Done

[COSteve]

Done

[Grizz]

Good one! My standard is waterproof wheelbearing grease. Have used it for years and years. Along with vaseline in spots, which is superb.

Only caveat is that when I'm in freezing wx I have remove the grease from the innards so it can't stiffen or freeze the action.

I never use these in the trigger mechanism itself. WD-40 there as it dries all moisture out of the lockworks. So it doesn't freeze.

You can guess how I learned this info . . .

[AJMD429]

Just make sure it doesn’t get real sick and gum things up if it gets cold.

I like the idea of cleaning each gun every six months; heck you could clean one every week and rotate through them that way....if you had very many you’d need to clean several each week or even one every day. Even then some folks on here might still only get to clean any particular gun every few years...

[COSteve]

Done

[mikld]

I have been using "Lubrimatic" red lithium grease for quite a while, and the same method as Steve; poked a hole in the lid and pushed in an acid brush. I also use white lithium grease that I bought for my Garand, and neither seem to get "old" and gummy, but there is very little really cold weather on the Oregon coast. It's not necessary to pack the innards of a gun with these, like one would do with a wheel bearing and I often just spread them around with a Q-tip. I have no concerns about grease getting cold and/or clogging a gun's mechanism....

[Grizz]

military guys who've done winter training above the arctic circle know the number. old days trappers knew it too. they strip all lubricants. the frozen metal won't rust and won't jam at actual low temps where the gun lives at ambient temps.

I've read that extreme cold is hard on SS guns, like a guide gun, but don't have any specifics about that either.

data points

[AJMD429]

I've read that extreme cold is hard on SS guns, like a guide gun, but don't have any specifics about that either.

That may be the deal where stainless steel supposedly 'galls' when sliding against similar-hardness stainless steel, unless lubrication is adequate. Maybe whoever said that felt that the additional problem with the stainless might prohibit a truly no-lubrication situation. Just guessing....

[Grizz]

that makes sense. there are dry lubes too... a lot of what I heard in Alaska turned out to be old wive's tails, er, tales.

[GunnyMack]

military guys who've done winter training above the arctic circle know the number. old days trappers knew it too. they strip all lubricants. the frozen metal won't rust and won't jam at actual low temps where the gun lives at ambient temps.

I've read that extreme cold is hard on SS guns, like a guide gun, but don't have any specifics about that either.

data points

When in gummsmiff skool we were told about a very early stainless steel bolt action that was on a polar bear hunt, the guy settled the cross hairs and squeezed - supposedly the barrel split from breech to muzzle.

[Grizz]

musta had a load of frozen yellow snow in that barrel . . .

[jkbrea]

For the last couple years I've been using Lucas Gun Oil. I bought a small bottle at the counter at NAPA. I really like it and a little goes a long way. I used to use Hoppes oil but on an elk hunt, it took three tries before my rifle fired. It froze to where my firing pin had light strikes. I did get my elk though.