AR's & Arctic Temps.

IHarvestFur

IHarvestFur

New member
-11* here right now. When hunting in these temps I run my bolt guns dry so they function and not freeze up.
What do you guys do for AR's in these temps? With standard lube I think they will struggle to operate (guessing).

Thanks
 
I have ran mine in -15 work fine .
I fall in hole one time and got the gun in the snow just after gitting out of the truck and it iced up and had to put in under the hood of the sled to fix it .
 
I spent 6 months 350 miles above the Arctic circle with average temps -32 and 13' of snow.We ran ours bone dry no problems.
 
This is a timely thread for me. Anyone know how Hoppes gun oil does in the cold? I know my dad uses it and probably won't wipe it off before we head out this afternoon. It's 8 below right now with a stiff wind, and isn't gonna be any warmer in a couple ours. A thin coat of Hoppes doesn't seem like it should matter that much. But I'm wiping mine (CLP) off now, just in case. Is he gonna freeze up if he leaves it?
 
The Hoppes will likely gum at some point. I like the proper lube in my vs dry...just my opinion. Some Rem-Dri would work, too. Or the ones I mentioned above. Or, run it dry and keep an eye on things.
 
As stated above....any moly based dry lube is going to make your life easy. Idk why people think running them dry is a viable option. Go run your car without some type of a lube and see how long it lasts you. Running an ar dry may seem harmless but there is no way you will convince me that it does not cause undue wear.
 
-15 degrees I'm keeping my rifles lubed as always,......and shooting out of the kitchen window. Few more times and i'm pretty sure mamma will finally get used to it.
 
Originally Posted By: mutthunter But I'm wiping mine (CLP) off now, just in case. Is he gonna freeze up if he leaves it?

I have used CLP at about 25 below and never had any problems. You may be worrying about nothing. Take it out and try it. If it dont work, wipe it off.
 
Make two stops..First at an auto parts store and get a small can of Extra Fine Dry Graphite, Second stop by a pharmacy and get a small amount of Denatured Alcohol...Mix the two together to make a runny paste and apply to your concerned parts...The alcohol with evaporate and leave a slight film of graphite..You will have no problems with it freezing up..
 
Originally Posted By: reb8600Originally Posted By: mutthunter But I'm wiping mine (CLP) off now, just in case. Is he gonna freeze up if he leaves it?

I have used CLP at about 25 below and never had any problems. You may be worrying about nothing. Take it out and try it. If it dont work, wipe it off.

That's what I've been doing but here it doesn't get much below +10 except for a few days a winter. I'm just going to keep using CLP until it gums up on me then I'll clean it and use the other stuff posted.
 
Originally Posted By: OldTurtleMake two stops..First at an auto parts store and get a small can of Extra Fine Dry Graphite, Second stop by a pharmacy and get a small amount of Denatured Alcohol...Mix the two together to make a runny paste and apply to your concerned parts...The alcohol with evaporate and leave a slight film of graphite..You will have no problems with it freezing up..

Graphite will corrode the dickens out of bare aluminum. Just sayin'.

At the Cold Regions Test Center at Fort Greely, AK, we routinely used CLP down to -40F. It does lose it's ability to flow below about -20, though. Then we used LAW (Lube, Arctic, Weapons), a very light oil. At -40 you encounter other problems than lube failure though.
 
Light coat of hoppes. Just enough to prevent rust. It was -25F here, worked fine. Only time I see problems is on new AR's that haven't been broke in.
 
When it'-18 here, like it is today, i use full syn 2 stroke snowmobil oil, it's made for injection so it flows down to -40, it's made to clean carbon from the variable exhaust valve's, and it smells good and it dont smoke.And i always have it around in a little bottle.
 
I asked this same question last fall before heading to ND w/ my Rock River. Another member (Midwest Predator) suggested I try Birchwood Casey's Dry Moly Lube. It's excellent stuff for cold weather AR hunting.

I have even found myself using it year round, combined with a very light coat of oil in several of the major friction points.
 
The old man flaked out last night, so I did a little field test. -12 with howling wind, ran dads DPMS slickside heavy tube with a liberal amount of Hoppes, and my RRA Coyote Carbine with an average amount of CLP. I left them both outside for an hour, then put them in a plano case in the back of the pickup. I even held dad's out the window in the wind for a mile before I got to my spot. The results, click, click, bang on dad's. Click, click, bang, on mine. Conclusion... gonna keep doing what I always do. Just gonna go light on the lube and call it good.
 
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