CLP stands for Cleaner, Lubricant and Preservative. It refers to a liquid substance that’s designed to be the “one gun fluid to rule them all,” something you can use to clean the gun and then leave in place to keep it from rusting and make sure everything slides around properly. Most CLP formulas result in a watery and runny fluid that quickly evaporates or disappears after a few days in the gun safe. Rand CLP, on the other hand, is not “most formulas” . . .
The Rand CLP fluid is without a doubt the most viscous CLP I’ve ever tried, but despite looking for all the world like a glop of glue it is slippery as all heck. Squeeze a little out onto a cloth cleaning rag and it forms a bubble on the surface instead of soaking into the cloth, and then as you apply the fluid to the gun you can feel how slick it makes the surfaces.
That viscosity is a double edged sword, though.
On the positive side, it sticks around. Normally when I clean my less often used guns, the CLP evaporates or leaks down into the stock within hours of setting it in the gun safe. But with the Rand CLP, it stays lubed for ages. I last cleaned this 5.56 upper about two months ago and then popped it in the safe, and the shiny surface of the bolt carrier proves that the CLP is still present and ready to keep the gun lubed.
For guns that don’t get a lot of use but still need to be lubricated (like concealed carry guns) this might be a great product to use. White lithium grease used to be my default recommendation, but the ease with which you can use the Rand CLP and clean it off afterwards edges out the WLG option. Plus, since the stuff is made from vegetable oil it’s eco-friendly and you can happily throw the used rags in the trash without worrying about killing the environment.
On the negative side, the viscosity of the CLP leads to some reliability issues.
I had used the Rand CLP on my competition rifle this year, and in general it worked really well. The exception was when I went to a competition that was particularly dusty, like the Fallen Brethren match in Texas at the end of the year (which I still need to write up, lazy me). It was dirty and dusty and windy, and the Rand CLP I had applied lightly to the bolt carrier of my SCAR turned it into a Chia Pet, adding some drag to the cycling of the action and eventually causing a double feed (well, failure to eject followed by double feed) during a stage.
That viscosity also makes cleaning a bit strange. Normally, the standard CLP acts like a solvent on the carbon build-up on the various parts and the texture of the cleaning rags I use lifts the dissolved carbon straight off. But since the Rand CLP is so viscous and slippery, it was harder to wipe off the carbon when I applied some of the CLP to the rag beforehand. Then again, there was usually enough of the stuff left on the surfaces of the gun even after a hard day of use that I could get away with using a dry rag and just wiping the carbon off without any added fluid.
That said, you really can’t deny that the fluid is excellent at its intended job. When applied liberally to the bolt of a SCAR, it keeps the whole thing perfectly lubricated for hundreds of rounds. Same thing for the slide of a FNS-9 handgun, and it doesn’t disappear as fast as the other CLP offerings I’ve tried. So for me, I’ll keep using it on my competition guns — I just need to make sure to replace the fluid after every day of competition to get rid of the accumulated dirt.
Rand CLP
Available Volumes: 2 oz., 4 oz.
MSRP: $14.95 / 4 oz.
Overall Rating: * * * *
It’s a viscous yet slippery concoction that works great for keeping things lubed over long periods of time, but the viscosity also means that it’s a dirt magnet.