Rust Inhibitor Shoot-out

Macchina

Macchina

Joined
Apr 7, 2006
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I have decided to test the three main oils I use for lubrication and rust prevention. I will do this in as much a scientifically controlled way as possible. I have 4 blocks of 1018 "mild" steel. This is just iron with a bit of carbon, no rust inhibitors or alloys in it. I am using three sprays:

Overview.jpg


The Candidates:

3-in-1 High-Performance Dry Lube
Contains: LVP Aliphatic Hydrocarbon, Aliphatic Hydrocarbon, Petroleum Base Oil, Propane Propellant, Polytetrafluoroethylene. MSDS
Claim: Contains PTFE ("Teflon"). Claims to provide a superior lubrication with long-lasting corrosion protection with no oily residue.

Hoppe's #9 Lubricating Oil
Contains: Mineral Oil, Liquefied Petroleum Gas, Heptane, Methyl Acetate. MSDS
Claim: A light, pure, colorless oil that will not gum harden or turn rancid. High viscosity. Gives lasting protection and lubrication. Cleans and protects woodwork. Keep rust away.

RemOil
Contains: Mineral Spirits, Aliphatic Petroleum Distillate, Propane, Teflon. MSDS
Claim: RemOil is an exceptionally high-performance cleaner, lubricant, and corrosion-protectant for maintaining fine firearms. Effective and long-lasting RemOil delivers maximum lubrication for smooth, reliable operation of all firearm parts - even in adverse weather conditions.

The Prep:
I sanded the scale off of the steel with a belt sander, then cleaned with lacquer thinner. I finished with a little hand sanding and wiped with a clean rag to remove all of the dust. I have 4 pieces of steel. The first is the control, no rust inhibitor.

Day 1: Sunny, 60 degrees.
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Day 2: Rained all day, 50 degrees.
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Day 3: Rained all day, 50 degrees.
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Day 4: Sprinkled most of the day, 50 degrees.
10-26.jpg


Day 5: Cloudy, 40 degrees.
10-27.jpg


Day 6: Cloudy, 40 degrees.
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Day 8: Light Rain 50% of the day, 40 degrees.
10-30.jpg


Day 10: Sunny, 50 degrees.
11-1.jpg


Day 17: Rained for the last few days, snowed today. The Remoil finally gave out a couple of days ago.
11-08.jpg
 
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Nice job setting up this experiment, hats off to you. Looks like Rem Oil will keep the lead throughout the test period, although you are likely to see the rust develop on the RO swatch before long.
 
Isn't that interesting!
Good old WD 40 did better than even I thought it would.
 
I've had good results with this stuff. http://www.tc-11.com/ Unfortunately the can I have has gone sh*t up and doesn't work anymore, I've thinking about just opening up the can after final decompression and bottling what's left. I'd be interested in seeing someone with a range of their own rust inhibitors do a test like this.
 
I think I may add a few more later, WD-40 was one of them. I have a spray at work that we use on machine parts that is supposed to "soak into" the steel, that one may have to get tested as well...
 
Hey, great simple parameters on the testing! :thumbup:

Maybe I missed something here because of some of the above posts, but is Rem Oil basically relabeled WD-40?

Or is there another thread....?

Thanks!

Oops, I see the link for the Brownell's is the reference for the WD-40
 
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If you get a chance to add one during the test, put some plain old carnauba wax on a piece. It might well outdo all the oils.
 
I'd also like to see Ballistol and Marine Tuf Cloth (I'd be willing to send you both). Thanks for the test. Very informative.
 
48 hours of rain, and the Rem Oil still shows not even a spot of rust! Just as a reference, the day 1 picture was taken as soon as I got the steel on the board, because it was a little humid out and the bare steel started rusting after just a few minutes. Notice how the water beads on the Rem Oil square, yet seems to cover the entire surface of the other squares.
 
Gun Tests magazine ran a similar test about ten years ago. I will try to dig up the results.
 
Nice test and thanks for sharing the results. If I recall, someone did a similar test a few years ago - maybe I can find it...
 
Nicely done.
(It would be interesting to try it with WD-40.)

Thanks.
 
Wow, I've been a fan of Hoppes #9 for a long time, and its the only oil my shotgun has seen. That is going to have to change.

FWIW, I'd love to see a test of BoeshieldT9 as well as militec-1 (both 'wet' and with the oil wiped away after heat treatment). If I can source some uniform, clean steel...
 
If you're taking requests, I'd like to see a piece of steel rubbed with plain old mineral oil. (You can find it in any pharmacy.)
 
If you look at the ingredients, Hoppe's #9 is apparently just mineral oil in a couple of different solvents. The solvents would evaporate leaving just the mineral oil. If so, not so good for mineral oil although prolonged exposure to rain on the metal is very extreme for the average knife collector.
 
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