CLP May 2003 Major problems with sand and dust on weapons Issue TB 9-1000-262-DT Operation Desert Thunder

1. CLP Inconsistencies and the Solution CLP Dec 2006 Still have issues with sand and dust CLP is still the standard CLP May 2006 Still have issues with sand and dust Issue press release supporting CLP CLP Oct 2005 Still have issues with sand and dust Issue GTA 43-01-029 and GTA 43-01-030 restating TB 9-1000-262-DT with minor change CLP May 2003 Major problems with sand and dust on weapons Issue TB 9-1000-262-DT Operation Desert Thunder

2. CLP Inconsistencies May 2003 TB 9-1000-262-DT Operation Desert Thunder Page 2-2 “Sand and dust cause persistent problems with small caliber systems”, clean and lube twice as often, and “to avoid attracting grit and sand, wipe off all excess lubricants with a clean, dry cloth” Page 3-9, 3-5 general, a. Perform routine weapon maintenance (cleaning and lubricating) at twice the recommended frequency. Problems of sand and dust contamination will be minimized. Clean in enclosed areas when possible, away from blowing sand. Page 3-10 a., 3. Limit lubrication with Cleaner, Lubricant and Preservative (CLP) and other lubricants to internal parts to avoid sand and grit. Wipe the outside of your weapon dry. b. Store weapons in a covered, wind protected area when you are not using them, with a blanket or a poncho. Page 3-11 f. Organizational Cleaning, WARNING Cleaning solvent is FLAMMABLE and TOXIC, and must be kept away from open flames and used in a well-ventilated area. Use of rubber gloves is necessary to protect the skin… Clean your weapon 4x a Day- At least 2 hrs taken from other tasks to perform this requirement. Still does not solve the problem of sand and dust sticking to a wet lubricant Clean in enclosed area? Isn’t CLP toxic? Yes, see Page 3-11 Limit CLP on internal parts too? Does that mean the weapon should be almost dry? Why does a weapon need to be covered when not in use? Doesn’t cleaning it 4x a day minimize dust and sand contamination? Clean in well ventilated area? Does that mean I have to put on wet lubricant in an area where sand and dust will be attracted to the wet lubricant?

3. CLP Inconsistencies • TB 9-1000-262-DT Operation Desert Thunder • Page 3-21, 3-7 M16 Series Rifle and M4 Series Carbine • NOTE, For proper functioning of your M16 Series Rifle magazine in a hot, dry climate, keep the magazine and ammunition clean and free from lubricant. Sand and dust will stick to the lubricant and may cause feeding problems. • To remove sand, grit, and lubricant from the magazine, disassemble it and wipe the parts and the inside/outside of the magazine body with a clean, dry rag… • Use a liberal coating of CLP on internal working (moving) surfaces only to prevent jamming due to fine sand. Don’t lubricate the springs/slide of a magazine even though there is metal to metal contact- won’t that cause feeding problems? In the note above, is said not to lubricate the magazine, now it talks about removing lubricant. Use a liberal coating of CLP on internal parts, but back on page 3-10 it said to Limit CLP on internal parts to prevent sand and grit. Which one is it?

4. CLP Inconsistencies TB 9-1000-262-DT Operation Desert Thunder Page 3-23, 3-8 M240B Machine Gun b. HOT, DUTY, AND SANDY AREAS. Clean often. Wipe oil from exposed surfaces with clean wiping rag. Cover weapon as much as possible to keep dust and sand out of parts. Keep the weapon dry and covered as much as possible? If the weapon is dry, it should not attract the sand and grit. Page 3-37, 3-22, General (Artillery) d. When beginning an action in sandy or duty areas, remove lubricants from recoil rails and any other exposed lubricated parts, situation permitting. Lubricants will pick up sand and dirt, forming an abrasive which will cause rapid wear. Dry surfaces wear less than lubricated surfaces contaminated with sand or dirt. Page 3-38, 3-22 General (Artillery) j. In sandy or dusty areas, inspect and lubricate materiel frequently, except exposed lubricated parts. So, it is better to fire a weapon dry (metal to metal contact) and wear surfaces than to fire the wet lubricated weapon and have rapid wear due to the sand and dirt abrasives. Doesn’t lubricating frequently contradict page 3-10 where it said to Limit CLP on internal parts to prevent sand and grit. Which one is it?

5. Oct 2005 Issue GTA 43-01-029 SMALL CALIBER (5.56MM TO Cal .50) WEAPONS-GENERAL LUBRICATION HOT WEATHER/ DESERT OPERATION (Basically repeats TB 9-1000-262-DT Operation Desert Thunder) 1. Perform routine weapon maintenance (cleaning and lubricating) at twice the recommended frequency. Problems of sand and dust contamination will be minimized. Clean in enclosed areas when possible, away from blowing sand. 4. Limit lubrication with Cleaner, Lubricant and Preservative (CLP) and other lubricants to internal parts to avoid sand and grit. Wipe the outside of your weapon dry. 5. Store weapons in a covered, wind protected area when you are not using them, with a blanket or a poncho. Organizational Cleaning, WARNING Cleaning solvent is FLAMMABLE and TOXIC, and must be kept away from open flames and used in a well-ventilated area. Use of rubber gloves is necessary to protect the skin… CLP Inconsistencies Still cleaning your weapon 4x a Day with a “wet” lubricant and the GTA still wants you to clean your weapon in an enclosed area with a TOXIC cleaner. If the enemy won’t kill you, the cleaner will. Still have to limit CLP on internal parts too since it is a “wet” lubricant and attracts sand and grit Contradicts point 1 to clean in an enclosed area as if you clean in well ventilated area that means you have to put on “wet” lubricant in an area where sand and dust will be attracted to the wet lubricant?

