WD-40

From Wikipedia:

"There is a popular urban legend that the key ingredient in WD-40 is fish oil.^[3] However, the WD-40 web site states that it is a petroleum based product ^[4]"

Any comments?

I think I can tell the difference between petroleum and fish. WD-40 stinks.. of petroleum, not fish.

Fully agree.

Now where's that OP gone? ...

well when i was on board ship we used to make our-own WD-40 a 50% by volume of HSD(Gas Oil) and lube oil for easing rusted bolt nuts and threaded joints,you could try.

crm

I thought molybdenum disulfide was the "active" ingredient, in a solvent carrier.

[Perhaps sometimes confused with DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide), a skin penetrant.]

Molybdenum disulfide

That explains the manufacturer's claim that the active ingredient remains active after it has dried.

Mystery solved.

could this chemical cause rust in the long term?

Very unlikely. Rust is caused by exposure of steel to oxygen and to water around the same time. Chemically, rust is hydrated iron oxides.

Got anything you can cite that supports MoS₂ as an ingredient?

I'm not sure where I heard or read that. It makes lots of sense, but even though I thought it true, I didn't know so.

I don't recall WD-40 being opaque, a solid lubricant suspended in a clear liquid would make it opaque, like most molybdenum grease lubricants. If you dissolved the MoS2 in a polar organic soluvent, the issue of restoring the disulfide bond in preference to a oxide bond, sulfate bond or even an interaction with the organics in the solvent would become an issue. I would think MoS2 would be suspect as an active ingredient.

Many years ago, '70's, I started using Rislone exclusively as an additive to engine oil, and credit it for having consistently allowed me to get over 200K miles out of my cars without significant oil usage (less than 1/2 qt. in 3000 miles). At that time, the containers carried information referring to molecular MoS₂ as being an ingredient. I was working in the aerospace industry at that time and that caught my eye. My ability to research products for my company led me to finding a claim, from Rislone, that the molecules (in Rislone, the moly is in molecular form so you don't see black particles) "absorb" into the surface of sliding metal and that after a period of running, the oil may have to be topped off. New packaging does not carry the reference to MoS₂ and information on their site is proprietary. Recently, Carroll Shelby is advertising something that soaks into the metal. Don't know anything about it though.

A little story to attest to Rislones effectiveness. '70's, '69 Roadrunner. I used to "practice" drag racing on a strip of highway that was defined from the end of an on ramp to an overpass. Out of curiosity, before changing oil, 3000 miles on Kendall GT-1, I ran one off, three times, and noted the MPH at the end of each run. The speeds were consistent. I immediately changed oil, and filter of course, and added Rislone. Another three runs. Three MPH faster! Maybe the fresh oil was the factor, but 3% increase, I have always felt it was the Rislone. What I should have done but didn't, was make runs with just fresh oil and then drain out a quart and add the Rislone and retest. I'll let that to one of our fellow gearheads to test. Maybe someone with a dyno.

Nope, moly disulfide is slate grey/black in color. Dry film lubes are often moly disulfide based, but WD-40 is not one of them.

While the manufacturer refuses to divulge the <2% surfactant nor the <10% "non-hazardous ingredients", much can be gleaned from the MSDS of the product.

Makes a great flame thrower for about 20' with the press on red tube - fun at parties as an ice breaker - as everyone starts talking about what an idiotic stunt you've pulled.

i have to disagree in describing wd-40 as a rust preventative. the solvents accually appear to disolve any oil previously applied. i learned this after storing rifles after appling this product. most were completely rusted and pitted, including the bores.

it has a mild solvent thats capable of moving fresh paint in many instances.

I agree - that WD40 is not a rust preventative solution. I've tried many 'experiments", by spraying WD on many metal objects to try to prevent rust oxidation from forming - over the cold winter months (November to April) - It didn't work, as my drill bits, wrenches and other tools did not stand up to the 'WD40' theory of rustproofing. The only other thing that actually does work is simple gear grease, although it is a bit of a chore to clean up - it is worth it!

i agree completely. some of my friends have had very good luck undercoating there trucks using using "used diesel oil. i know that the zinc additive must be a factor, but new oil washes off. i think that there's a trace amount of acid in used oil that may be the differance

Didn't think there was much left after diesel oil had been used.

Smoke!

wd-40 was many uses, but rust protection is definately not one of them. as far as penatrating oil goes, i've tried almost everything and i've never found anything to compare to USED compressor oil. it' amazing . compressor oil does'nt have any wax, low viscosity, and the acid from the compressor windings disolves the rust. i knock a hole in a home frig compressor with a sharp punch, after the freon has been purge for recycling of coarse, yeah, .

if u look ot the front of the can, you'll see that they advertise there product as being a lubricant, pentatrator, and a dielectric. i't's great for absorbing water. i've used it many times when i had moisture in the distrubutor or wet plug wires. it works great for that. it's not a good lubricant or oil. what's writen one the back is "beside the point".

wd-40 is an excellent tuner cleaner. i work on eletronic equipment and i always have a can for that purpose

Good answer! It is not a good post if someone just copies and pastes a technical publication from a site. We all respect personal attributes from a poster if they are willing to put forward their own experiences with the subject presented. To just copy and paste is ludicrous and lazy in my books, anyway.

