Throwing out Frog Lube

[Aberration79]

This will be the 4th firearm that Frog Lube has been the cause of consistent malfunctions. So I had built 2 16" AR's. I thought the wife might actually shoot it, but she doesn't seem to care that much. So I took all the good parts and transfered them to one rifle, figure I would sell the other to fund a can for the 300BLK. I didn't swap that much, the muzzle device, BAD-ASS levers. Nothing I thought would effect function. I take it out to shoot, FTE. The brass would hover better getting T-Boned by the bolt, or it not even clearing the port. If I had a wingman, I would have had them use the hi-speed function on the iPhone to take a look. Given I couldnt seem to manage it myself, I assumed the bolt was not cycling fully.

Well I had JP silent captured spring. So I end the range day, put in a normal carbine spring and buffer.
Next weekend same problem. Inspect ammo. Out of 250 rounds I bought, 117 had cracks on the neck of the brass. Crap, shitty ammo.
I order new ammo. Found a good deal on 75gr, I got Noveske 1/7 barrels. Sweet.
Yesterday, same fucking problem. But the 75gr shot great, well for me. 1.5MOA @ 100yds.
So today I took up a different buffer, and a Mil-Spec BCG. I have a Rainier Arms NiB in it.
Turns out swapping the BCG fixes the problem. I finally get to shoot the 8" gong and stand I bought.

So I get home, take apart the bolt to see WTF. And answer is.... ejector is gummed up. What lube am I still using cause I was a dumb ass and bought the big bottle and I can't just throw it out? Frog Lube.

Yeah yeah, I know people swear by it. But heres the problem. You have to wipe ALL of it off. Every single little bit of excess. If you don't this crap will get into everything, and if you don't get to shoot a whole lot, it gums up.

The wife is probably having a heart attack with my Q-Tip and pipe cleaner budget. I don't spray it on, I just wet a Q-tip. I make damn sure I get whatever excess I can.

So far my Arsenal AK failed because the FL gummed up on the twisted springs. My FNX-T failed when it gummed up the hammer. Its gummed up my Stevens .22, and I have been spraying that down with PB blaster for months. It still won't cycle right and you can feel the action is squishy. And now it dicked up an AR ejector enough that it couldn't actually eject brass.

In the trash. Gonna make me some Ed's Red or some version of it. The wife will miss the smell.

[Brahmzy]

WeaponShield. Never jumped on the FrogWagon.

[Aberration79]

Some ATF fluid, some motor oil, and a touch of Sea Foam. That's my plan.

[Eric]

I've had nothing but positive experiences with Weapon Shield as well. I'm not a Frog Lube defender, but there are a couple of things that I have noticed: It does not play well with other lubes or solvents, so totally de-grease prior to use. It takes a small amount of product to do it's thing and the excess should be wiped off. I know that several people at work have ditched FL and gone back to more conventional lubes.

[Aberration79]

I started using Frog Lube because of this test. http://www.dayattherange.com/?page_id=3667

[din]

I ditched my Froglube, too. I haven't heard any first-person reports on the new Froglube "Extreme" that's supposed to address the problems people were having with the original formulation, but I've noticed a lot of places have the original on clearance. I've had pretty good luck with Fireclean in my ARs, you just have to get any old lube all the way off before you use it, and I did have it gum up the hammer and slide on one of my 1911s, so I switched back to EWL for my pistols.

[Joelski]

Just got some Lucas Oil gun lube and it seems to work pretty decent. Doesn't smoke or burn off fast, doesn't get tacky like the frog stuff. Red like tranny fluid, not sure if there's any other secret stuff.

[Aberration79]

I ditched my Froglube, too. I haven't heard any first-person reports on the new Froglube "Extreme" that's supposed to address the problems people were having with the original formulation, but I've noticed a lot of places have the original on clearance. I've had pretty good luck with Fireclean in my ARs, you just have to get any old lube all the way off before you use it, and I did have it gum up the hammer and slide on one of my 1911s, so I switched back to EWL for my pistols.

Isn't that just purified Crisco? :D

[mustangfreek]

I recently helped a friend put together a upper, he seen some frog Lube on the bench, told him about it etc..had a extra little tube, gave it to him said after you break in/ shoot it then scrub some on...lol fast forward a little run into him and asked how it shot , lol nothing but bad words coming out his mouth, he went back to Montana and was cold, frog lube froze up and gummed/ jammed in operable he said, ...

I have experienced similar up here in the wet/cold Nw, I only use it in the summer, once it runs out in not sure, just use clp for everything else as I always have and it works decent for cleaning and lubing for storage but want to try out something different...always wanted to try slip/ewl for the AR's... using up some fp-10 I got with a pistol and it seems good but haven't heard how it works in AR's and such

[rob_s]

I got on the Slip2000 bandwagon way back when, never had a problem, never jumped off.