6. Oct 2005 Issue GTA 43-01-030 SMALL CALIBER (5.56MM TO Cal .50) HOT WEATHER/ DESERT OPERATION (Basically repeats TB 9-1000-262-DT Operation Desert Thunder) MACHINE GUNS (5.56MM TO CAL .50) 1. Inspect twice as often as normal. Keep weapon covered when possible. 2. Lightly lube internal working parts. Wipe lubricants from exposed surfaces. M16 SERIES RIFLE AND M4 SERIES CARBINE NOTE- For proper functioning of your M16 Series Rifle magazine in a hot, dry climate, keep the magazine and ammunition clean and free from lubricant. Sand and dust will stick to the lubricant and may cause feeding problems. Page 2 1. To remove sand, grit, and lubricant from the magazine, disassemble it and wipe the parts and the inside/outside of the magazine body with a clean, dry rag… Use a light*coating of CLP on internal working (moving) surfaces only to prevent jamming due to fine sand. Page 4 M2 MACHINE GUN 1. If the machine gun has been fired, the bore must be immediately swabbed out with several patches saturated with RBC (MIL-PRF-372). Use dry patches to remove all solvent film. CLP Inconsistencies Inspect twice as much and keep the weapon covered as much as possible? What about a firefight? Have to limit CLP on internal parts too since it is a “wet” lubricant and attracts sand and grit Don’t lubricate the springs/slide of a magazine even though there is metal to metal contact- won’t that cause feeding problems? In the note above, is said not to lubricate the magazine, now it talks about removing lubricant. Use a light coating of CLP on internal parts, versus liberal coat in TB 9-1000-262-DT. CLP is still a “wet” lubricant, so immaterial change. Clean and lubricate the bore after firing, then make dry again. Isn’t that a little after the fact when the lubrication is needed? * Change to TB 9-1000-262-DT

7. CLP Inconsistencies May 2006 “Even if the manual says you should clean your weapon twice a day, if you’ve got time, clean it four times a day, if you’ve got more time, clean it eight times a day because the one time you didn’t clean it may be the time it jams.” MG Nadeau, RDECOM Cdr, ARNEWS May 19, 2006 article, Army Stands by official CLP products • Three years later, CLP still does not work, and the solution to the problem is to clean more! • It doesn’t make sense. For example, if you vacuum with a vacuum cleaner that doesn’t clean, whether you vacuum 1 time or 1,000 times, it still won’t clean. If a cookie jar is empty, it doesn’t matter how many times you put your hand in the cookie jar, you still won’t get a cookie. • Likewise, if you clean a weapon with a lubricant that attracts dirt, the weapon will continue to attract dirt. • It doesn’t matter how many times you apply CLP to a weapon, CLP will ALWAYS attract dirt and sand. It is a “wet” lubricant. • It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that if you put “wet” lubricant onto a weapon and put the weapon in a sandy environment, the weapon will attract sand and dust. If you apply more “wet” lubricant to the weapon, the weapon will attract more dirt. • Therefore, it doesn’t matter how many times you apply CLP to a weapon, it will always attract sand and dirt! • To advise to clean a weapon 4-8 times a day is bad logic! There is also an easier answer… and the solution is…

8. CLP Inconsistencies and the Solution How does MILITEC-1 compare to CLP? See next page

9. MILITEC-1 15 May 2003 1x cleaning daily with MILITEC-1 vs. 2x cleaning daily with CLP) Lubricant: “Soldiers provided consistent comments that CLP was not a good choice… CLP attracted the sand to the weapon. Soldiers considered a product called Militec to be a much better solutionfor lubricating individual and crew-served weapons.” MILITEC-1 Oct 2005 (1x cleaning daily with MILITEC-1 vs. the now 4x cleaning daily with CLP) Soldier comment: “After a year of observation… I now feel sufficiently suited to provide you with an honest assessment of your firearms lubricant. Overwhelmingly, the response from my soldiers has been positive and even grateful... continue to… prefer Militec over regular CLP. MILITEC-1 May 2006 (1x cleaning daily with MILITEC-1 vs. the now 8x cleaning daily with CLP) Soldier comment: “We know of other people and units who are now using your product with amazing results. We have been told by others to stop using the Army supplied CLP and switch over to Militec.” OIF PEO Soldier Lessons Learned, May 2003, p. 4 CLP Oct 2005 Still have issues with sand and dust Issue GTA 43-01-029 and GTA 43-01-030 restating TB 9-1000-262-DT with minor change CLP May 2003 Major problems with sand and dust on weapons Issue TB 9-1000-262-DT Operation Desert Thunder CLP Dec 2006 Still have issues with sand and dust CLP is still the standard CLP May 2006 Still have issues with sand and dust Issue press release supporting CLP MILITEC-1 Dec 2006 (1x cleaning daily with MILITEC-1 vs. the now 8x cleaning daily with CLP) AUSA profile: “… traditional weapon’s lubricants…quickly turn weapons into dust magnets… As sand sticks to the wet surface, the weapons start to slow down, then jam.” “MILITEC-1… completely eliminates the dust magnet problem. 1LT xxx, Dec 2006 email Army Magazine, Dec 2006 p. 75 1LT xxx, Dec 2006 email