LUBE YOUR PUMPERS!!!

[Millipede]

judging by the looks of that one valve, we should all make sure to oil those threads real good too

[TimmyMac1]

Lube it or lose it! 30 wt non detergent is OK if you want to break in your lawnmower but water displacing, anti wear (AW) class lubrcants are the only solution to making sure the Alluminum in your Crosman Pump system does not go OFF like the one you show.
Every oil starved valve will do the same. If an adequate water displacing lube is used it will carry the corrosive contaminants out with the fired charge while eliminating wear to pivots and abrasion of seals.
This is what is inside of your pumper if you do not religiously put lubricant through the valve system every shot.
On the Benjamin/Sheridan piston the guide end of the piston is a porous part. The design is such that the guide end should always stay saturated so it lays a film of lubricant down on the tube every stroke.
A portion of this film enters the valve each stroke and mixes with the moist air charge. If there is no moisture in the system it will not corrode. The only way to reliably counter the tendency for the aluminum to become a sacrificial anode is to constantly introduce lubricant to the inlet side.
When the valves were Brass, oil starved guns still corroded the spring like you see but the Brass was immune. 6061 T6 isn't going to be happy in a multi metal layout. It will always become the collector of junk till you add a zinc piece.
Get Secret Sauce and use it. We still see no problems in Steroids that have been using alloy valves for years now.
A 60 year old 140 with alloy valve will still be good as long as someone had the tendency toward lubrication.
Those 60 year old valves often will not unscrew just like the 2 year old one you show.
They are not worth saving since a new valve is so cheap. What isn't cheap is all the custom work that has to get pitched everytime someone runs one of the Steroids dry.
I have decided I cannot afford to fix this issue as I give people the lube with every gun I fix or sell. The customers that don't use it will pay to fry their gun just like always.
I lube every gun like it is the last time it will ever see Secret Sauce. Unfortunately a very high percentage of people NEVER read instructiuons and a Fried pump cup and trashed valve body is their first hint of what that bottle of sauce was all about.
It is for internal consumption. The guns. Use it or lose it.
These guns will last for decades if properly maintained. They will not last qanymore if they are not lubed generously.
Sauce is $3 for small dripper and $10 for 10oz refill size.

[crowpopper]

and a small bottle will last a  LONG time

[BerkshireHunter]

Old bump, I know -but Wow, that Benji's valve is horrifying! I've been using a couple dabs of pelgun oil the piston tip with my aluminum valved 1377.

Does anyone know whether the pelgun oil would be suitable for displacing water vapor etc in the valve? I really hope crosman listens to their customer base and goes back to brass, especially since they still use it on their co2 guns from what I've heard.

[Millipede]

lube every time?....really? Isn't that excessive?.....

i get the feeling you might be thinking too literally  "everytime you shoot it".  it means every time you have the gun out and are shooting it. so, every "session" really....

[Lambchops]

My 1969 Benjamin Sheridan .20 still shoots well after only oiling 3 times in its lifetime.

[BerkshireHunter]

My 1969 Benjamin Sheridan .20 still shoots well after only oiling 3 times in its lifetime.

Yeah, but isn't that a brass valve?

[badredbird]

i lube my benji steroid after each use , a drop , you wont hurt it , keeps them pumping and shooting nice

[Daysailer]

OK... here is my method....with lots of research and emphasis to the experts like Tim at MAC1...

When my pumpers dont "pssst" when opening the pump arm/piston, They get a drop of Mac1 sauce on the pump cup.

Only time will tell if my aluminum valves will last like my '80 766 & 71' and '75 Blue Streaks.

[BenjiHunter]

A drop is just an expression.
Give it a bit more than a drop each time you use it.

[SAADE]

Don't forget the bolt probe o-ring every once in awhile too.

[dwk54rak]

Take a look at Lubrisol. This is a lube invented by the Germans in world II not petroleum based and works well on every toy I own. Research it on the web; you may like it. Doesn' gel up either

[TimmyMac1]

DON't Put oil on Cup,
It will get there. The guide end of the Piston where the link picks up the piston is porous. It will soak a bunch of oil up and lay a film down on the tube every stroke so the cup/valve, probe etc gets what they need. The PIVOTS of the lever will wear out if you lube only the cup.
The design is intended to take care of itself as long as you lube the pivots. In the newer guns I tell people a few drops onm the front pivcot and lever rivet and three to four times that on the link to guide pivot so you saturate the porous piston guide.
The porous part is your oils reservior and will take care of business just like the felts in a Benjamin.
I'm not a fan of Pellgumoil. I've been wire brushing that stuff off parts for decades and it is not what I would call modern.
Secret Sauce is a Modern Anti-Wear(AW) properties hydraulic lubricant that has US patent associated with the development.
It eliminates wear and it eliminates the possiblity your gun will go down due to valve body corrosion.
It really is amazing stuff but it only works where it flows to, and the lube will not flow to the pivots if you only lube the Cup. It will flow to the cup if you lube the pivots.

