What is your favorite lubricant?

Originally posted by speedrck
Here in Alaska lubes have to withstand sub O weather without turning to a gel or something worse. THe new senthetic lubes like FP-10 are at the top of my list.If you want something that will dry so it won't attract dust and dirt I like tuff glide or the Remington teflon based dry lube. Good luck , you've got alot of good choices.:D
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That makes sense for sub-zero climes... dry lube makes sense too, IMHO, if you carry and use your folders outdoors.

Ok, here goes my wet blanket routine again (search on "wet blanket" for other lube threads)...

WD-40 is not a true lubricant. It's 75% mineral spirits (flashes off and leaves residue, varnishes and other crap over time), and 24.9% mineral oil (not well refined). Mineral oil is a very poor lube. WD-40 is one of the most poor performing, but outstandingly marketed products that I can bring to mind.

For the average joe, TriFlow is easy to find and an excellent lube. There exists test data that backs this up. So is BreakFree (but it kinda smells chemically).

However, unless you flip a bali, folding knife lubrication is a pretty un-demanding application. Almost any decent real lubricant will work. Teflon bearing grease, molybdenum bearing axle grease, anything with real lube oils, the dry teflon stuff works, metal friction reducers (like ProLink and ATB, with solvent carriers that flash away), you name it.

If I judge by the rest of the way Chris Reeve runs his business, I'd guess that after trying a bunch of stuff, he settled on the teflon bearing veyr lightweight grease as being an excellent balanced approach towards folder lube, especially if you don't glop it on ... don't overuse it, thereby avoiding excess that can collect dirt/debris/detritus. CRK sells a nifty little rotating, on/off grease applicator/syringe, reason enough to buy one round of the stuff. Similarly, Tetra Gun grease is teflon-bearing, easy to find (sporting goods stores, gun shops), and inexpensive.

If the bali flippers have found Militec to be the best, after trying many lubes, I think that counts for quite a bit. It's probably very good stuff for metal-on-metal friction reduction, IF you follow the directions and heat the knife up and then work it in.

Strange, but my 50-something folders, what with bronze and teflon bushings invariably, need very little lube, and very infrequently ... even my heavy use working knives. I just bought my first bali, the MT Tachyon, and it is extremely smooth... I can see what look like bronze bushings.
 
I'm surprised this hasn't degraded farther than it has... ;)

I'll second Sentry's Hi Slip. That's some smooth stuff. I like Miltec and Remoil for different applications, but pivots get the grease.

Brandon

Forgot- CLP for firearm applications. Stuff stinks, but it does the job very well.
 
White Lightning for sure. I have been using it for a few years now. It don't run or collect dirt. Not in my experiences anyway. Applied as directed, it has never let me down. The key is to use very little, let it dry and wipe off the excess. For long term storage, I apply a very thin coat of it over the metal areas and put the knives in Sack-ups. I substituted the original cap with a toggle nozzle cap like Elmers Glue has on their bottles so that I only get a small drop at a time.
 
I substituted the original cap with a toggle nozzle cap like Elmers Glue has on their bottles
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Just be sure to get all the glue out first. That would be an unfortunate mistake. :D

I can just see the thread now, "I glued my Sebenza shut!"
 
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