Lube was one of those things where I never understood why people felt the need to ditch what was working to go with the new hotness. Especially with such dippy names a "froglube".

[Iraqgunz]

Not sure why the name is "dippy". The person who founded Froglube is a retired Navy SEAL Captain and SEALs are known as "frogs" coming from their origins as "frogmen". Seems to make sense to me.


I got on the Slip2000 bandwagon way back when, never had a problem, never jumped off.

Lube was one of those things where I never understood why people felt the need to ditch what was working to go with the new hotness. Especially with such dippy names a "froglube".

[RiverRat]

I've been using the paste for a while - its both more controllable and less gummy than the liquid-ish stuff. There is a little prep work involved in getting to a paste-only condition, but I've liked the results after getting there. The biggest drawback it that you can't really supplement lube during use with the paste. I'm not shooting really high volume often, so it's not been a problem.

I don't use it on vintage guns or 1911's - but for ARs and poly pistols it's been pretty good to me.

[Bronco75]

I have been using the Wilson Combat Ultima-Lube products over the past year and have had great luck with them. I am not the best at cleaning my guns regularly and I typically run them pretty wet. They also have many different products to chose from based on your intended use. I am sure this is someone else's product with a WC label wrapped around it...but until I figure that part out...I will keep buying from WC.

http://shopwilsoncombat.com/Ultima-Lube-II/products/432/

[Army203]

Slip2000 fan boy here. Great stuff.

[SINNER]

Froglube without a doubt froze up a Benelli SBE2 the very first time the gun was used in cold temperatures. I had good results with it on warmer days but after that I completely removed it. I have some of the new Extreme but cant bring myself to even waste the prep time to try it.

[FortTom]

I've had nothing but positive experiences with Weapon Shield as well. I'm not a Frog Lube defender, but there are a couple of things that I have noticed: It does not play well with other lubes or solvents, so totally de-grease prior to use. It takes a small amount of product to do it's thing and the excess should be wiped off. I know that several people at work have ditched FL and gone back to more conventional lubes.
I use Frog Lube almost exclusively. Is it the best stuff since beer and pizza? No. But for me, living in a Condo now, it's a good choice. I don't have to worry about caustic chemicals on the carpet, smelling up the whole place with chemical smells, etc.

I'm not sure how you're using it, but 9 out of 10 times I hear people swearing it off like the clap, they are not using it as directed. Most of the time they glob the stuff all over everything. If you've got it gumming up something, you're using too much. All other chemicals should be cleaned from the lube points with frog lube cleaner. Heat the parts and wipe off the excess. Nothing should be left to gum up anything, except the bit left in the pores of the metal. It should look as if it almost doesn't have any lube on it.

Anyway, I'm not selling the stuff. I don't think it's the best thing on the market, I think it's the best thing for me. It's amazing, when used as directed, how my BCG looks dry, but after a few shots there's a very thin film of lube there. And it cleans up even easier. I don't get -20F temperatures down here, but I've put parts in the freezer for an hour or so, and don't see frozen gunk as so many people describe. There shouldn't be enough of it on the part to create a frozen layer.

So, use it, don't use it, send your left overs to me.[:)] But from your description, I'd wager that the OP is not prepping according to FL's instructions and/or using way too much of it.

FT.

[SINNER]

I can assure you without a doubt the lube was applied correctly. I would guess very few people have a tempering oven to preheat their parts in. I've posted on this forum before myself about FL causing issues. My SBE2 easily has 10-15k rounds through it and it has failed to function twice. Bad ammo once and FL once.

784

[JGifford]

Both Froglube, and FIREClean gummed up bad for me. FIREClean took a long time to do it, but when it did, it did like a boss!

I tried Weaponshield, as I am friends with Mr. Fennell, and it did pretty well. However, I eventually ended up using SLIP 2000 EWL. It is VERY similar to FIREClean in performance, but won't gum up, and has a long track record of not fucking things up, in general. I prefer it to Weaponshield because I can clean my rifle the same way as I did with FIREClean, just wipe the fouling off.

I prefer the smell of Weaponshield to any other product, though. It "smells like guns" to me. Without being offensive or causing light-headed-ness.

