What thread lubricant is hot these days?

Usually this stuff unless it’s hot outside.

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Oh, you meant for lights. Nano Oil

Only downside is you get chased around by bees wanting their wax back.

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I have a tube of Dow Corning 111 Valve Lubricant & Sealant and have been using it for o-ring lube for at least 30 years. It has been fine on my flashlights, but I recently tried Super Lube and it also works well.

Astroglide.

Oh, wait.

Flashlights, not fleshlights.

Since it’s on anodized threads, I hadn’t noticed a difference. Usually wipe electrical contact points clean regularly… Yet, worth testing, as it unavoidably does move around a bit.

Another chance to win flashaholic converts. Have you heard the good news, bees?

KPL ultralite—-on Amazon.

Same. Bought big pack, my grandchildren will use it too probably.

Moly grease is usually thick, and not necessarily intended for things that need to have a low coefficient of friction like an auto knife. It is intended for extreme pressure applications like motorcycle/ automotive suspension parts or wheel bearings. I would be hesitant to use it on a knife or gun since it can get cold in my area and its use in low temp applications will cause it to become too stiff to operate properly. The other reason not to, is because of the fact that it is gray in color and very much like the plague- hard to not spread around and get on everything.

A good gun grease would be your better bet.

The lube that’s in a 10,000 lumen flashlight, turned on, is pretty hot. Not hot enough to get you excited, though.

Really, has there been any significant progress over the last decade? I have a feeling that the cheepest lube from China that is compatible with your o-ring chemistry is not notably worse than those super lubes….

Apparently there has been no progress over the last decade.
I just redid my new lights with the lube i already have.

Nyogel 760G is not ideal as an o-ring lubricant. I’ve found that it separates and thickens, assuming the stuff I bought is genuine. I have doubts about the gun and knife oil being promoted here as well. Some of those might be incompatible with Nitrile / Buna-N o-rings.

The people that make the KPL (knife pivot lube) do not recommend it for use on flashlight threads because it may cause the rubber o rings to swell; I use it anyway on my Lumintop AA and AAA with no problems. These lights are outside in Florida 24/7.
Wlll update as time goes on.
Bats are changed every 2 days as they are in 5 lanterns.
This stuff does make them threads smoothern a spanked baby’s ace on the 4th of July with the sun a shinin’.

Super Lube for me too. Bought at Harbor Freight many years ago and also use it for lots of things around the house.

Agreed that there hasn’t been any better choices for quite awhile, but maybe that means the current stuff is pretty good.

Here’s another good (not too old) post regarding lube: What Silicone Grease or other lubricant

I’ve always read that Nyogel 760G was a good lube, but good to know your experience Hoop.

I’ve often wondered what Simon uses with his Convoy flashlights? Or Hank at International Outdoors?

I use whatever I have that’s lying around. Right now it’s some silicone grease that I bought many years ago. In my mind what lub to use on flashlights is the same as what lub to use on guns. My opinion is 1) people don’t do any scientific/rigid testing to determine which is the best (and that would be impossible to do without the right equipment and knowledge), and 2) the lubs are pretty much all the same in what they’re doing.

I’ve used silicon grease, Tri-Flow, cheap spray oil, Mobil One, etc and I can’t say that I’ve noticed any difference at all.

I bought the superlube per several recommendation above…

This thing is amazing! Perfect viscosity for threads and even worked marvelously for my Microtech OTF knife. I tried the thick KPL oil and the viscosity was still too low allowing it to sip through the gaps instead of staying on the components.

It comes with 3oz which I believe will last me a decade, I just re-lubed every single flashlight and only used a fraction of an oz. I hope it doesn’t dry out and become sticky with time like a jetbeam grease I once tried.

Might also try it on a makita impact driver that has been leaking oil for a while.

I stopped using Super Lube grease on my lights. It works, does no harm, but I find that it oxidizes pretty quickly on aluminum threads that are in regular use, requiring more frequent cleaning/relubing and a good chance of getting grey stains on things accidentally. That’s just the most common #21030 that’s available everywhere and has been for many years now. It’s really a great all-around grease and I’ve used it extensively since the late 90s on all kinds of things including ball bearings, shaft bushings, various rubbers, and disc brakes. Napa Auto Parts sells a very similar product at a good/better price usually.

For flashlights I started using the clear silicone grease instead…a tad thicker than I prefer but it works fine, lasts forever. I’ve gone through a couple of the small lip balm tubs that MTN sells, working on the Nitecore version now for awhile, which appears to be the exact same product. I think Xtar also has/had some of the same for sale. I’ve just added those tubs to orders when I see them for a good price (like $2-$3….higher than that and it’s kind of a ripoff, imho).

Super Lube does make a whole range of greases and oils, full or partial silicone content in a wide range of viscosities. I may pick up one of those versions in the future. Wasn’t overly impressed with the Nyogel but it’s very good grease. Also, Home Depot and most other home centers/hardware stores often sell a tiny tube of clear silicone plumbing o-ring lube…overpriced but it’s great, too, although a bit thicker and stickier. Convenient if you’re in need, though.

Looks like the Silicone Grease - 5G that MTN sells is Super Lube.

It states:

  • Food Grade Grease
  • High Dielectric Strength
  • Excellent Heat Transfer Efficiency
  • Thermally Stable
  • Compatible with All Major Rubber and Plastic Compounds
  • Fortified with PTFE

Which is pretty much what Super Lube states on its website: SILICONE LUBRICATING GREASE WITH SYNCOLON® (PTFE)

If he’s using one of theirs, it’s not the most common 21030 flavor…that’s what nearly all the retailers sell (and usually that’s the only one they sell). The sheet you linked is a different product from them, though. I can tell you that in hand and in use, what MTN sells is nothing like the “normal” Super Lube grease. They have a couple dozen greases, though (and lots of oils). And there are still many suppliers for silicone greases - Super Lube doesn’t exactly have the market cornered there…quite popular, however. I love the stuff and it’s generally my go-to grease for all kinds of things although I have about five that all get regular use…but the 21030 Super Lube doesn’t see flashlight threads for me anymore.

Well hopefully the MTN version is compatible with silicone rubber, which is used with a lot of flashlight O-rings.

According to the Super Lube compatibility chart, the common Harbor Freight 21030 (3 oz) version is good with silicone rubber.

The 92003 (3 oz) version that I linked above is not compatible with silicone rubber. BUT, that’s unfortunately where the MTN description matches up with Super Lube.