Alternatives to LPS-2

Check Kano Labs, makers of Kroil and lots of other good stuff, I'm sure they have something suitable.

--Lots cheaper if you buy it by the gallon, then use a pump spray bottle to apply it..

Iggy, I haven't found any good substitute to LPS2. It is a lot less expensive than the rust. I like the idea of gallon containers though. Steve

Aerokroil is supposed to be good. Not sure it's any cheaper, though.

I'm told that LPS-1 "non oily" is good lube for locks.

Used motor oil meets your criteria.

I've never used LPS-2, so I can't make a direct comparison, but take a look at Black Bear Par-AL-Ketone sold by Aircraft Spruce. It is intended as a rust preventative and can be diluted with mineral spirits, or denatured alcohol if you want it to dry out faster. In discussions on the net many years ago, I recall it was said that it was the same or similar to what was used in the Rusty Jones rust proofing for cars. It's off lable use is as a bullet lubricant ala Lee Liquid Alox.

RWL

Look at what CRC offers. I've not used anything but their penetrant,

556, 356, 348 or one of them thread sizes. It worked OK. NAPA was one source and I've seen it on real hardware store shelves. I like the LPS line myself, but they seem to be really after the industrial market, case lots, not the home shop onesies. I use more LPS 1 and 3 than 2.

Stan

You can re-pressurize aerosol cans with propane. I made an adapter for recharging paint rattle cans:

It screws into the valve of a propane torch. I.e., in place of the tube. Aerosol cans have different style valves & each style requires its own adapter.

Bob

Look at what CRC offers. I've not used anything but their penetrant,

556, 356, 348 or one of them thread sizes. It worked OK. NAPA was one source and I've seen it on real hardware store shelves. I like the LPS line myself, but they seem to be really after the industrial market, case lots, not the home shop onesies. I use more LPS 1 and 3 than 2.

Stan

i keep having cans of any brand (LPS, CRC, etc.) of the waxy anti-rust stuff leak out all the propellant. it sucks (because it's expensive). half full cans of LPS 3 (and others) with no propellant left. one time i called LPS and told them about it and they said they were going to send me replacements and i waited a couple weeks and called them back and then they said they weren't. i bought a bunch of the stuff from eastwood. they've got it in metal cans, non-aerosol, like quart size. i put it in one of the plastic containers (that come with the schutz gun) and the solvent evaporated THROUGH the plastic container. now i have a SOLID container of wax anti-rust stuff. gonna have to figure out a way to re-liquefy it. i don't know how eastwood's prices compare to (what someone else suggested, gallon non-aerosol).

how do their prices compare?

b.w.

You might be interested in a trial I did:

It is nothing original or definitive, I just wanted to know how things behaved in my hands. Also I did not consider prices but these are easy to find out.

In a nutshell: Nothing beat LPS3.

I was puzzled about the behaviour of WD40.

ATF

And, what does that mean?

I'm not puzzled about WD40. Despite what folks say, it's good for one thing, displacing water, that's what it was designed for. The stuff is basically a light petroleum fraction with other crap dissolved that will evaporate leaving the other crap coating the surface and it's NOT a lubricant or rust-preventative. So if you try using it on a squeaky hinge, the squeak comes back, sometimes worse. Performance on rusty stuff is no better than using kerosene. LPS 1 is a far better penetrant and the coating it leaves IS a lubricant. I use it on padlock innards, usually good for several years in fully exposed locks. Keeps the disc locks from bending or busting keys.

There's one thing better than LPS 3, but it's not made anymore. LPS

100 was a white grease that was supposedly good for a whole year under sea water. Used to use it on antenna rotator bearings, usually lasted longer than the attached antennas.

Stan

They should fly banners behind airplanes announcing that fact. It would save a lot of mistreated machinery.

I'd like to know what happened to WD-39...

This can of it is black, and very thick, the marks from scooping some out maybe 20 years ago haven't slumped.

It's hard to apply unless thinned and doesn't soak through a rust film so I don't use it much, except on bolt threads under the truck. Plus I can't replace it.

It might be a slightly better lubricating grease than LPS-3, which dries to a wax, but neither is good. Marine lower unit or trailer wheel bearing grease let my home made roller wheel bearings spin easier and seem to be enough protection.

IIRC it made the antenna rotator sluggish in very cold weather. I used marine grease the second time. The antenna has lasted only because I make new parts. I'm receiving HDTV on a dipole made of two 6" hex standoffs jammed into plastic hose.

jsw

I found another penetrating lubricant called PB-50 (by the same company that makes PB Blaster). It is massively cheaper than LPS-2 and is sold for $2.50 per can at Home Depot. The can is slightly smaller than LPS-2, but the price difference more than makes up for it.

However, this PB-50 does not disperse widely, it shoots a jet of it.

So, there is no good alternative to LPS-2.

I agree with the opinion expressed here, that buying LPS-2 by the gallon, and using spray bottles, is the best bet if I need to use a lot of nondrying, easily sprayable, penetrating rust preventative. This is what I will do. I have a large quantity of steel, tool steel etc. I will sell some, but I will keep a lot and I want that steel to stay clean and not rust.

i

Have you tried switching nozzles on the PB50 can?

I have used liquid floor polish to keep stuff from rusting. It is inexpensive if you get it at moving sales.

Dan

On Sat, 6 Mar 2010 18:02:54 -0800 (PST), the infamous snipped-for-privacy@prolynx.com scrawled the following:

For hinges, pull the pins, wipe them off, run some coarse steel wool over 'em, wipe 'em again, dip your finger in some moly wheel bearing grease and put a thin coat on the full length and circumference of the pin. Clean your finger off on the top of the female hinge opening, and tap the pin in. That's good for about 30 squeak-free years in most homes.

Well, STP changed their formula and so did WD-40. Both now contain oil. WD has under 25%, but it's there now. WD hasn't even tried to talk people out of the idea of using it as a lubricant because it means that they'll have to buy _much_ more WD. I've amazed many a mother when I took the squeak (and kept it out) from their kids' bicycle and tricycle wheels. I'm truly glad that Big Wheels are no longer an issue. DAMN, those things are LOUD! No way to lube plastic tires on concrete or asphalt.

That has been more of a problem here in Oregon than it was for me in California. I'll have to locate some LPS1.

What did you replace it with, spray lithium grease?

-- The blind are not good trailblazers.

-- federal judge Frank Easterbrook

What I've found to work very well on cheap steel door hinges is 90-weight hypoid gear oil, which is the consistency of honey and so will creep into all the nooks and crannies.

To apply, I close the door, and one-by-one drive the hingepin out, butter coat it with the hypoid oil, and reinsert. After a day or so, the oil has found its way into the places where metal interferes with metal, and the grinding and squeaking sounds are gone.

The smell of the hypoid oil goes away after a few days. Put a paper towel in the gap between door and jam under the hinges to catch any drips - the oil will stain things.

Joe Gwinn