Frog Lube review

[Jamiethesquid]

Caution!!! Product Review Ahead!! Frog Lube CLP!! I had read a bunch of internet chatter about this stuff on here, and other forums. And watched a bunch of YouTube vids. Well, I am a "prove it" kinda guy. I have just about every gun cleaning product known to man, including a couple homemade concoctions and a $550 dollar ultrasonic cleaner.

These days I am more concerned about the possible long term effects of handling petro chemicals, having those chemicals constantly soaking in to your hands and breathing the VOC's that these chemicals emit is probably not the healthiest thing. I also have a pregnant wife and a young child in the house and my shop is in the basement with my forced hot air furnace. So if I am using something in the basement to clean guns, my own or a customers. You can be sure the furnace or natural air flow will help it along into the living spaces up stairs. I have been wearing gloves to work on guns for a while now, to minimize my contact with the chemicals and the crud on the guns, like lead, chromium, cadmium, and other contaminants and heavy metals.

Also, oil and grease tend to attract carbon, powder, dirt, dust, cat hair, belly button lint, you name it, so I like a product that makes cleaning easier, and keeps my blasters running better. I clean lots of guns, my own, and many for customers. 95% of all the guns that I deal with that are brought to me for repairs are due to lack of cleaning, over lubrication or under lubrication. Especially the guys who shoot very rarely and the hunters, not all hunters, but some (my father for example) sprays the gun down with WD-40 never cleans it and when it starts getting gummed up, he adds more WD-40.

So Frog Lube is a Bio-Based, USDA Food Grade CLP that kind of absorbs in to the surfaces of the firearm, it is safe on all the types of metal, on all the finishes, will not harm the plastics, rubber, wood, whatever. And just because I saw a guy on the internet do it, I actually put a dab of the liquid on my finger and put it in my mouth!! Tastes and smells like mint. But will it work as advertised?? Lets see.

Last year at Sig for Area 7, I was poking around in their pro shop. I saw some of this Frog Lube CLP and decided to give it a try. Bought some, threw it on the work bench and didn't give it much thought. Fast forward to the March 2014 Hampden match. My new Para 1911 was just coming up to 1000 rounds down the tube since new. Everything had been working very well. But...my mags started sticking in the magwell, due to fouling and my usual combination of Slide Glide and Breakfree CLP, in the Arctic cold outside was causing the gun to run a bit sluggish. The Para is a much tighter fitted gun than my Loosey Goosey Taurus so I had to change how I cleaned and lubed the pistol. I will usually field strip the gun after a couple hundred rounds and drop a snake down the barrel and wipe off the heavy grime and re grease/oil the moving parts. With colder weather I use more oil and less grease, hot weather vice versa. Which means the gun is really oozing/dripping on the cold days and getting all over my hands and on the side of my Jersey and on the lenses of my shooting glasses during a course of fire.

After the Hampden match I decide it is time for a Full Strip, and scrub. I remember that I have the Frog Lube and decide to give it a shot.

Note: Reference to Seal 1 removed.

Here is how I used it.

1. Strip all parts and clean as normal, thoroughly degrease with a non-residue solvent. I start with Simple Green these days, I like that it is eco-friendly, doesn't stink to high hell, works well and I use a diluted solution in my ultrasonic, so no compatibility issues. I Give them a spray and scrub with SG before they take a bath in the ultrasonic, while the water is heating up. Frog Lube has their own solvent, but I haven't used that yet, I am going to order some soon.

Disclaimer!! The ultrasonic, cleans gently, deeply, aggressively, and quickly. More on that later, do it wrong however and it will take off bluing in seconds, along with rust and grime.

2. I removed the parts from the ultrasonic and they are squeaky clean and quite hot. 140 deg. F. I rinse them with hot tap water and let them air dry and cool off a bit. Final step is to rinse them off with some 92% drugstore Isopropyl Alcohol.

3. The directions for Frog Lube, state that a warm surface will absorb this stuff quicker. so setting it in the sun, under a heat lamp, or using a hair dryer is handy. I used a combination of a hair dryer and my old convection oven that I use for Kydex molding. Set on a fairly low temp, just enough to make them hot, not enough that they are uncomfortable to hold on to. I started off with the paste, as this was the first product that I bought, I only recently bought the liquid.

4. It was cold!! in my shop, very cold!! The paste in the jar was about the consistency of a cold chap stick, I dabbed the bristles of an Acid Brush on the surface of the paste, hardly getting any on the end of the bristles, or so I thought. Once the brush touched the heated metal, the Frog Lube liquefied and started to really spread out and soak into the surface of the metal. Honestly it was kind of weird, kind of cool. If you normally get the metal wet with water it beads up, and oil or solvents usually sit on the surface, or drip off. This FL made the surface very, wet looking, very shiny, very slick, very evenly coated. So I gave it a couple minutes to absorb and moved on to other parts, it was after a few parts that I realized how little I was actually using.

