Heavy lubrication shown to improve M16, M4 effectiveness

[shine]

http://www.militarytimes.com/news/20...cation_070716/

Army weapons officials might have found a way to improve the M16 family’s performance in the desert.
“Dust chamber” tests at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., last year show that M16 rifles and M4 carbines perform dramatically better when the weapon’s bolt assembly is heavily lubricated.
During each phase of the two-part “system assessment” at Army Test and Evaluation Command, testers fired 60,000 rounds through 10 weapon samples of each model.
Treated with light lubrication, new M16A4s and M4s, performed poorly in the extreme dust and sand conditions of the test, according to a January report from ATEC.
But when testers applied a heavy coat of lubrication to the weapons, the test results showed a “significant improvement.”
Out of the 60,000 rounds fired in each phase, the M4 stoppage-rate dropped from 9,836 with light lubrication to 678 with heavy lubrication.
The M16A4 stoppage-rate dropped from 2,124 with light lubrication to 507 with heavy lubrication, results show.
For years, Army weapons officials have preached to soldiers to virtues of applying a light coat of lubrication during weapons maintenance.
But the test results reinforce a recent change in weapons maintenance guidance Army units are practicing in Iraq and Afghanistan, said Col. Carl Lipsit, project manager for Soldier Weapons.
At the request of Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., the Army will conduct a similar dust-chamber test in August, pitting the M4 against the Heckler and Koch 416, the H&K XM8 and FNH USA’s Special Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle.




Wonderful information there. (some might be surprised to see which rifle is most reliable out of the m4, hk416, and FN)


KEEP THAT RIFLE LUBED, WELL LUBED. Lube is more important than clean for the AR15 family rifle. I have my favorite lubes that are tried and tested by the shooters. but any lube is better than none. and more lube is better than less.


reading between the lines, we see the m4 as the LEAST reliable of the ar15 family. (but still very reliable) Rifle length gas system is what the rifle was designed for. if you go 16 inch barrel, go with a midlength (its relatively new, but is much more gentle on the rifle, and the shooter)... Honestly, I am not saying this to sell rifles. My goal is to have good people, armed well.

[WildAZbill]

I'm sure you've stated this numerous times in the past, but what is your preferred AR lube?

[shine]

Slip 2000 EWL is my favorite. It is highly rated and used by many of our shooters. I have never seen its equal.

[Kelly Alwood]

We have done extensive study and testing on this subject. The bottom line is: you cannot have too much lube. Your weapon Will run wet and dirty. It will NOT run dry and dirty or even dry and clean. You parts MUST have lubrication. This becomes a problem when dealing with real life situations, as you do not have lube on you. Unless you carry it in your tac vest, and can find time to reapply it during a firefight. So what we have done is to use parts that have lubricity built in them.
We have built many guns with two different coatings that truly work well.
The first is EXO. This coating runs COMPLETELY lube free. You will see my video of running this gun through a short shooting course at a police qualification. This gun has NEVER been cleaned OR lubed. I have pounded 2,100 of russian ammo through it so far with ZERO malfunctions. This particular gun has the complete EXO package. I.E. bolt, carrier, hammer, and upper.
The second coating that has been proven is the QPQ coating by JP Enterprises.
This is the coating currently on My production guns, the Gladiator, manufactured by JP Ent. This coating has worked extremely well also. I have over 3,000 rounds through this rifle, without a single failure. We do recommend lubricating your guns as often as possible, however, when you cant, these guns will run dry as they have permanat lubricity built into them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=St09xd5T5II
EXO SBR M4 shorty shooting
http://www.preparednessdeals.com/servlet/Categories
EXO parts

[RMTactical]

I agree. In my experience with the AR15, the gun will run indefinitely as long as it is lubed well.

Most people seem to think that it needs to be meticulously cleaned. Not true. It just needs to be well lubed.