bass Pro and while I was there, I picked up a syringe of Hoppes Black gun grease. Hadn’t heard of it before. But what shooter hasn’t ever used Hoppes and even if they moved on to something else, Hoppes was still good stuff, right?

Well, first off, I HATE this syringe. Bent a fingernail backwards trying to pry the damned cap off, then grease starts pouring out until I manage to pull the plunger back. My issues with the syringe applicator continue but once I stop the grease from pouring out I notice two things:
1) the grease is pretty runny. It’s more of a thick oil than a grease.
2) “Black” isn’t just a cool name of the product line. The grease is black. How the hell am I supposed to tell if the grease is dirty if it’s friggin black to begin with?

Ok, so now back to trying to actually use it. More problems with the syringe. The opening at the tip is way to wide. There’s no way to surgically place grease. Don’t worry, the syringe has a solution to that: there isn’t a way to just squeeze out a little. Pressure on the plunger does nothing. Until you push hard enough where it clicks and then the thick oil pours out like a Hawaiian volcano. Actually that may be a bad analogy, cuz the grease isn’t as thick as molten lava. There is zero control for how much you press out. And did I mention the grease/thick oil is black?

I’ve used good old Hoppes bore cleaner/solvent for forever. I often use Hoppes Elite oil. I like Hoppes products. But DO NOT buy this grease. Waste of money. I don’t even know how well it works, it’s not worth it.

Thanks for the heads up

There are a ton of quality automotive greases out there that will match or exceed firearms industry grease. And cost a tiny fraction of the cost. There is no magic gun grease, just magic money generators for gun product companies.

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
There are a ton of quality automotive greases out there that will match or exceed firearms industry grease.

I have seen that statement or something similar literally countless times in my years here, but the question I’ve never seen addressed (despite my asking) is how do we know which are best or at least better than others? How can I know if a particular automotive grease at the Napa store is better at protecting a firearm from corrosion and wear than a different grease that’s marketed for use on guns? Are there rigorous scientifically-valid studies that can be accessed to help us learn such things?

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
There are a ton of quality automotive greases out there that will match or exceed firearms industry grease. And cost a tiny fraction of the cost. There is no magic gun grease, just magic money generators for gun product companies.

I dunno about “match or exceed”. But I do agree that there’s no magic lube and most people way over think it. To be perfectly honest, my first use of it last night wasn’t on a firearm. It was on my baitcaster reel. And I’m starting to think I should take it all apart again cuz it wasn’t thick enough to stay put with all the spinning that goes on.

So why did I post about this product? All I’m really looking for in a gun grease is
1) ease of application (i.e.-good syringe)
2) it stays where you put it
3) I can tell when it’s dirty

Hoppes Black grease checked none of these boxes.

quote:

Originally posted by BuddyChryst:

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
There are a ton of quality automotive greases out there that will match or exceed firearms industry grease. And cost a tiny fraction of the cost. There is no magic gun grease, just magic money generators for gun product companies.

I dunno about “match or exceed”. But I do agree that there’s no magic lube and most people way over think it. To be perfectly honest, my first use of it last night wasn’t on a firearm. It was on my baitcaster reel. And I’m starting to think I should take it all apart again cuz it wasn’t thick enough to stay put with all the spinning that goes on.

So why did I post about this product? All I’m really looking for in a gun grease is
1) ease of application (i.e.-good syringe)
2) it stays where you put it
3) I can tell when it’s dirty

Hoppes Black grease checked none of these boxes.

Thank you for the heads up on that grease.

The syringe Shooter's Choice grease comes in typically worked well for me.

Between Shooters Choice and Slide Glide, I see no reason to venture away from these two products.

I don't understand some folks passion to utilize automotive grease/oil though. To save a couple bucks? Do those folks really use that much lube for their firearms? Like sigfreund posted, I too have the same questions.

quote:

Originally posted by BuddyChryst:
So why did I post about this product? All I’m really looking for in a gun grease is
1) ease of application (i.e.-good syringe)
2) it stays where you put it
3) I can tell when it’s dirty

TW25B checks all those boxes, so I don't know why you didn't just stay with that.

