The Great Gun Oil Debate

How to Keep Heirloom Guns in Top Condition for the Next Generation? An Old-Timer Shares His Wisdom on What Works Best – And the Answers Will Surprise You.

by T. “Charlie” Allen

For many gun collectors and enthusiasts, caring for firearms can be a full-time job in itself. Depending on the size of your collection, and the amount of time you have to you have to spend on them, you can quickly get caught up in a contest of wills, trying to avoid surface rust and cleaning them after a day at the range or a weekend in the woods. 

When it comes to protecting your precious heirloom firearms, oil is the all-encompassing protectorant. Nothing does a better job. But which oil is the best? 

There are hundreds of brands to choose from.  On my bench, as I write this article, I am looking at 6 different oils: Classic Hoppes, Birchwood Casey, Break free, Ballistal, Tri-Flow, Aimsoil (yes, motor oil 20w-50).  When you look online or at your local gun store, the list goes on and on…

I’ve used a hundred different oils over my lifetime -- from that thick gummy military grade issue stuff, to all of the above ones just named. And everyone has an opinion of what works the best.  I’m not about to tell you that the tried-and-true brand you’ve used for years isn’t the best. What I am going to tell you though, is that the best brand of oil to use on your firearms is the one that you use regularly! 

Most of them will work just fine. The key is actually using them!  Like many of you reading this column, I own quite a few firearms. More than I can shoot regularly and more than I handle daily, even weekly or monthly, if I’m honest. So, I have to remind myself to keep my weapons adequately oiled and wiped down to prevent rust.

I’m fortunate that I don’t live in a very humid environment, so my situation may be different than yours. Still, I take appropriate precautions. I have a dehumidifier in my safe, and I try to rotate my guns so each gets some love regularly. These weapons will someday be handed down to my kids and other members of my family, and I want them to be in the same or better condition than they were when I received them.  I have some weapons that are much older than me, and I’m getting close to the ancient label! 

So, keeping my weapons free of degradation and rust takes some purposeful thought. But I don’t waste too much time thinking about which oil I am going to use. Much like you, there are some products that I gravitate to.

For those guns that I rarely, if ever shoot, but I want to keep in pristine condition, I use a very heavy formula, like Ballistol Multi-Purpose, or Birchwood Casey’s “Barricade. Both come in a spray form that works great when combined with a good silicone cloth wipe down. The spray gets in a lot of nooks and crannies that I can’t get into with the cloth. For those weapons that I use regularly, I also use a silicone cloth to wipe them down, but I tend to use a much lighter formula like Break Free CLP.

Break Free CLP was originally developed for the military. The “CLP” stands for Cleaner, Lubricant, Preservative. Good old classic Hoppe’s Number 9 is also a good choice.  But I’ve also used every one of the oils I talked about above and they are all good oil.  Like I said, it’s the frequency of use that really impacts a weapon, not the brand of oil. 

Many of my rifles have beautiful wood stocks and forends that rival the look of antique furniture. Gun oil on wood isn’t exactly a bad thing, but it’s not what I recommend. Instead, I use a very light wood oil made specifically for wood, or a furniture polish or wax for those pieces. I’ve even seen old-fashioned Pledge furniture polish used on stocks with good results.

My favorite though is Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax Polish. It’s been used on precious art works, leather, wood, even metal and produces excellent results. It’ll clean and protect almost anything that it is used on. A very light coat and some buffing with a soft cloth will produce a beautiful shine. 

 I also have many leather slings, holsters, and magazine pouches. Heat and neglect will destroy leather. So, it’s necessary to make sure it doesn’t dry out. Once it does, it’s nearly impossible to return a piece of leather back to its former state. Not impossible, but not likely either. 

For leather pieces, I will use an oil specifically made for leather, like Fiebing’s 100% Neatsfoot oil. Fiebing’s has served leather connoisseurs for many years and produces a wide variety of leather products. When I know a leather item is going to get a lot of use and exposure to the outside elements, I tend to use a product called Sno-Seal.  It’s a beeswax product that uses heat to penetrate the pores of the leather, protecting it from drying out. 

When used appropriately, Sno-Seal creates a waterproof barrier that can virtually seal out any moisture, even snow and salt water. I’ve used Sno-Seal for many years and never had bad results, but fair warning, it does take some work and you’ll need a hair dryer or heat gun, or maybe your kitchen oven, but be very careful not to heat your leather too much, as I mentioned above, you can destroy leather with too much heat. 

Of course, with any of the products that I have mentioned, please, always follow the manufacturer’s directions and try it in an inconspicuous spot first. These are just a few suggestions. I’m not sponsored by any of these companies and I do not get any compensation for mentioning any of the products above. What works for me, might not for you, but I hope this will help you in your quest to keep your heirlooms in great condition for the next generation.

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