Some Swiss Cleaning Kits In Detail

This is one of those write-ups that's either going to bore you to tears or interest you. It should be obvious which side of the coin I land on with this one. Personally, these cleaning kits interest me as much as the firearms they are meant for. I like them because, to me, they embody Swiss attention to detail, craftsmanship, tradition and Quality. The Swiss are known for being meticulous and these lowly throw away cleaning kits are, in my opinion, a perfect example of just how committed the Swiss are to keeping things orderly and efficient.

This is by no means a scholarly assessment of Swiss Cleaning kits. For one thing, it is woefully incomplete. There are many kits not covered here. For another, there were multiple variations produced within each pattern that I have seen over the years but do not personally possess. Perhaps someone has documented all the variations but, if such a thing exists, I have not seen it. I will just briefly touch on a few examples of variation as we move along. I should also point out that I am only presenting these kits as they came to me. All have been used in the past and some have had bits added to them. Perhaps some have had bits removed as well. Although I have a pretty good idea of what SHOULD have been issued in each kit, I cannot say with 100% certainty that I am correct. Again, I show these as they have come to me.


Okiedokie, lets get started!



First up is a general picture of the kits that we will be covering in this essay. There are many pictures so this will take multiple posts to complete.

On the left are two pistol kits. The one on the top is for the P49 (SIG 210) and the lower one is for the P75 (P220). The ones on the right are for rifles. Up top is the bolt action K31 followed by the Sturmgewehr 57, an older Sturmgewehr 90 and a current export version for the SAN 55x series of rifles. These kits probably have official names but I do not know them. If you do, please let me know.


We'll start with the pistols:



First is the kit for the P49 (SIG 210),shown here with the canvas storage pouch opened to reveal the contents:



Rear of pouch showing a belt loop:



Contents:

From left to right we have a bundle of cleaning cloth. I don't know if this was issued like this or it was added. Next, we have a plastic container holding ear plugs. This was definitely added by an end user. Then we have a steel container that holds the cleaning rid sections and brushes. Last is the steel can containing Automatenfett grease.



Here's the bottom of the grease can showing the Waffenfabrik Bern stamp:



Top of can:



Side, showing the solder joint:



The magical Automatenfett grease!:

This grease seems to have changed over time but it's all good. You can use it for your automatic pistol, automatic rifle, bathing, shaving, shark repellant and woman attractant. It also helps you train dogs and can be used to signal extraterrestrial spacecraft. Rumor has it that the recipe came from God himself!



Lid showing the synthetic fiber applicator brush:

These grease cans went through a number of changes over the years. We will look at some of them (but not all) as we move along. This particular one is not the first version. We'll see that when we look at the K31 kit.



Blued steel container/handle for the cleaning rods and various attachments:



Cap showing the manufacturer and date:



Other end where the rod screws in:



Cap sitting beside the body showing the bayonet attachment that holds it in place:



Another view showing the contents within:



Contents:

From the left, we have the end cap, nylon grease brush (used for final grease application for storage), jag (you wrap your cleaning cloth around this), copper brush for scrubbing, second rod section (this is two permanently attached pieces and spins in the middle) , first rod section and handle/storage cannister.



Here, we see the whole contraption assembled with a P49 shown for size comparison:



Plastic container and two ear plugs with some Swiss dude's ear wax still present....ewwwww:

While this was guaranteed not issued with the rest of the kit, the capsule is EXACTLY the same diameter as the grease can. I doubt this is a coincidence. My guess is that it was made to fit the standard kit.


In this picture, I have unrolled the bundle of cloth that was in the kit:

Enclosed was a number of strips made from the same linen material as the larger cloth. I think they are different colors because some are older. Clearly, these are intended to be wrapped around the jag.


A closeup showing the weave:

Next up it the P75 (P220) kit; here shown open:

By this point, they have moved on to vinyl or rubberized cloth. This one definitely appears to be vinyl.


Rear showing the belt loop:



They have also abandoned the old button and loop closure and switched to a snap. This one is marked "Lupress SWISS MADE":

I absolutely LOVE it when things are marked "Swiss Made". It's probably the number one reason I wear a Rolex.


Contents emptied:

My understanding is that only one grease can was originally supplied. Perhaps there is supposed to be a bundle of cloth in place of the second grease can? I don't know.


These grease cans are made of plastic, not steel. However, the bottom still bears the Waffenfabrik Bern mark:



Top of lid:



Side of cannister:

It looks like a miniature WWII German gasmask can.


One of the two grease containers has no brush although the cap is set up for one. I've never seen this before:

Notice that the automatenfett shows no evidence of a brush ever having been present. If one had been there, there would be a void in the middle of the sacred grease.