[JGifford]

I have been using the Wilson Combat Ultima-Lube products over the past year and have had great luck with them. I am not the best at cleaning my guns regularly and I typically run them pretty wet. They also have many different products to chose from based on your intended use. I am sure this is someone else's product with a WC label wrapped around it...but until I figure that part out...I will keep buying from WC.

http://shopwilsoncombat.com/Ultima-Lube-II/products/432/

I considered their product, but prefer Weaponshield. Whatever Wilson is doing, is second best, because they originally tried to hire Fennell on, and he didn't. So their product is second to whatever they intended it to be, is my interpretation of things.

[Eric]

I'm not sure how you're using it, but 9 out of 10 times I hear people swearing it off like the clap, they are not using it as directed. Most of the time they glob the stuff all over everything. If you've got it gumming up something, you're using too much. All other chemicals should be cleaned from the lube points with frog lube cleaner. Heat the parts and wipe off the excess. Nothing should be left to gum up anything, except the bit left in the pores of the metal. It should look as if it almost doesn't have any lube on it.
FT. I'm not experiencing issues with it. I just pointed out that some users from my agency have elected to use other products, even though FL is provided. For me, I went through the appropriate thorough cleaning, degreasing, heating process and avoid over-application. I have not experienced issues that some others have, but I follow directions and typically use it in a fairly moderate climate.

[JGifford]

I'm not experiencing issues with it. I just pointed out that some users from my agency have elected to use other products, even though FL is provided. For me, I went through the appropriate thorough cleaning, degreasing, heating process and avoid over-application. I have not experienced issues that some others have, but I follow directions and typically use it in a fairly moderate climate.

You may want to be careful, as over time, it can get/collect into tiny places that you don't clean, such as the selector switch detent, the ejector, etc.

[cjd3]

I'll keep this thread in mind. Still like Froglube, no failures from it yet.

[FortTom]

I can assure you without a doubt the lube was applied correctly. I would guess very few people have a tempering oven to preheat their parts in. I've posted on this forum before myself about FL causing issues. My SBE2 easily has 10-15k rounds through it and it has failed to function twice. Bad ammo once and FL once.

784

Simmer down...no pun intended. What the heck are you talking about, needing a "tempering oven"? FL recommends "warming" the part up. Direct sun light is usually enough. A heat gun, or hair dryer (a cheap $5 hair dryer from the Dollar store works beautifully). You just warm it up enough for the stuff to liquefy and then wipe it off. Very little should remain. If you don't like the stuff (FL), don't use it, but don't use the forum to misinform folks that they need a tempering oven. If you are changing the temper from factory specs to whatever, please don't shoot in the lane next to me.[:D] This is FL we're talking about. We're not heat treating or heat soaking parts for NASA.

FT

[rob_s]

If your lube requires such special application that people on the internet are going to tell you that your failures with said lube are because "you're doing it wrong", your lube is shite.

[rob_s]

I eventually ended up using SLIP 2000 EWL. It is VERY similar to FIREClean in performance, but won't gum up, and has a long track record of not fucking things up, in general.

Never underestimate the propensity of gun homos to royally fuck up perfectly good guns because they think they found "better".

[GriffonSec]

Some ATF fluid, some motor oil, and a touch of Sea Foam. That's my plan.


Been doing that since the Army in the early 90s. Only no ATF, just 10/40 now 20/50. Kept me from scraping 240 bolts after field exercises. Cleans up super easy after range days. Cheap bottle just doesn't photo well on the internet next to that nice list of parts I suppose.

[Former11B]

It doesn't get super cold here in SC, and if it does get below freezing, it doesn't stay there for long. That being said, I didn't like how tacky FL got. I cleaned it off of the rifles and pistols I'd applied it to some time in December. I switched to a large bottle of MPro7 gun oil/lube that I was given when I was on active duty. Not sure what I would have used if I hadn't had it on the shelf, but it was free and so far seems to work just as good as anything else. And it doesn't get tacky.

[JGifford]

I can assure you without a doubt the lube was applied correctly. I would guess very few people have a tempering oven to preheat their parts in. I've posted on this forum before myself about FL causing issues. My SBE2 easily has 10-15k rounds through it and it has failed to function twice. Bad ammo once and FL once.

784

Your lubricant application assistance device costs more than some of the firearms I own.

[FortTom]

I'll keep this thread in mind. Still like Froglube, no failures from it yet.
If you stay on this, or probably any other gun forum long, you'll get this "lube wars" shit over and over. Not quite sure why, if folks don't like something, as simple as lube, use something else. I personally use what works for me. I'm sure it isn't the best thing on the market, but it fits my needs. I've never had a lube related failure since I retired in 95.(1st retirement). Super fine desert dust, the consistency of talc, and CPL would make one screwed up mess, after a day in the dirt, without ever firing a shot. You REALLY want to start some shit? Go to a Harley forum and ask...What kind of oil is the best? Death threats will begin within about 15 posts....[:D] We need a "here, you get a cookie for using the (real) best lube", award.