5. The parts had cooled off by this point, and they looked totally dry? Wicked Slick!!, but dry. I returned them to my Convection Oven on a small sheet pan and let them warm back up for a couple minutes. When I pulled them from the oven they again looked wet!! So I followed the directions from a You Tube video, wiped them down with a dry rag, scrubbed out the barrel, and prepared for another coat. To my amazement, it was actually getting the metal cleaner and more grime was coming off even after the SG, Ultrasonic, and Alcohol, Hmmm!!!

6. The second application went the same as the first, once the gun cooled I wiped every last bit of FL that I could see on the surface with dry blue shop towels, and reassembled.

Holy Crap Batman!!! This stuff was super, super slick, and my gun was totally dry! No oily hands, no lube leaking out around the edges, nothing!! Take the hair dryer and wave it by the metal and the surface Looks wet almost instantly, just the act of racking the slide a couple times makes the slide rails wet, But even when it has the wet look, it doesnt go anywhere, it stays where you put it. They say this is a treatment of the metal on the microscopic level and not just a surface coating. I may just believe in that.

7. There are videos on their site from You Tube that independently test the anti-corrosive, metal protectant qualities of this stuff in comparison to other popular products. I was pretty impressed, but my 1911s are Stainless and dont get exposed to long term harsh conditions, so this wasnt a big selling point for me, I will however use it in the future on some of the guns in the cabinet that dont get much use these days. Heck I may just use it on everything!

8. So the proof, I went to the range at Cap City the last Friday in March with Gordon W. to do some practice and coaching and see how the lube held up while shooting. I had also treated all of the internal and external surfaces of my 1911 and mags. The only part that I stayed away from was my aluminum grips for obvious reasons of grip traction. Gordon and I spent some time on the indoor range working on gun Handling and doing some simple drills. My 1911 was functioning flawlessly and felt like I had spent hours polishing the action to a mirror finish, everything about the gun felt smoother. We then went to the outdoor range and shot 100+ rounds on some steel, all without issue, all with a bone dry 1911.

9. After our session at the range, I went home and cleaned as directed with the FL, a dry paper towel wiped away most all fouling, a dry Q-tip or a dry toothbrush took care of the tight areas. I rubbed a Q-tip in the paste, getting a small amount on the end, warmed up the big parts with the wifes hair dryer and applied a light coating of the FL to the critical areas, Again Wet...cools off...Dry, Wipe down and reassemble. I shot the match at Sig Sauer Academy the next weekend with a totally dry 1911 and zero Malfunctions. Beyond mental malfunctions of the competitor. It is reported that with repeated use the CLP function of the FL improves, seasoning into the parts.

10. After Sig I again field stripped and did a 5 minute cleaning, just like I did above, it was again easier to clean, came out cleaner and seemed to operate smoother. So short term test compete. I am sold, slap a sticker on my forehead, add them to the back of my Jersey and I will be filling out the application to become a dealer of their product, if I qualify. I am going to be using this product, for the foreseeable future and am really going to torture test it in all the conditions that I encounter, along with trying it on some other applications around the house and shop.

Edited April 16, 2014 by IDPA-nut

[Brassaholic13]

So, is this a review or an ad?

btw, after seeing these videos, I'll pass on Frog Lube.

[Jamiethesquid]

nope not an Ad just posting my observations.

[Jamiethesquid]

Not sure what those video's are trying to prove. In the first video. There appears to be a puddle of lube on each penny over an open flame. Lets assume it is propane. Which burns at 1900C, more or less depending on fuel to air ratio and laminar flow. So it caught on fire. Okay....most lubes would at that temp. I obviously from the post above am not applying puddles of it to pennies.

Second video. Sluggishness in cold weather. Well the manufacturer has specific instructions on cold weather use and dusty/ desert environments. That video gives no indication if the petro-chemicals were removed per the instructions, and applied as recommended. It is just a video of the guy racking a sluggish slide. I would need more info. I have personally used it with an outside temp here in Maine of 18F with a 20 mph wind.

Not saying this stuff is for everyone, or for every application. But so far I am sold.

Edited April 16, 2014 by IDPA-nut

[jc3257]

I started using Frog Lube for all my pistols until this winter. I took my Sig P229 out to the range on a 30 something degree day. The gun would not fire. Everything seemed to be working fine but I was getting light strikes. The Frog Lube seemed to be pretty gummed up on the internals. So I put the gun on my warm engine block for a few minutes and then took it off, quickly reloaded it and it fired fine. I think the Frog Lube was causing the light strikes due to the cold temperatures. I treated the gun as instructed but I'm sure some of the lube got into the firing pin channel causing the issue. Since then I have switched to Rand CLP. Same environmentally friendly compound but stays slick in all weather. Frog Lube is still a good product and I wouldn't hesitate to use it in warm weather but beware when it gets cold!

