WD40...solvent or lubricant?

[sh00ter]

I always hear people either love it or hate it (I know not to use for guns). But I have so many different cans of spray lube, garage door lube, silicone lube, penetrant oil, chain lube, etc on hand that I began to wonder if this stuff really can do most things well enough not to have to buy so many others?

For example, can you lube a bike or motorcycle chain with it or are you better off using some dedicated "chain lube". I already use WD40 for the following:

- protect metal parts, such as rust spots on trailers that are stored outside to keep them from getting worse.
- in the truck as a single can-o-lube for whatever I need while at the boat ramp, or fixing a car somewhere, etc.
- used it today to remove stubborn duck tape mess from a car door that had the window taped shut until I could replace the regulator
- as a general lube when I am out of or too lazy to find the dedicated stuff for bike chains and door hinges, etc.

But I decided today when using it that I would ask the board if it is a solvent then how it is also a good lubricant, because that seems counterintuitive to use one or the other for certain tasks.

I also wanted to just generally ask what all people use it for and why, and if anyone uses it as their only can-o-lube in the shop? Those that know me best on here know I am always looking for a simple solution to fit in a nice little logical box so it leads to questions like this . Even other brands of lube say the same stuff on their cans as WD40 says..."lubricant, protector, penetrant, etc..." so if original WD40 can't be the do-all, then is there something that can?

I noticed that WD40 is now in the marketing game with a bunch of different specifically marked formulas but I have no idea if they are just the same stuff in a different can.

 

[KOPBET]

I prefer KY

 

[O4L]

Water Displacement.

 

[sh00ter]

I prefer KY

I KNEW something like that was coming but I decided to ask anyway LOL.

 

[dennishoddy]

As far as chains, they should be cleaned with hot solvent, allowed to dry, and cleaned once again in fresh hot solvent, allowed to dry and then put in hot 80W90 gear oil, then hung to drip the excess.
Back in the ATC racing days, one of our sponsors was Tsubaki chain. This was their recommendation.
They gave us cases of chains to give away at races.

 

[swampratt]

Door hinges and cleaner and use it on tools that got rusty and hard to operate.
Yea there are better lubes.
Rem oil gets used just like I use WD40.

I use a lot of WD40 when I build an engine.
Before and After powerwashing the engine I just picked up from the machine shop it gets sprayed down with wd and then blown off with air and then another spray of WD on machined surfaces.

This last round of engine building I switched it up.
My fresh torque plate honed cylinders and machined deck got a rub down with a rubber gloved hand
and Quicksilver 2 stroke oil.

Then I power washed it all including the deck and cylinders.

ZERO flash rust.
WD40 would have left me with some slight golden flash rust as it always has after power washing.

When I did a rust test on bare steel the Quicksilver 2 stroke oil won the test.

 

[red dirt shootist]

Can we talk about astroglide for a minute or two? That's right, she will be begging for the 5 gallon size, tease her a little bit with saying all they had was the one gallon size, and hold on.

 

[Shadowrider]

WD40 is a very light oil with some other stuff in it that penetrates, displaces water and then evaporates off. It will protect from rust but not for very long.

We bought it by the drum in every machine shop I worked in. It’s a fantastic cleaner for getting mill and casting scale off of machine tool way surfaces and cleaning up oily machines. Just as good as kerosene only smells better.

I use Amsoil Metal Protector which acts like WD40 but leaves a film that actually protects and lubricates. LPS and Starrett M1 are essentially the same thing as the Amsoil. I think they all leave a really light film of petroleum jelly behind after the carrier evaporates off. WD40 is much lighter protection than those.

 

[dennishoddy]

We protected the ways on machine tools in storage by mixing solvent and gear grease. Mixed until really liquid and used paint brushes to cover all surfaces. The solvent evaporates and leaves a fine coat of the grease to protect the bare metal. Some of those machine tools stayed in storage for years with zero rust.

 

[CHenry]

Water Displacement.

This^^ Thats all its good for. Use silicone of other lube on metal parts.