I'd rather reinvent the wheel as it's way, way long over due for an upgrade - please see gravity wheel. = Loupy^{.(Tesla was right. after all)}

Hi John,

GOOD ANSWER !!! I can see why the manufacturer removed just about any reference to cleaning things with FIRE [I can just imagine the trouble if one had an old stove with a pilot light ], and can imagine why they removed references to removing LIPSTICK [after all, they didn't specify WHERE the lipstick to be removed might be].

Kind regards ...

Maybe the fish ; the oil came from was contaminated from an oil spill. I find it is great as a mosquito repellent.

I LOVE reading lists like this out loud in my best infomercial voice.... (and you always have to add in the "BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!" somewhere in there.)

I have been told not to spray WD 40 on printed circuit boards, that it will damage them.

I, too, have been considering spraying used motor oil on the underside of my 20 year old truck, it's starting to rust under there.

Aerosol cans of fish oil (as not found in WD40) are better. It sticks really well.

i should have mentioned that the rifles were only stored for a few months in a climate controlled area. as an avid hunter. my rifles are generally in use. as for the test that you recommented that i try, you may what do do it yourself before you cast a a shadow on my integrity.

it's my understanding that petroleum desolates accually absorb moisture.

What are petroleum desolates?

uhhh ... duhhhh! See Post 55 .

check the gulf of Mexico

I did, can't find any. Found lots of petroleum distillates (and a couple of tar balls) however...

Those found in arid, unfriendly places.

it's hard to take you seriously when you can't even spell kerosene

"Kerosine" is a legitimate spelling in limey-land.

--Editor Crankshaft

A legit. spelling maybe, but not just in 'limey-land'. I've certainly never come across it (except when I looked it up just now).

Much more common over here is the name "paraffin" (or "paraffin oil").

And then we can do the paraffin/paraffine caffein/caffeine riff....and argue with frogs as well...

Mon Dieu, I said that?

Its actually quite simple, firstly its the person who cannot spell is responsible for his spelling failures, not the person mentioning them. Please learn English properly if you cannot take any form of critic....

Secondly there is a simple spell checker on CR4 that catches most errors, anyone who is not "clever" enough (and I am one of those too sometimes) to use it, is bringing the problem on his own head!!!! Don't complain if some one else mentions your errors!!

Furthermore anyone posting as a Troll has even more (personal?) problems than I need to mention here right now........go and join CR4 if you are a genuine guest, pick yourself a fancy name and remember to use the spell checker each time you post.

Simple isn't it?

being sarcastic is easy to do, but no-one respects you for it.

Add, "cleans horses hooves" to the list. My girl friend lost the Hoof Black and I cleaned mud and you know what off of them with WD40. Worked good and her horse had the nicest looking hooves in the parade last Sunday. Take that nay sayers!!

It is well known that WD 40 is mainly kerosene- thus it's water displacing feature. Here in Orstralia we use Inox which really works for lub,rust,corr clean,water displace etc, etc, etc,etc.(ps- contains no mineral oils-label says!).

In the RN in the 60's, we would wash the whole helicopter down with WD-40 to get the salt off the light metal frame.

We had the stuff in 5 gallon drums......!!! What that would cost nowadays.....

On Wiki I found this:-

WD-40's formula is a trade secret. The product is not patented in order to avoid completely disclosing its ingredients.^[2] WD-40's main ingredients, according to U.S. Material Safety Data Sheet information, are:

• 50%: Stoddard solvent (i.e., mineral spirits – primarily hexane, somewhat similar to kerosene)
• 25%: Liquefied petroleum gas (presumably as a propellant; carbon dioxide is now used instead to reduce WD-40's considerable flammability)
• 15+%: Mineral oil (light lubricating oil)
• 10-%: Inert ingredients

The German version of the mandatory EU safety sheet lists the following safety-relevant ingredients:

• 60-80%: Heavy Naphtha (petroleum product), hydrogen treated
• 1-5%: Carbon dioxide

It further lists flammability and effects to the human skin when repeatedly exposed to WD-40 as risks when using WD-40. Nitrile rubber gloves and safety glasses should be used. Water is unsuitable for extinguishing burning WD-40.

There is a popular urban legend that the key ingredient in WD-40 is fish oil.^[3] However, the WD-40 web site states that it is a petroleum based product ^[4]

At:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WD-40

I also found this at:-

http://yarchive.net/chem/wd40.html

I hope this helps......

Guess you stumbled upon the second word (first link) in #1, then.

But well done for finding http://yarchive.net/chem/wd40.html all by yourself.

What did you feel was wrong with the first link? I would be interested to hear/read what you think.....

