What thread lubricant is hot these days?

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.

Seems to be. I think I got my first tub from Richard maybe 4 years ago. It’s been on several lights with black and red “silicone” o-rings with no signs of change. I say “silicone” because who knows what type of silicone these china rings are made from…literally hundreds of formulations of silicone rubber in this range. The Super Lube was fine in that regard as well, and over a couple decades using that all over the place in bicycles, auto, and (non-critical) shaft seals, all of those rubbers were fine (I think mostly buna, epdm, and some plain vulcanized rubbers but lots of them are “who knows”…). When I run out of this last one from MTN I’ll pick up a different Super Lube grease…hopefully in a viscosity that’s a tad thinner than his. And some of their real silicone oil, too. The majority of silicone oils out there are actually petroleum based with just a tiny bit of oil-compatible silicone in them and they leave very little behind for lube, but the good stuff is awesome, and when it’s not too thin it’s a dream for lots of parts and shafts.

Most flashlight o-rings are not silicone, they are nitrile / buna-n. The green o-ring that sits on top of the glass window of an s2+ is silicone, but you wouldn’t lube that o-ring anyway. If it’s a black o-ring it’s most likely nitrile / buna-n.

Silicone grease is not compatible with silicone o-rings, but it is compatible with everything else. Silicone grease will degrade / dissolve a silicone o-ring over time.

Bare aluminum threads do this no matter what. I don’t think you’re going to find a grease that does not turn grey when used with bare aluminum threads. Ideally a light should be designed in such a way that it does not require bare threads, but instead relies on the bare ends of the tube wall to make electrical contact. Flashlight design 101.

Here is a pic of Tactical Grizzly’s recommended lubes. All silicone w different thickness and additives.

He mentioned that UV will reveal Nyogel 760g silicone thread lube.

I just UV checked the Nyogel 760g coverage on the threads of my light, and it looks good! :wink:
.

Yes, but some faster or slower than others and of course that depends upon frequency of use and oxygen exposure.

UV will light up most greases including those that have zero silicone in them. What color it fluoresces depends a little on other compounds in the grease (for instance a synthetic polyurea I have that is dark blue-green still lights up blue but a different shade). Good old white lithium is pretty bright…vaseline is so bright it’s almost blinding. I have some grease with silicone in it and it doesn’t light up at all (natural state is a translucent light amber). The red sticky bearing grease turns a weird shade of grey. Not sure how many of these may contain talc in the binder but that will sure add a lot to fluorescence.

The silicone grease from MTN does not fluoresce at all, not even a little.

correction
He mentioned that UV will reveal Nyogel 760g silicone thread lube.

I just checked, and UV does Not reveal Nyogel 767a
.

And regarding silicone vs nitrile O-rings, I find it interesting that Convoy states they are silicone:

This is what I ordered: 10g O-Ring Grease O-Ring Silicone Lubricant Silicone Faucet Grease Waterproof Food-Grade Seal Grease For Toys And Flashlights. $4.40 CAD from CN.

Super O-Lube.

I’ll report back.

don’t know how to post picture.

People overestimate how fragile nitrile rubber exposed to the “wrong” lubricant is. I’ve put lucas RnT on buna-n o-rings, including on flashlights. Hoppes. Mineral oil. I actually use RnT on all sorts of things people think it shouldn’t go on.

Super-inert nitrile and threads which have an expected lifetime of probably 5000 cycles are not worth spending too much time fretting over.

The stuff MTN sells in the little plastic tubs is good stuff.
I’ve been using it on all my lights for about five years now and it has not hurt any o-rings.

I am sure the Superlube is fine but I have not tried their grease but the SL oil works good for knives, wrenches, and pliers.

It’s good if you can make up your mind which lube you like the first time cuz chances are that the tube will last you the rest of your life.