The other can has a brush as would be normal. Rather than show it in its glooped up state, I have substituted an emptied and cleaned cap and brush to show what these normally look like prior to the gloopage:



Here is the blued steel cleaning rod/brush cannister:



In this case, the end where the rod screws in look different than the P49 cannister:

The rods are interchangeable though.


End cap:

Note that there is no manufacturer mark or date present.


Endcap removed showing contents:



All laid out:

From left, we have the end cap, grease brush, jag, scrubbing brush, second rod section (spins in the middle just like the P49 rod), first rod section (static like the P49), container/handle.



Here is a comparison of the P49 (on the left) and P75 (on the right) cannisters:

All components will interchange between the two including, rod sections, brushes, jags and end caps. Functionally, they are identical.


Contraption assembled showing a P75 for size comparison:



That's it for tonight. In the next post, we'll continue with the rifle kits.

Alrighty, we're now moving on to the rifle kits:



First up is the K31:



The canvas pouch is almost identical to the one used for the P49 differing only in the most minute details. This one is darker and kinda' grimy but hey, it works. I'm sure they had multiple companies making these things and they were made for many years so I would expect color and construction variation. That's a long winded way of saying that the same pouch design is used for both the rifle and Swisstol (oops....I meant pistol).


However, the contents are obviously going to be completely different for the rifle:



Above we see a nicely wound cleaning cord which I assume is hemp but who knows.....it's a natural cord of some sort. There is also a chamber cleaning tool, bore inspection mirror and two beat up grease cans.



For illustration purposes, I broke out a better condition can. Here's the bottom:



Top:

Please excuse the out of focus dog paws in the background. My assistant, Sasha, was being a lazy bones and refused to move despite my repeated threats of severe castigation!


So, here is Sasha doing what she does best:

She's a good and loyal friend but a terrible photography assistant and an even worse proof reader. That's why these articles are so rife with grammatical errors you know.


I finally annoyed her to the point of attention:



Sorry for getting off topic. Anywho, here is solder seam:

I assume these were done by hand. Man, I wish we still lived in that world. The label is not paper but rather some sort of decal.


The instructions are written in three languages. German:



French:



And Italian:

All three are "official" languages. There is a fourth, Romansh, but it is only spoken by a small percentage of the population.
The rough translation is "Grease for Weapons. This composition is used for the lubrication of the moving parts of the weapon, as a preservative against rust, and in general for the maintenance of iron and steel parts, which receive a light coat by means of a flannel cloth."


Here is what all the fuss is about:

This is NOT Automatenfette. This is weapons grease. The Automatenfette is specifically designed for automatic weapons whereas this stuff was designed strictly for bolt action rifles. You can use the automatic weapons grease on the bolt action rifles but you CANNOT use this stuff on the automatic weapons. It's kinda' like all Shriners are Masons but not all Masons are Shriners, dig?


Here's the inside of the cap and the applicator:



Check that neato torpedo cork gasket:



The applicator tip was formed by simply flattening the end of the steel rod:



The chamber cleaning tool is a stamped alloy (my guess is aluminum) affair that has a little rivet in the handle:





Of course, it simply MUST have an inspection proof mark:



Rear:



What I'm calling the bottom:



Top:



Tip:

The piece of screen is replaceable. It's just a small rectangle that you bend into shape around the tool. To use it, you just slurge some grease on there, stick it in the chamber and rotate it around some. The screen acts as an agitator to loosen up the funk.


Here is the cleaning cord, still neatly wrapped up by either a very meticulous soldier or factory worker:

Whoever wrapped it so nicely, I'm not unwrapping it because I'll never get it coiled back up like that.


Here's a closeup of the end:

That funky looking stuff on there is grease used as a preservative. It's gotten somewhat hard but it's still surprisingly smushy.


We can see another tip hidden inside:

I assume it's identical. This thing works just like a bore snake. You can't see it but wrapped up in the coil somewhere is a section of cord with a wire screen attached to it to act as a scrubber. You are also supposed to wrap a bit of cloth around the cord just behind the screen to pick up the residue removed from the bore by the screen. According to the manual, it's a two man job.....yay, using rifle cleaning to build comradery! Just use a modern cleaning rod an leave the cleaning cord in the pouch. You'll be glad you did.

The bore inspection mirror:

Ah, the bore inspection mirror...….I absolutely LOVE these little things. To use it, you pull the bolt to the rear and insert this thing in the stripper clip slot machined into the receiver. When you do so, it's magically held at just the right angle to reflect natural light up the bore to illuminate it for inspection. I get giddy just thinking about how ingenious this little jobber is! I used to carry one with me to gun shows because it's just so damned practical and its batteries will never die. But one time I forgot it and figured out that I can just use the flat head accessory on my Swiss army knife instead. It's not quite as efficient but it's more than adequate. Yeah, big surprise that I carry one of those, huh?