[GecoGuy]

My 1969 Benjamin Sheridan .20 still shoots well after only oiling 3 times in its lifetime.

It's funny you say this because I have had the same gun since the mid 70's and have never lubed it! Still functions like it was new.

[Lambchops]

My 1969 Benjamin Sheridan .20 still shoots well after only oiling 3 times in its lifetime.

It's funny you say this because I have had the same gun since the mid 70's and have never lubed it! Still functions like it was new.

Yeah, I know! My uncle lubed it once, and i've lubed it twice in 4 years.

[SAADE]

My 1969 Benjamin Sheridan .20 still shoots well after only oiling 3 times in its lifetime.

It's funny you say this because I have had the same gun since the mid 70's and have never lubed it! Still functions like it was new.

And the gun has been shot how many times?

Unbelievable comes to mind, heavy on the UN part.

[TimmyMac1]

Linkage wear ls always going to limit how much wear the gun will see as the stresses plummet with the head pressures. Guns that never see lube saw right thru the pivots and the gun is pumping a fraction of the original air and shoots pretty anemic.
It always cracks me up when the guys who hardly ever shoot say stuff like the 2 lubes in a guns lifetime stuff. I deal with heavy users and heavy users burn their Dans up regularly if the run them oil starved.
If you shoot twenty rounds a day and pump it higher than most do you need a high performance lube. The gun will not wear out if you do this religously.
If you shoot twenty rounds a year it doesn't matter what type of maintenance the gun sees. in 50 years it shoots 1000 rounds and it is a gem to find.
If you use it Lube it or lose it. It will still function unlubed but it will be tired and gutless unless you maintain it. Like any machine if you feed it the good stuff and it treats you right. Anyone who pushes the envelope will tell you don't do it without considering the maintenance products being utilized.
What works for the high performance sector also works for the standard stuff. It is all about using the best AW(ANTIWEAR) products to get the most from our pumpers.

[Deane]

Not sure if it's been said already, but that looks suspiciously like "dissimilar metal" corrosion. That' where you have a nonferrous metal (such as aluminum) contacting a ferrous metal (such as steel). That's why the Navy uses brass instead of aluminum. About the only thing you can do is to disassemble and clean. I don't believe lubes help much.

[SAADE]

Good call Deane, that's why Boeing and others use a primer for what they call "wet-install" of dissimilar metals (steel bushings into alum is typical).

Any good primer like Rustoleum will work or MIL-PRF-23377 if you buy in bulk! LOL

[TimmyMac1]

Not sure if it's been said already, but that looks suspiciously like "dissimilar metal" corrosion....I don't believe lubes help much.

What lubes do is keep the debris & minerals coming from the Air charge being condensed into a concentrate inside the valve chamber from accumulating in the chamber. This is 3 generations talking here so please understand I know what I speak.
When a gun is run oil starved all the contaminants from the Air Accumulate inside and infront of the valve. The accumulation wants to eat the alluminum valve as that is the softest metal in the Scheme. When the valves were Brass all that got eaten by the corrosives was the steel valve spring buit now oil starved guns will shut down.
When a lube is used on these guns that keeps he debris and minerals going out with the air charge we do not see the valve get huit down with corrosive build-up.
I gaurrantee oil starved valves will fail. Lube doesn't change the aluminum to brass but we have had no problem with corrosive debris build-up or valves corroded to death when Secret Sauce has been used.
The steel doesn't touch the aluminum so a disimilar corrosion by touching metal isn't an occurrence except at the rear steel action fastener that screws directly into FINE aluminum threads. This is the weak link in the system and the butt stock(yes stock fastener is screwed into the valve fixing fastener). This is where the Fastener needs to be heavily blue loctited so that the thing won't come unscrewed but also so the aircharge doesn't leak past the threads and/or fastener upon firing gun.