I prefer Slide-Glide Lite these days. It's at least as slippery as TW25B and appears to "stick" better. I loaded it into a syringe with a tongue depressor.

And I agree with the automotive lube point. My single least expensive firearm cost hundreds of times what my lifetime expenditure in firearms lubes will be.

Mobil 1 Synthetic Wheel Bearing grease (pinkish/red in color) is what I put in syringes.

I bought a tub years ago and have only used about 40% of it. Works great and definitely lets one know when it is dirty.

As previously stated, there are plenty of good, non-firearms specific lubes/greases out there. The best part is that they are inexpensive, so if you don't like a particular one, you have only parted with a few bucks.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by BuddyChryst:
So why did I post about this product? All I’m really looking for in a gun grease is
1) ease of application (i.e.-good syringe)
2) it stays where you put it
3) I can tell when it’s dirty

TW25B checks all those boxes, so I don't know why you didn't just stay with that.

I prefer Slide-Glide Lite these days. It's at least as slippery as TW25B and appears to "stick" better. I loaded it into a syringe with a tongue depressor.

And I agree with the automotive lube point. My single least expensive firearm cost hundreds of times what my lifetime expenditure in firearms lubes will be.

The only reason I didn’t buy the TW25 is because it was out of stock at Bass Pro when I was there. Had it been there, I would’ve grabbed it. I initially grabbed some grease/oil mix syringe, then I read it and said, no I want something that isn’t runny. The only thing there was this Hoppes Black. Little did I know....

FWIW, sometimes even grease goes runny - or at least RIG+P does.

I was at a company(photoshoot) in Miami that works on(maintains) certain aircraft parts. One tech was repacking the wheel bearings on the landing gear from a 747. He was using Mobil 1 Synthetic Wheel Bearing grease. It must be pretty good stuff.

Another interesting tidbit - the wheels on a 747 are loaded with 200 psi of air. They fill the wheel in a cage in case it blows.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by mo4040:
Mobil 1 Synthetic Wheel Bearing grease (pinkish/red in color) is what I put in syringes.

quote:

Originally posted by Ironmike57:


Another interesting tidbit - the wheels on a 747 are loaded with 200 psi of air. They fill the wheel in a cage in case it blows.

I don't believe they were using air to fill 747 tires.

It was most likely nitrogen. At least that's what we used for helo tires, ( Blackhawks, Chinooks, Apaches ) since air expands and contracts as altitude and temperature changes.

The fixed wing guys can confirm or correct me on this.

( Apologies to the OP for the slight thread drift. )

quote:

Originally posted by Il Cattivo:
FWIW, sometimes even grease goes runny - or at least RIG+P does.

Slide Glide and Shooter's Choice never went runny when I had those lubes with me in Iraq and Afghanistan. TW25 would separate after a period of time when stored, ( we used it in our aircraft guns, ) but held up fairly well over there, too.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
There are a ton of quality automotive greases out there that will match or exceed firearms industry grease.

I have seen that statement or something similar literally countless times in my years here, but the question I’ve never seen addressed (despite my asking) is how do we know which are best or at least better than others? How can I know if a particular automotive grease at the Napa store is better at protecting a firearm from corrosion and wear than a different grease that’s marketed for use on guns? Are there rigorous scientifically-valid studies that can be accessed to help us learn such things?

I say it because the industry is filled with evidence of rigorous testing. The only place I have ever seen gun lubes tested are in short articles where they are used by individuals. Here is just one example of the level of testing done on industrial grade grease.

http://www.intertek.com/ocm/grease/

I'd be surprised if you could locate anything similar for dedicated firearms lubes. It sure isn't mentioned as one of the applications they test for at the above sight.

quote:

Originally posted by ARMT Guy:I don't believe they were using air to fill 747 tires.

