Rifle Scopes Do you lube your 1913 rail?

[SPAK]

You can't prove that it works.

Nope, and I don’t have to.

I do have to trust that the person who shared this information with me did his due diligence in testing and controlling the variables . Given what I know of his personality and abilities I have no reason to doubt his findings.

I do know that my return to zero when removing my optic/mounts and replacing them back on rails went from .2-.3 mils to .1mil or no change.

I also know that I have not experienced any failure to hold zero.

Not all mounts, optics, or rails are the same. Some are better than others. Yours may not have any issue. Be happy and move on.

 

[Novak77]

I've been into firearms since I could pee standing up, spent time in the US Army as an Infantryman 04/05 and can honestly say I've never seen or heard of anyone oiling their 1913 rails.

If anything my military experience with rail mounted accessories, has taught me you'd want to do the opposite. Any of you ever had a CCO or PEQ fall off their A4 or M4? I have and thats why we dummy cord everything on our weapons. Seems like adding oil to the situation, would be counter intuitive.

 

[HannibalOdinson]

I have never personally oiled my 1913 rails, and it does seem to be quite counterproductive.

However, when changing oil in an automobile, its common practice to apply a thin coating of oil on the oil drain plug before reinstalling it. The thought process is that when the bolt is torqued properly, the oil trapped in the threads is pressurized, holding the bolt firmly in place, acting like a thread locker.

I don't see how this would translate to mounting scope rings, but the point is that oil isn't always used for lubrication.

 

[MK20]

I can see some lube helping the rings seat better in a theoretical sense.

Didn’t do it on my rifle and it shot a 1.5” group at 700, so...

Do what makes you feel good man.
Mount your rings at night under a full moon after sacrificing a baby goat and lubing rings with its blood. Just torque to spec and it will work.

Note: blood will cause rust.

 

[fastfwd]

when changing oil in an automobile, its common practice to apply a thin coating of oil on the oil drain plug before reinstalling it. The thought process is that when the bolt is torqued properly, the oil trapped in the threads is pressurized, holding the bolt firmly in place, acting like a thread locker.

No, oil is basically incompressible, so it can't be pressurized. The reason for oiling the threads and the underside of the head is to make sure that the plug will always be torqued under the same conditions. The plug will usually be coated in oil after an oil change, so they specify that you should leave it that way, and not try to remove all the oil with solvent and install the plug clean and dry -- and also that you should coat the plug in oil when the engine is first assembled.

By ensuring that the plug will always be lubricated when it's installed, the manufacturer can specify a low torque value for it -- just enough to firmly seat the plug without destroying the notoriously easy to strip threads in the oil pan.

 

[fastfwd]

Anyone who's concerned that a thin coat of light oil on the rail will make the mount less secure could try this experiment:

1. With metal jaws on your vise, clamp a piece of clean and dry flat steel tightly enough that you can't move it. Mark the position of the handle.
2. Open the vise, apply a thin coat of oil, retighten to the same handle position, try to move it.

Let us know the results.

 

[tonyXcom]

However, when changing oil in an automobile, its common practice to apply a thin coating of oil on the oil drain plug before reinstalling it. The thought process is that when the bolt is torqued properly, the oil trapped in the threads is pressurized, holding the bolt firmly in place, acting like a thread locker.

The reason you add a layer of oil is you were supposed to have also replaced the crush or copper washer and lubing it helps prevent it from spinning while its crushed.