[Jamiethesquid]

I've heard good stuff about the Rand CLP. I will have to give it a try. So far no issues with the cold here, but my testing time is quickly drawing to an end as the weather is finally warming up. I may try like one guy did on You Tube and throw the gun in the freezer overnight and see how it functions.

[Jamiethesquid]

Had to run out and do some errands this afternoon. But I popped into the house and threw my 1911 in the freezer. I will take some temperature measurements later with my infrared thermometer and see if the slide action gets slow. I will post some pics or maybe shoot some Video.

[Jamiethesquid]

I have received more information about pending lawsuits against Seal 1, it is reportedly NOT. The same product and has noting to do with Seal 1. Above post has been edited.

[Supermoto]

Frog lube make my roller coaster wicked smooth

[Scott Steele]

If anyone wants to try Frog Lube, PM me and I'll send you what I bought. Used it once, not for me. You pay shipping.

Edited April 16, 2014 by Scott Steele

[Shadyscott999]

I followed the instructions to a T. My limited gun turned into a single shot using this crap. Snake Oil at it's finest.

[IronicTwitch]

I've been using it for about a year. Non-petroleum based drew me in. Flawless performance, even in upper Midwest winters shooting in sub zero temps on multiple occasions. I like that it cleans up easier than stickier petroleum based products. Less lube in winter, more in summer. Runs my all metal CZs very well.

[OPENB]

I followed the instructions to a T. My limited gun turned into a single shot using this crap. Snake Oil at it's finest.

Actually, Snake Oil, as sold by Dillon Precision, is a fine gun lubricant. Originally developed for high speed dental drills. I continue to use Mobil 1. A quart lasts forever.

[Jamiethesquid]

Took it out of the freezer after hours in there. It instantly frosted up when it hit the air. Infrared thermometer read between 22 and 24F. Operated the slide, all the controls and trigger. Everything worked fine. YMMV.

[Shadyscott999]

I followed the instructions to a T. My limited gun turned into a single shot using this crap. Snake Oil at it's finest.

Actually, Snake Oil, as sold by Dillon Precision, is a fine gun lubricant. Originally developed for high speed dental drills. I continue to use Mobil 1. A quart lasts forever.

Same here. Been using M1 for 2 years and the guns runs like a champ

[disxbxjun]

I tried FrogLube and it wasn't for me. I saw that it made my slide very sluggish in my use. I also got tired of heating the gun up with a hair dryer. My wife also appreciates her hair dryer not going missing here and there.

[Solvability]

Several of us at a Winter 3 gun match had trouble with FL guns - shotguns and pistols in freezing temps - it sees fine for cleaning and Summer but I would not advise it for winter time use. Light strikes were the common theme.

[Unregistered]

Frog lube gummed up by gun in the winter here. Don't use in the winter.

[cecil]

I read about Frog Lube and how good it was.... I got some read the directions of use for my STI Steel Master... during a match in November after 4 stages my pistol would not cycle after firing... a gun smith who was shooting on the same squad looked at my Steel Master and told me to put some oil on it.. I did.. my Steel Master ran fine for the rest of the match... now if I happen to catch a frog... I will use Frog Lube on it.. but from now on.. I will use GUN OIL on my guns...

Edited April 17, 2014 by cecil

[deano2246]

I had the same issues listed above, it worked fine for a little while then I noticed it was really slowing down the slide of my open gun, to the point it quit cycling.

[alexmsmith12]

Good and semi reviews. Give her a whirl for summer I suppose

[Blankenhole]

I shot a decent amount this past Ohio winter (it was cold) and didn't have any real issues from FL. Not saying it is CLP of all CLP's but I am wondering if those with issues are in more in the application?

I run FL on my xdm and 1911 and I think I will try the freezer after applying and see if I can replicate.

[ambluemax]

I've had pretty good luck with frog lube and like the product. But it has taken some work and experimentation to get it to work with my Benelli m2 and match grade 1911s. If you try to use it like a conventional lube you will have frustrations.

I haven't decided if I'm going to switch over my new custom 2011 to it because the clearances are so tight.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Bill H]

I was a frog lube fan until a cold day had my gun malfunctioning. I put oil on it and it ran fine. No more FL for me

[rooster]

Tried it for a while it was ok but after reading quite a few negative reports I switched over to Rand clp. Been using for about 8 months I am totally satisfied. The warning bells should have gone off when you need to pre heat your gun in order for the FL to seep into the metal. That was how you lubed your gun with Militech1. With the Rand I wipe it on, go shoot, wipe it off, put a little more on done. It literally takes me about 5 minutes to clean and lube my pistols.