Oiling and greasing

[OldManBryson]

I've got more pistols than rifles.  I know how to fieldstrip them and lube and oil.
After taking my SKS apart & noticing all the leftover cosmoline from the previous owner, I was wondering where to oil and grease after I get all this crap off.
Thanks.
P.S.  The fieldstrip thread was VERY helpful!

[Matchka]

Shooting or preserving?

[OldManBryson]

Well, I guess shooting.
After the soaking in mineral spirits I thought it'd need lubed & oiled up before I go try it out.
Are they meant to be run wet like a Sig or dry like a Glock?
After a day at the range, how far must one strip it to clean it?

[newchi]

Well i am sure everyone will give you a different answer so heres mine.
I dont grease anything, i only have tractor grease on hand anyway.  I oil my guns probably too much for most peoples taste as i dont know if i will use that one again next week or next year.
You 100% have to take the gas tube and piston off and clean it or it will rust up solid. I dont think anyone here will disagree with me on that.
I use corrosive ammo, so when i get home i take the bolt out and prop the gun upside down against the safe and spay windex down the barrel and on the bolt face, take the gas tube off and windex that and the piston and then go have supper.
Some time later i  clean it like any other gun, oil it, put it all back together and finally put oil on a rag and wipe all the metal parts and try not to touch anything but the wood when i put it back in the safe.

Everyone after this post will tell you everything i do is wrong probably  but it works for me.
There is no reason to take it out of the stock etc as far as i can tell.

[OldManBryson]

Thank you for taking the time to answer.

[Greasemonkey]

And don't forget to pull the firing pin and clean the firing pin channel... Don't lube the pin or channel.

I don't do anything special.. I just use engine oil to lube them after inclean them.

[OldManBryson]

So no grease anywhere?
Is it ok to lightly oil the piston assembly?
*EDIT*. N/M, new chi answered my piston question earlier.

[running-man]

Every one has their own preferred way of doing things, I doubt you can really do anything wrong except maybe running heavy grease everywhere or no lubrication anywhere (and even then, the SKS will still most likely work fine due to the robustness of the design.)

I'm certainly not one of the OCD guys that spends 4 hours cleaning every nook and cranny after sending 100 patches through to make sure they come out white every time they take a firearm out.  In fact, I'll admit to actually firing a firearm and leaving the cleaning for a month or two.  (Of course I live in the desert where the humidity rarely gets above 30% and I don't typically shoot corrosive ammo so that and luck is a big part of it I suppose.)

I do this:

• A *very* small dab of low temp white lithium grease goes in the hook where the carrier connects with the bolt, on the two rails on the receiver that the carrier rides over and on the bottom surface of the bolt where it slides over the disconnector and cams into the receiver.
• No lubrication anywhere in the firing pin channel.  That stays free of everything and is cleaned with a pipe clearer and good solvent every time I pull the bolt.  I used to lightly oil it, but a lubed FP and popped primer can ruin your day mighty quick, especially if said light oil is inflammable (ask me how I know this!  ).  I've also heard that lubrication in there attracts and captures particulates in the FP channel and that is one place you really don't want that to occur.
• Synthetic SAE 5W30 motor engine oil on much all of the other metal surfaces including the bore.  I go very light on the gas tube and piston as I've found if you leave a heavy layer the next time you clean after firing becomes quite the chore with lots of carbon buildup in there.
• Stock gets a wipe-down with a dry cloth to pull the inevitable grease that has leached out in various locations as the gun warmed up from firing.  After that, I have a silicone infused gun and reel cloth that I've had for ages that I wipe the stock down with before I put it back on.  Not sure it does much good, but more a habit than anything else.

If shooting corrosive ammo, the windex is not necessarily needed though it works just fine.  Hot water through the bore and over associated components subjected to the combustion products is more than enough to dissolve the salts and prevent them from absorbing moisture from the air and causing corrosion issues.  Hot water is preferred to cold because it evaporates more easily and you don't have to sweat whether you dried every nook and cranny. 

[Matchka]

Pretty much covered for shooting. Excessive lube on any part that slides is definitely no bueno - light is right. CLP, Hoppes #9 or Ballistol and a silicone cloth works for me. Over-scrubbing and "USMC spotless" ain't required. What's been said, dry FP and a clean piston. 

[carls sks]

simple for me, clean all my guns after each shooting. if it moves, I oil it. 

[OldManBryson]

Thanks everyone.  I really appreciate it!

[Larry D.]

if it moves, I oil it. 

This is about where I am.
Plus I wipe everything down with one of those silicone impregnated cloths.

[running-man]

Got told by one of our resident greasemonkeys that it is engine oil:


Not motor oil:


Though you could also use turbine oil:

if you had it and were so inclined! 

[Greasemonkey]

   Don't hate me RM... you have blower motors...window motors, starter motors..... you can have a starting engine... for some reason the old slang term is pony motor.. like some old Cat D8 low tracks had them if they aren't converted to an electric starting "motor"

Well saying motor oil to some mechanics is like saying clip for magazine.. 

The ignorant label makers I've had fits with too... motors are electric, hydraulic or pneumatic there is a reason they are called Internal combustion ENGINES!!

Go find a set of motor spark plugs/glow plugs

[running-man]

Laugh, just giving you crap GM.  I knew 'motor' oil bottles are numerous but it appears all diesel bottles say 'engine' on them.  I didn't think I'd find turbine oil by the bottle, but there you go! 

[Greasemonkey]

Laugh, just giving you crap GM.  I knew 'motor' oil bottles are numerous but it appears all diesel bottles say 'engine' on them.  I didn't think I'd find turbine oil by the bottle, but there you go! 

Besides...the big diesels are cool..10 through 22 liters. You don't refer to a little 22 liter engine....as a motor. I've noticed major brands use the term engine.. not motor. Mobil, Delo, and others.. a lot of store brands and off brands typically say motor. Printing that one extra letter in the name might break them.

Didn't believe me on the turbine oil....huh.