Nothing (or I wouldn't have supplied it) - just wondering why, 43 posts and nearly 24 hours later, you bothered to cut & paste the content of the wiki page to which I'd already given the link (and which, presumably, anyone interested enough would already have seen).

My bad, I did not recollect your link, apologies Sir!!

Hi Andy,

Let evaporate all solvents (can be heated to 75*C), and fish oil cannot be smelled. However, fish oil in any other product, at level of 2% smell fish strongly.

WD-40 is a blend of solvents with different evaporation rates with a small amount of surfactant, less than 2%, which is reducing surface tension below 20 and solvents penetrate everywhere. This is an efficient way to introduce solvents and mineral oils.

Have a happy New Year, Gil.

Happy new year to you too Gil.

By the way, I wrote it as "Urban Legend" not "Urban Proof" nor do I believe it either as I am sure as an ex-smoker, I would have noticed the fish smell.......as any redblooded male should!!!

"P.S. The basic ingredient is FISH OIL"

Citation, please? My understanding is that it is DiMethyl SulfOxide (DMSO). Derived from a common North American tree <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dimethyl_sulfoxide> it is a very good, and relatively benign solvent. Similar to it, and possibly where the idea came from that it is fish-oil based, is Dimethyl Sulfide (See the link above, the section labelled "See Also" for more info on this).

But, despite the fact that DMSO can do all that you have mentioned in your noble 43 uses, I can find no PROOF, nor even a good citation, to support the argument that WD-40 is actually based on either.

So, you, or I, might have good info on what it is made of, but you certainly have produced a good list of potential uses.

Add one more. I've used it for years on my arthritic elbows. The lock up in extreme cold weather, producing shooting pains all the way to my shoulders. A short squirt of WD-40 on such mornings and they work properly for days.

Call that number 44, I think?

Loved the post, never seen one from a rheumatic Robot before!!!!

Quote:-

I've used it for years on my arthritic elbows. The lock up in extreme cold weather, producing shooting pains all the way to my shoulders. A short squirt of WD-40 on such mornings and they work properly for days.

I've used it for years on my arthritic elbows. The lock up in extreme cold weather, producing shooting pains all the way to my shoulders. A short squirt of WD-40 on such mornings and they work properly for days.

Were those the words of the Wiz', 'Tin man' ?

Micah, I'm 100% certain DMSO is not in WD-40. It would have to be disclosed on the MSDS if it were and it is not. Besides, WD-40 does not have the characteristic DMSO smell.

Umm don't think they would use DMSO in such a product. The health hazards to users would be problematic, as the DMSO would function as a solvent to carry toxins through the skin, thus dermal contact would be dangerous.

Missed one - loosen up the (thin) the grease in sealed bearings for winter use. (bicycle crank bearings and wheel bearings) A good heavy squirt through the gaps in the seals and the bearings spin quite freely at 5 degrees F.

As far as lipstick goes, one of my wife's friends had a more effective way of removing any lipstick marks she found on her husband's shirts.

She cut out the offending section with scissors and hung the shirt back in the wardrobe.

More effective than WD 40 !!

Hi,

Guys and gals,

Just came to this.

There is another most handy use for WD40: I use to start cranky diesel motors. Spray it directly into the intake manifold while cranking the motor. It doesn't work quite as good a "Start-Ya-Bastard", but when you don't have any of that it's a handy alternative.

I also use it regularly to start and run mothballed two-stroke motors, which are permanently drained of gasoline (petroil, here). Just spray it directly into the carb choke whilst pulling the 'string', and keep spraying. The old "Seagulls" and "Victas" will keep running whilst ever the spray stream is good. It'll work equally well on any 4stroke motor.

This technique is also good for it's arch-rival, RP-7.

It would work with every fluid that has a flammable propellant and a lube base ( for obvious reasons).

I have used it for remounting tubeless tyres ( get the spelling) rolled off rims, and for fitting new tyres in the bush where one never has the tyre handling equipment.

Technique: Take the weight off the wheel and maneuver the tyre beads to near the seats, spray liberally with WD40 around the rim and get a good deal of it in the tyre cavity. Have bystanders move away, light ( a Zippo or Bic is fine) a stream of fluid directed at the tyre-to-rim interface. The resultant explosion will seat the tyre onto the rim beautifully. Re-inflate and you're 'good to go', as they say in the classics.

Cheers,

There are Youtube videos of bead setting with WD-40...very cool and ingenious...scary too.

great advise. i've seen people who carry a can of starting fluid to inflate quad tires that fallen off the rim.

starting a stubborn motor with wd-40 sounds like a great idea. it would also absorb moisture and free up linkage, needle valves, ect.

ironic in a way

Yes,

in the two-strokes it has just enough lubricant to ensure no mechanical damage is done in the few seconds the motor runs. Because the lube does eventually evaporate, the start-up needs to be done regularly, periodically.

Cheers,

Stu.