It was most likely nitrogen. At least that's what we used for helo tires, ( Blackhawks, Chinooks, Apaches ) since air expands and contracts as altitude and temperature changes.

Nitrogen is a gas, it is going to expand and contract with temperature changes just like air... which is ca 80% nitrogen. The idea of nitrogen in tires is that it won't age the rubber.


I don't know what is in Hoppe's Black Grease, but I still have some Gunslick Graphited Grease as well as some industrial molybdenum disulfide doped grease; both of which are very black and very slippery. Reminds me, I need to clean and lube the guns I was shooting over the weekend.

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
I'd be surprised if you could locate anything similar for dedicated firearms lubes. It sure isn't mentioned as one of the applications they test for at the above sight.

Hmm ....
Then how do we know how firearms lubricants compare to automotive greases and that the latter are just as good?

I’m certainly not in a position to dispute that automotive greases may work as well, or perhaps better than the types marketed to firearms owners, but that’s my point: neither is anyone else able to support their claims that other greases are just as good. They may have reasons to assume so, but they simply don’t know.

And not to flog a deceased horse, but these claims usually completely ignore a very significant fact. Buying heavy machinery grease by the bucket or even the pound is probably cheaper per ounce than purchasing gun lube in a tube an ounce or less at a time, but such trivial economics are hardly a significant issue for the vast majority of Americans who can afford to purchase and shoot their guns in the first place. The 1-ounce tube of Lucas gun grease I have in my maintenance supplies will last me literally years at my present rate of usage, and I shoot more than most gun owners. I can see how a farmer with a collection of heavy equipment or someone who has a vehicle repair business might have large quantities of grease on hand that can incidentally be used to lube his guns, but that’s not true of most of us. I have neither the space nor the inclination to bother with keeping such a large supply on hand merely because it’s cheaper per ounce.

If, however, someone wants to set aside the space and make the initial investment for tubs of grease that he can still be using decades from now, it’s fortunate we have so many good choices.

You are probably correct. It makes sense.

[/QUOTE]


I don't believe they were using air to fill 747 tires.

It was most likely nitrogen. At least that's what we used for helo tires, ( Blackhawks, Chinooks, Apaches ) since air expands and contracts as altitude and temperature changes.

The fixed wing guys can confirm or correct me on this.

( Apologies to the OP for the slight thread drift. )[/QUOTE]

quote:

If, however, someone wants to set aside the space and make the initial investment for tubs of grease that he can still be using decades from now, it’s fortunate we have so many good choices.

Yes I suppose so- of course if you already have high quality grease in the gun for lawn care, marine, or automotive purposes, you don’t need tubs of anything you already have. A small bottle sits in my gun kit with about 2 oz. of grease that might be equivalent to what I accidentally overinject and wipe up with a rag...and will last for years.

And yes, choices are indeed good.

I bought a tube and hated it. Thin, runny, separates, and if some manages to find its way to your clothing (which it will at some point since my tube at least is prone to drip) it stains like you wouldn’t believe. I really can’t think of a gun care product I’ve liked less.

I can look up specifications and testing for for automotive and aircraft lubricants. The grease and oil used for these applications are designed for high pressure and temperature extremes, in particular the synthetic varieties.

I don’t really know what is inside a one oz. bottle of “gun” oil or grease. I can’t find any specs or certs from any national testing lab.

With that said, firearms are not made from special metals not used elsewhere. Additionally, a pistol slide cycling is under much less metal to metal pressure than say a wheel bearing or machine tool slide.

So pretty much any lubricant will work. Grease stays in place longer than oil, so I use mostly grease. Over the years I have not seen any articles citing massive failures in firearms from using particular products.

If having “gun” written all over the label of your preferred lubricant gives you comfort, use it. I will stick to known tested lubricants that far exceed anything my firearm metals are exposed to.

Also, side note. “Air” is 76% nitrogen. And nitrogen in it’s gaseous state expands and contracts in same way as all other gasses.