I did a little search on the internet and found conflicting opinions on whether WD-40 is appropriate/beneficial in pistol cleaning. I couldn't find anything definitive in a quick search of this forum. I own a GLOCK 23 and a SIG 220. Thoughts?
Maybe for cleaning, but... Keep it FAR away from your ammunition. I don't use it because there are so many other cleaning options out there that won't compromise your ammunition.
Don't use WD-40 on your guns. It will form a thick residue in small areas that you cannot reach to scrub often. A good example would be a guy I shoot with often who used WD-40 to lube his guns. Over time it built up a thick coating inside his firing pin channel in a Glock 22. Well during a range trip the firing pin stuck, and caused a slam fire. The culprit was later found to be a mass of WD-40 residue built up inside his gun. I use Rem Oil on my pistols and shotguns, and CLP on my rifles.
WD-40 is a water displacement formula not cleaning agent. I have found that it will become gummy after setting for awhile. Use it to remove water or displace water, use firearms cleaning agents to clean firearms.
WD stands for water displacing. It is a good penetrant and preservative, that's all. It is not a good solvent and a very poor lubricant. I use it for rusty bolts on cars and homes and that's about it. I will not use it anywhere near a firearm.
There are too many gun specific cleaners and lubes made just for guns for me to take chances w/w-d 40 and the like.
I have used it for years on my guns with absolutely no problems, but let me describe how I use it. I don't used it to lube the guns, but it is my favorite for spraying onto a cloth and giving the guns exterior a light wipe down to remove fingerprints on barrels and recievers. It doens't leave a super oily residue like gun oil can for this purpose. For internals, I use Hoppe's oil.
It used to make me sick. It has a lot of formaldehyde in it that aerosolizes when heated. It used to be funny to squirt some into someone's gas tube when they weren't looking, so they got smoked out next time they were on the range.
DON'T USE WD-40 on guns Old Old technology....the specific cause of many ammo failures due to penetration of primers AND gums up actions in guns over many years. We often have to disassemble and tank gun parts in solvent tanks and then scrub with acetone to get old dried WD-40 residue off gun parts. To clean/remove rust try KROIL www.kanolabs.com for lubrication try militec www.militec1.com for all the info. Wiping down a blued firearm with kroil will wipe off surface rust, remove finger printing and protect the metal. WD-40 just creates work for gunsmiths....which is not all bad !