The back of it bears what I assume is a manufacturer's mark:

You will see various markings here. I'm surprised that there is no a little cross inspection mark but I've never seen a mirror that has it.


A few construction detail photos:





The handle is steel but I don't know if the body is or not because I've never seen one with rust on it. Maybe every single one that was ever made has just so well loved and cared for over the years that rust would never be allowed to form! I really do love these little thingees. Of course, the mirror is glass.


That's it for the K31 kit.

Thanks. I don't even own any Swiss weapons but must say I'm enjoying the heck out of this.

I happy to know that sir! I'm enjoying writing it too!

Reading your posts is like going into a rabbit hole. Who knew that cleaning kits could be filled with so much info. Whatever you do don't stop posting about this stuff! It's great.

Great companion you have by the way.

Those grease cans look like my arteries.
Nice presentation.

I'm happy you guys are enjoying it. I hope your arteries don't look like that SKIP!!


The next rifle kit we'll look at is the one for the Sturmgewehr 57, sold under the export name SIG 510 and imported into the US as the semi-automatic only SIG AMT. Companies here in the US often market these as a "K31 cleaning kit" and they will work just fine for that but they were never intended to be used as such. They also work well with any .30 caliber rifle.







Because the Stgw 57 is no longer in service, these kits have been sold off as surplus and were imported into this country by the gadzillions. I think everyone who is even the slightest bit interested in military rifles has either seen or owned one. These thingees used to be dirt cheap and, while they are still relatively inexpensive, prices are starting to rise. Other than the cheap feeling vinyl case, these things exude Quality and would probably cost quite a bit of money if manufactured now. The only problem with them is that the rods and brushes use a different thread than is standard on cleaning accessories here in the US. Fortunately, there is a company that makes a thread adapter so that you can use any commonly available accessory , e.g. Hoppes brushes and jags.


In this picture, I have removed everything from the case and laid it out so that we can get a better look:

Stating at the top, we have four identical rod sections. These appear to be made out of stainless steel and have a brass threaded bit where they connect. The brass part also does double duty as a buffer to keep the steel rod from coming into contact with the bore. The fifth rod section also has a jag built into it that will spin on the rod. Notice that the jag is threaded on the tip. This is because it's not removable from the static part of the rod. If you need to use a brush, you just screw it onto the end of the jag. I like this because it allows you to use a brush and a patch simultaneously which saves time. As usual, the Swiss are using their noggin!
The top right brush is brass and is used for agitating the funk in the chamber and the thingee below it is a patch holder for swabbing the agitated funk out of the chamber.
Below that is the holy bore inspection mirror. Its handle has another use beyond being a handle. We'll come back to that.
The top left brush is also brass and is for agitating the funk in the bore. The brush below that has synthetic bristles and is used to grease the bore for storage.


The handle is next. It's fascinating!! Not really, it's a plastic handle:

I have no idea what "Mod. dep." means. If you know, let me know.

Here's the other side of it:

It's well shaped. You can get a good grip on it.



You'll find various handles in these kits because they obviously had various companies making them:

That's enough handle talk.


Let's get back to the Holy Mirror:





Notice that it has a different little mark on the back than the one in the K31 kit. I have no idea what that means but I assume it's just a manufacturer's mark. Also notice that the handle is shaped differently than the one in the K31 kit. That's not just a variation. That is on purpose. You see, the Stgw 57/SIG 510 has a loaded chamber indicator and it gets in the way of the cleaning rod so it has to be held up out of the way during cleaning. This handle on the inspection mirror is designed to do just that. In order to understand what I'm yammering about, you first need to understand a little bit about the loaded chamber indicator. Illustrated below is the top front of a 510 receiver:

The circle above "SIG-AMT" is the loaded chamber indicator. It pops up when there is a round in the chamber and says. "Hey idiot, careful where you point me because I'm loaded." I'm not joking, it actually audibly says that. No, I'm fibbing. It doesn't say that......but it would if it could. ANywho…..here is a view up through the bottom of the receiver showing the breach:

The indicator can clearly be seen. Well, this thing gets in the way of the cleaning rod and needs to be held up and out of the way. That's where the handle on the Holy Mirror comes in:

There is a slot cut on each side of the indicator. You just push up from the inside the receiver with your finger and slide the handle in place. PRESTO....the cleaning rod won't snag on anything as it does its job!! Yeah, I get a little too excited about this stuff but it's better than being blasé.


