www.MG42.us

Hello all,,!
Ok, i like the rest of you realise the MG-42 was built inexpensively and certain parts wore out sooner than others, with that in mind, i went searching for what would make my rails and other parts last the longest, using slick-50 as a lube,sparingly i might add, was my go to lube,,
I was at a friend of mine when a nother enthusist showed up, with a case of expired(date was 2009) can of Sandstrom NATO Mil Spec spray containing Molubdinum diesulfide (spelling), anyhow, with cleaned rails, bolt sides and re-coil spring, i applied a coating of this stuff,,,,2 hours later I gave her another coat,,,,,fast forward 2 weeks later, I took the FA MG42 out to run a few belts thru her, also post installation of one of Bob's Re-couperators,,thank's Bob,(Black River Militaria), and preceeded to run about 400 rounds thru her flawlessly!,no jams,FTF,FTE's,,,just a fun time by all.

Returning home, i dissassembled her, and inspected the rails,side of the bolt,both sides, and the re-coil spring, using my jewelers visor, 5x mag, there was no wear whatsoever,,not even scratched on the surface,of any of these parts!, I thought this is worth sharring, maybe this has been discovered by others, but if you goggle "Sandstrom NATO Mil coatings, you will see there web site, select wepons coatings, and there it is, an aresol spray that etches the metal, and actually builds it up with each coating,,,now not much though, .0005 per coating is recommended, reading off the lable that is,,,so I have 1 can, but they sell it for only 10 bucks,,,,I also seen another distributor for their stuff on that google page. Its finish is a dull grey, and be sure and tape up the receiver top, and anyother surface you dont want coated.

simple goal here, reduce friction,thus wear on parts.

have fun!..Bernie

A new lube.
Thanks for sharing this.

Later 42rocker

Thanks for heads up. Was getting to the end of the 5 tubes of that expensive white chain gun grease tnw sells, and was looking for something easier to apply, and get more for your buck. Doesnt seem as messy either. beats mixing up a batch of that pelosi luv lube or what ever its called..

Glad to help,!,,The Military, USA that is, applies it to wing front edges and along seams to reduce wear I read, the whole goal of mine was to save the rails and main spring,also the inside of the receiver where the re-coil spring rides. I also coated my MP-40 Tube and Bolt,,,I am taking her out today, also coated the top inside of my PPSH-41, I shoot that one alot, and she fires faster than a MAC 10, as I have closed up the tolerances on her to .020 between the bolt and receiver top, along with a buffer industries phenolic Buffer, with that Coating applied,,there is very little friction,,I really feel this is worth sharring, because i am like the rest of you, i dont want to be falling fopr the "trick of the month",,,have fun!!!
Kindly....
Bernie.

BernieT wrote:Glad to help,!,
Bernie.

Yep, it's a very good product. Also, you can find the lubricative advantages of Moly Disulphide in a whole host of very common oil and grease products, it is probably the most common additive for high-pressure applications. Most products advertise it's content by having the word "Moly" somewhere in the brand name or descriptor, but it is almost always found in "gear application" type greases. Greases, per se, probably aren't the ideal carrier base for use in the MG-42, so finding a product that applies the Moly content via a oil film or spray is much better. There are numerous thin-film oils available sold into the general lubricating markets, just look for the moly content on the label. Many of these are also containing PTFE ("Teflon") as a marketing ploy which is probably overkill, as both are molecular-bonding to the base metal via physical deposition via burnishing of the sliding parts and since they can't occupy the same pores at the same time, they compete for the bonding locations and you wind up having a mixture of both which isn't the best as the lowest frictional coefficients are obtained by contact of identical compounds only.

The good thing about Moly is that it can be added to practically ANYTHING as a direct additive (just like PTFE resins); if you already have a favorite lube that you are happy with for your guns, you can add Moly powder directly to it. This will OF COURSE take some experimenting, but the concept is easy. This is what I use and has given great results:

http://www.mclube.com/lubricants/moly_powders

There probably isn't a good way to get it in an aerosol spray product except as a factory product, so the Sandstrom product above and similar are your best bets if spraying toots your horn.

-TomH

BernieT wrote:also coated the top inside of my PPSH-41, I shoot that one alot, and she fires faster than a MAC 10, as I have closed up the tolerances on her to .020 between the bolt and receiver top, along with a buffer industries phenolic Buffer, with that Coating applied,,there is very little friction,

It may seem a bit counter-intuitive, but realize that one of the main components in the overall equation of balancing out recoil forces safely in any gun such that you do not adversely effect the structural integrity of the basic gun is the component of frictional resistance in the dynamic recoil assembly, i.e., the sliding friction in all its manifestations adds greatly to the ability to absorb recoil forces. While not always a calculated thing in simple gun designs like the PPSH-41 where spring rate and travel and buffer restitution are the most important factors, it is for certain that even there if you greatly reduce the sliding frictional resistance enough to visibly notice a significant rise in cyclic rate.......you are most assuredly also increasing the non-dampened impact loadings at the end of the recoil stroke, i.e., increasing the "hammering" loads. A buffer of any sort is only designed to absorb a set amount of impact loading x cyclic frequency, after that it's just a pass-through to the rear of the receiver metal.

While I am -fairly- certain the Buffer Technologies brand Sorbothane polymer PPSh buffer is able to adequately absorb a goodly increase in cyclic RPM (I say I "know" that....because I had significant input with Larry Bullock when he designed the original mold ;^) ), realize you are increasing the impact loading, no way around it.

-TomH

Great Input Tom,,!

I do coat both the bolt and rail's with the Sandstrom product, and since your post I went looking and found Lyman has a moly based spray at Midway and Lyman.com, seems bullet casters coat the lead bullets for reduced fouling,,,that's a big plus, as I also cast the 9mm for my mp-40, and shot this guy alot, i clean that after every magazine, i quickly pass a brass bruss two or three quick pulls. Now, I will spray the bullets down after re-sizing,,a lube is a must, wheather A-Lox, or comporable,don't kid yourself, even with a brinnel of 16 which comes with good old wheel weights, it will lead up fast with no lube, Back to the 42' discussion, i was going to spray down a couple of belts with the Sandstrom and give her a try later today or tomorrow. I will report when done. you said Tom that like compounds reduce friction, so coated rails and bolt guides are alike being that they both have the moly applied correct? Thank You!Bernie