[MoxyDave]

GL-90 gear lube, Mobil 1 10w40, wheel bearing grease, whatever I have in the shop is what I use. I don't see the point of all these weapon-specific lubes. Maybe someone will come out with Strawberry gun lube ... I like strawberries.

[schambers]

I've been using frog lube on my AR's and plastic pistols for a while and haven't had any problems. I don't go HAM when applying though.

I'm currently using 10-8 oil on my 1911's and something else for my bolt guns (I forget whats its called at the moment) but when I run out of the frog lube, I'm planning on trying out the Geissele purple goo or whatever its called.

[FortTom]

GL-90 gear lube, Mobil 1 10w40, wheel bearing grease, whatever I have in the shop is what I use. I don't see the point of all these weapon-specific lubes. Maybe someone will come out with Strawberry gun lube ... I like strawberries.[adore] ha..ha..ha...

Why didn't I see this coming.[BD]

[Uffdaphil]

Weaponshield and Slip are my usual. Bought a secondhand upper recently that had been stored a long time with BCG smothered in FL. How the heck do I get this glue off? Degreaser got most, but surface still feels tacky.

[Thompson]

I'm planning on trying out the Geissele purple goo or whatever its called.
I'm actually really curious about this, after I saw Bill announced it in IV8888's video.

Sheeeeaat. Well from all the rumbling I've seen in this thread, guess I'll just got back to my Garand (holla at me Dstrb) - she don't give a fuq what type of grease I use lol.

On a more related note, I've been using FL since winter 2015 - haven't had any problem yet. Granted, I also haven't been shooting much to warrant a "proper" prognosis.

[Deadwing]

I've never used frog lube, and doubt i ever will. Even if there was hard, scientific evidence that it was the greatest lubricant ever known to mankind, I'm way too lazy to go to the trouble to strip all my weapons of any trace of other lubes or solvents, etc. to prep for application. I'll stick with Slip2000 EWL.

[Sak007]

I used froglube until it made me violently sick , I later realized that it was not actual frog lube but the excretion from poison dart frogs that was mislabeled by Botach that was back ordered over 4 years [BD].

[Sak007]

795

[Former11B]

Weaponshield and Slip are my usual. Bought a secondhand upper recently that had been stored a long time with BCG smothered in FL. How the heck do I get this glue off? Degreaser got most, but surface still feels tacky.

I used Hoppes #9 to get it off of mine.

[Uffdaphil]

Thanks. I'll give it a good soak 'n scrub.

[SINNER]

Simmer down...no pun intended. What the heck are you talking about, needing a "tempering oven"? FL recommends "warming" the part up. Direct sun light is usually enough. A heat gun, or hair dryer (a cheap $5 hair dryer from the Dollar store works beautifully). You just warm it up enough for the stuff to liquefy and then wipe it off. Very little should remain. If you don't like the stuff (FL), don't use it, but don't use the forum to misinform folks that they need a tempering oven. If you are changing the temper from factory specs to whatever, please don't shoot in the lane next to me.[:D] This is FL we're talking about. We're not heat treating or heat soaking parts for NASA.

FT

You were the one spouting off like no one but you knows how to apply the lube apparently. I was just proving a point that I assure you I did a better job than you did applying that garbage. I can post pics of the ultrasonic tank I prepped everything in also if you would like. LOL

This thread inspired me to throw the new Extreme into my game freezer to see how it reacted. Not good. Not as bad as the frozen candle the original became but within an hour it went from its typical thin viscosity to like cold maple syrup.

Mobil 1, and Aeroshell 33 and 64 is all I use anymore.

[SINNER]

Your lubricant application assistance device costs more than some of the firearms I own.

It cost more than some of my firearms too. Lol Ovens that will reach 1400* don't come cheap. I had to purchase it for a job, preheating ductile iron to TIG weld in stainless bungs. It bounced from job to job in a Conex box for a few years and then I brought it home. It actually works very well for Cerakoting small parts, preheating gas blocks to fit on tight journals, and other random work.

[FortTom]

Thanks. I'll give it a good soak 'n scrub.
You can try brake cleaner. Avail at Wal-Mart and other places for about $2.00 a can. The red and black can at Wally Worlds. I've used that stuff to clean about any kind of crud that exists, off of stuff, including firearms. (Just don't get it on plastics, polymers etc..) Gun Scrubber works great. Also, something you've probably already got in the house, WD-40, is great at cleaning metal parts. Actually Fl makes a "pre-cleaner" that can be used indoors or out.

FT