ballistol or clp break free?

[david8613 69]

i sort of hit a mile stone recently, i finished my first full bottle of gun cleaner and oil. i orderd a big can of ballistol and a tube of hoppes gun grease. i hear alot of good stuff about ballistol and break free clp, what do you guys like and why?

[Dan 177]

I have both ballistol and clp.

 

Cleaning:

 

CLP tends to be the better cleaner of the two, but it smells harsh.

 

Ballistol does clean powder residue fairly well also, but I prefer to use it as a finishing protective coating. Plus it works well on wood also, acting as a preservative/protectant. It also smells good and is actually good for your skin.

 

Protectant:

I've never tested personally, but online reviews shows CLP and ballistol to be fairly good corrosion inhibitors

 

Lubricant:

I wouldn't use either as a lubricant. They would be very light lube at best. Look at Slip2000 for a wet lube, that stuff is amazing. For a light grease, TW25B works well. For a heavy grease I like Magnalube, works great on slide grooves and other high friction areas. Works great on AR sear surfaces.

 

I've pretty much nixxed CLP from use, in favor of other products that smell better and work as well or better. I've relegated Ballistol to wood grips, and a general wipe-down finisher. I've been using G96 Gun Treatment instead for cleaning/protecting duties. It cleans everything including the bore, smells great, and leaves a nice film of protectant that isn't wet or sticky. I then follow up with the three lubes I stated above for each specific purpose. AR BCG's love a nice wet coating of Slip2k for instance. HG slides love a light coating of Magnalube for that silky smooth cycling feeling.

 

Once in awhile I'll go do town on the bore with a harsher solvent or copper fouling remover to keep things on the up and up.

[TheLugNutZ 21]

I have both ballistol and clp.

 

Cleaning:

 

CLP tends to be the better cleaner of the two, but it smells harsh.

 

Ballistol does clean powder residue fairly well also, but I prefer to use it as a finishing protective coating. Plus it works well on wood also, acting as a preservative/protectant. It also smells good and is actually good for your skin.

 

Protectant:

I've never tested personally, but online reviews shows CLP and ballistol to be fairly good corrosion inhibitors

 

Lubricant:

I wouldn't use either as a lubricant. They would be very light lube at best. Look at Slip2000 for a wet lube, that stuff is amazing. For a light grease, TW25B works well. For a heavy grease I like Magnalube, works great on slide grooves and other high friction areas. Works great on AR sear surfaces.

 

I've pretty much nixxed CLP from use, in favor of other products that smell better and work as well or better. I've relegated Ballistol to wood grips, and a general wipe-down finisher. I've been using G96 Gun Treatment instead for cleaning/protecting duties. It cleans everything including the bore, smells great, and leaves a nice film of protectant that isn't wet or sticky. I then follow up with the three lubes I stated above for each specific purpose. AR BCG's love a nice wet coating of Slip2k for instance. HG slides love a light coating of Magnalube for that silky smooth cycling feeling.

 

Once in awhile I'll go do town on the bore with a harsher solvent or copper fouling remover to keep things on the up and up.

 

Very imformative post. I have been using CLP as a lubricant, and figured i should try something with better lubricating qualities. Ill try your suggestions...

Im shooting an M&P, CM9, Marlin 795, and working on an AR>

[mcbethr 42]

CLP isn't necessarily the best. It's a compromise. It's Cleaner, Lubricant and Preservative. Let a big bottle of CLP sit for a while and you'll see that the stuff separates into its component parts and you have to shake the bottle up to get the CLP mixed together again.

 

If you are a soldier out in the field who has a limited amount of space in his backpack, it makes sense to carry one bottle that does three things than three bottles that do one thing very well.

 

Personally, I like CLP for cleaning the barrel of my guns and I like a light coat on the outside to prevent rust. I don't tend to "clean" the working parts with much other than a brush, dental pic, or q-tip or cloth. But I do put Gunbutter on the working parts.

 

I've tried Militec and I didn't think that it was any better than CLP or Gunbutter, but I'm not a Navy SEAL and won't put 1000 rounds through my guns in a single range session.

 

I've used Remington oil and it seemed to work well as a lubricant. But like I said, I prefer Gunbutter.

[Cemeterys Gun Blob 165]

Ballistol is main ingredient is mineral oil. it's good at neutralizing the corrosive components in the residue from both black powder and smokeless ammo. I use it as lube on the cylinder base pins on my cap and ball revolvers. In the guts of the gun, I use Rem Oil or Break Free. In the guts of my semi auto's I tend to use Gun Butter.

 

For protection (aka rust prevention) I use Eezox.

[Dan 177]

For protection (aka rust prevention) I use Eezox.

 

I agree, Eezox is a phenomenal product laying down a dry film protectant/lubricant. It also has good cleaning properties as its base carrier is a good solvent.

 

Hornaday One Shot Cleaner/Degreaser and Dry Lube spray is also a good cleaner/dry film product, and in my experience, acts similar to Eezox.

 

I would never use either has a pure "lube" for firearms except in certain conditions. I have adapted both Eezox and Hornaday One Shot for use in reloading. They make excellent die and equipment CLP type solution. Being a dry film lube is perfect for this as powder and stuff won't stick to it, and the film is very thin and doesn't build up so it won't cause issues with the high pressures encountered inside the dies.