So I've said once again Silicon Grease is a bad idea when you don't have to use it. Pointing out it's basically sand.
No need to take my word, look it up:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicone_grease
"Silicone grease is a waterproof grease made by combining a silicone oil with a thickener. Most commonly, the silicone oil is polydimethylsiloxane and the thickener is amorphous fumed silica. Using this formulation, silicone grease is a translucent white viscous paste, with exact properties dependent on the type and proportion of the components."
It goes on to describe intended uses, rubber parts that won't take (real) oil, 0-rings (no movement), laboratory glassware and plumbing (no contamination) and so on.
Modern greases are hydrocarbon oils held in metalic soaps (often Lithium in fact), above we see Silicon grease is usually fumed silica:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silica_fume
This is basically a waste product we used to vent into the atmosphere and land fills which we now dispose of in concrete. It's reduced quartz.....Silicon dioxide....beach sand. Very very hard small bits with lots of surface area. Not the sort of stuff you'd want to put between sliding surfaces and expect stable, low friction action under loads.
I see no need to put 'microscopic sand' into my gun when I have vastly superior (and cheaper) stuff available.
IMO if you don't need a special silicon property (water/solvent proof, non flamiable, 'food safe', etc.) they should be avoided.
Doug Owen
