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Replaced my carry ammo today

rcurtner said:
While attending a gunsmithing course in Louisiana a local PD Detective brought in his S&W model 36 complaining he couldn't eject rounds from the cylinder. He said he routinely sprayed WD40 on the loaded revolver. We removed the cylinder and had to use a wooden dowel to remove the green corroded rounds. Thank goodness he never had to actually fire it.
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WD40 is probably the worst thing you can do to any gun, its water based
 
The WD in WD40 stands for water displacement. There is no water in it. It is a solvent, and very low viscosity so it can run into microscopic places. It can be used to remove and protect against rust and can be used to clean guns.. Here is the problem with WD40 on guns. As a low viscosity solvent it can penetrate your ammunition and make it fail. Then the liquid evaporates and dries and the stuff that makes a protective film leaves a solid residue. Repeated applications to a gun creates a buildup over time. This residue can gum up the action and cause the gun to malfunction. Carbon residue makes it worse. Over time the buildup of dried crud will absorb water and now you have a recipe for corrosion.

I have worked on guns that had heavy a buildup of WD40 residue. The worst case was a stainless S&W revolver that had been saturated internally with WD40. When I removed the cover plate it was caked with what looked like petrified dog crap. I had to soak the whole gun in mineral spirits, flush it out with gunscrubber and conpressed air, and re-lubed properly. The gun functioned perfectly and the owner thought I was a genius. I have also seen it caked in the firing pin channel of a Glock, and gumming up the action of a lever action rifle.

I would not use WD40 on a gun if I had a choice but if it was all I had for a cleaning solvent, use gunscrubber or mineral spirits to get it out of there then lube properly.

WD40 has its uses. I use it with scotchbrite pads to remove rust from the cast iron tables of woodworking machines, but I don't leave it on there. My advice is, don't put it on guns, there are much better choices, like Remoil or TW25 and others.
 
Shame! Shame!
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HayesGreener said:
Most failures in semi auto handguns occur as a result of bad ammo, bad magazine, poor maintenance, or shooter error.

I live in Florida. When in Southeast Asia, I saw revolvers with ammo corroded inside cylinders . My carry ammo is not stored, it is with me all the time, 12 hours a day, 365 days per year. The ammo I carry is subject to the same climatic conditions as I am. In and out of air conditioning. 98% humidity many days. I sweat. More than 60 inches of rain per year where I live and sometimes you get caught in it. Riding in my ATV, truck, mower, and tractor my gun and ammo get bumped and jostled.

Guns require meticulous maintenance, I won't overlook my magazines and ammo. Shooting my carry ammo twice a year and replacing it gives me experience with it and minimizes one potential point of failure.
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I can't remember where I saw the article, but it was about spare ammo riding in vehicles for long periods and the vibration causing the little 'anvil' component in the primer to degrade to the point the round wouldn't fire. Might have been reference to a military use situation, but as you say, "Riding in my ATV, truck, mower, and tractor my gun and ammo get bumped and jostled." is another data point supporting periodic change of carry ammo.
 
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