Now, take this post/thread for what its worth, one shooters experience. And I know there are members whose experience make my 25 years of AR experience look pale by comparison.
I ask only that if you criticize, do it constructively, and if you have experiences you'd like to share, please do.
-1- Dry- ACK, the dreaded "D" word. Yes, on a rare occasion I've run my issue weapon, and my personal AR sans lube. I experienced no function issues of any type, but I did only rarely. Upon inspection during cleaning, there was no adverse wear noted either. My best advice is run it dry at your own risk, and if you do, don't do it often.
-2-Wet- There are more options than I want to list on this one. I've used everything from Break Free CLP, to synthetic motor oil. I always went light to medium as far as how much I applied to the BCG and inside the upper. I've also seen BCGs drenched to the point that lubricant was dripping from the mag well and spit out the ejection port.
(I'm biased in this case because I grew up shooting the M1 Garand, and the first lesson I was taught by men that carried it in WWII and Korea was that oil is not a lubricant)
-3- Dry Lubricant- I bet you weren't expecting this one. There are a few manufacturers that tout their ARs as being coated with materials that increase lubricisity to ease cleaning and to function reliably DRY.
I tried out a heavy duty dry lubricant on an AR I owned years back, and it worked. I've also tried heavy duty spray silicone lubricant and it also worked.
-4- Grease- Another unexpected option I'll bet. I had never tried this until I got my first AR10. And ever owners manual I've ever read for the 10 directs you to use grease as the lubricant for the BCG.
To that point, I've been using high temperature/high pressure moly-graphite grease. And yes, my small bore ARs are also greased.
As yet, I've had no issues at all. The biggest caution/precaution is making sure don't put it in places it shouldn't be. Namely the bolt face and FRONT of the locking lugs on the bolt.
Anyway, I hope my experimentation has been helpful. Like said earlier, this is just my experience.
I ask only that if you criticize, do it constructively, and if you have experiences you'd like to share, please do.
-1- Dry- ACK, the dreaded "D" word. Yes, on a rare occasion I've run my issue weapon, and my personal AR sans lube. I experienced no function issues of any type, but I did only rarely. Upon inspection during cleaning, there was no adverse wear noted either. My best advice is run it dry at your own risk, and if you do, don't do it often.
-2-Wet- There are more options than I want to list on this one. I've used everything from Break Free CLP, to synthetic motor oil. I always went light to medium as far as how much I applied to the BCG and inside the upper. I've also seen BCGs drenched to the point that lubricant was dripping from the mag well and spit out the ejection port.
(I'm biased in this case because I grew up shooting the M1 Garand, and the first lesson I was taught by men that carried it in WWII and Korea was that oil is not a lubricant)
-3- Dry Lubricant- I bet you weren't expecting this one. There are a few manufacturers that tout their ARs as being coated with materials that increase lubricisity to ease cleaning and to function reliably DRY.
I tried out a heavy duty dry lubricant on an AR I owned years back, and it worked. I've also tried heavy duty spray silicone lubricant and it also worked.
-4- Grease- Another unexpected option I'll bet. I had never tried this until I got my first AR10. And ever owners manual I've ever read for the 10 directs you to use grease as the lubricant for the BCG.
To that point, I've been using high temperature/high pressure moly-graphite grease. And yes, my small bore ARs are also greased.
As yet, I've had no issues at all. The biggest caution/precaution is making sure don't put it in places it shouldn't be. Namely the bolt face and FRONT of the locking lugs on the bolt.
Anyway, I hope my experimentation has been helpful. Like said earlier, this is just my experience.