You might have noticed that this kit has two different grease cans. That means nothing. They both have the same Automatenfett inside, only the can is different. The can on the left is just like the one we looked at earlier in the P75 kit. The can on the right is made of steel and is kind of a hybrid. Let's take a closer look. Here is the bottom:


And the top:



Side showing the solder joint:



The sacred Automatenfett:

By this point, you should realize that this can is just a left over K31 can only it lacks a decal and has been painted black. My assumption is that, when they switched over to the Stgw 57, they still had unused K31 grease cans in stock. Rather than just trash them, they omitted the decal, painted them black and used them as Automatenfett cans until they ran out of stock.


The lid is a hybrid too:



It still has a cork gasket as seen on the old "weapons grease" can


But the applicator is a plastic shaft and synthetic bristled brush as seen on the newer "Automatenfett" can:

I guess this is just either an early cleaning kit or an old can was laying around and got used up.



A close-up of the case showing the stitching that holds all the accessories in place on the other side:



You'll find these in a bunch of different colors. Here is bright green and olive drab:

There are other colors too. Construction details differ as well.


Some cases have a manufacturer's mark and some do not. This one is marked "Savary S.A.":





Final picture for the Stgw 57/SIG 510 cleaning kit showing an assembled rod with an AMT upper for size comparison:




In the next post, we'll look at the Sturmgewehr 90/SIG 550 kit. See you then!

How in the world you got me interested in cleaning I've no idea, but this is so cool!!! Their workmanship is beyond compare.

This is really neat, Combloc--thanks for putting this together!

Maybe the "CM" mark on the mirror is for Chromium Molybdenum steel like the "+CM" is on the rifle parts?

"Mod. Dep." means "modele depose", basicially like us marking stuff "patent pending".

1. That's entirely possible I suppose.

2. Thank you for answering that. I've been wondering for literally years what that meant!

It's been a busy week. BUT.....now it's time to relax, drink some bourbon and check out the next kit.

Tonight, we're checking out the cleaning kit for the Stgw 90/SIG55x series of rifles :



It took me FOREVER to find one of these things. You'd think they would be falling out of trees (and maybe in Switzerland they are...I don't now) but they are almost impossible to find here in the United States. I always figured that the only way I was going to find one would be if it was misidentified and sold as a Stgw 57 kit and that's exactly what happened. It was advertised as a common ".30 caliber" Swiss cleaning kit but I knew what it was the second I saw it so I picked it up for the princely sum of 15 bucks.....SCHWEET!! Anywho, if you are looking for one, there are a couple things to look for on the pouch that immediately give away it's true nature. First off, it lacks the tie strings present on the Stgw 57 cleaning kit. Instead, its held closed by a large strip of Velcro. We'll see that two pictures from now. Second, the Stgw 90 cleaning kit has little clear pouch sewn onto the outside of it that's meant for a troop tag to identify the owner just like you see on pretty much every Swiss rifle. That tag is missing on this kit unfortunately. Also worth noting is the fact that this pouch seems to be made of rubberized cloth instead of the much stiffer vinyl seen in the earlier 57 kit. Whether or not all of the 90 kits are this way or some are vinyl, I do not know.


On the inside, the pouch lists the manufacturer as "LANZ ROHRBACH" and it's also dated 1999:



Here we see the pouch unrolled:

UUp top can be seen the long strip of Velcro used to keep it closed. It is immediately obvious that this kit is very similar to the 7.5mm kit but it is tailored to the Stgw 90 and not compatible. It would, however, make a mighty fine general 5.56 kit just as the 57 kit makes a mighty fine general 7.62 kit.


Here, all of the goodies have are shown removed but still in the same positions as seen above:

Up top is the jag. Unlike the 57 kit, the jag is a separate part and not permanently joined to the last cleaning rod section. Of course, it's also sized for s 5.56 bore.
Next are four stainless steel cleaning rod sections. Notice that the top one looks different. That's because part of it rotates.
Moving down and to the left, we see a steel brush made for agitating the bore, a nylon brush for greasing the bore, and the handle. According to what I have read, the steel brush will not hurt the bore on an Stgw 90. I'll never find out because I'll never use this kit.
Moving to the top right under the rod sections, we have a steel brush used to clean the gas cylinder, a Holy Inspection Mirror (and another jag that I'll get to in a minute), and a bronze or copper chamber brush.
The tool immediately above the grease cans has a general purpose brush on one end and a scraper for the gas valve on the other. We'll also look at that a little closer in a moment.
Last are the ever so wonderful plastic Automatenfett containers.



We'll do a close up look of the life giving grease cans first.
Bottom:



Top:



The money shot of the contents:

Rifle ambrosia I tell you.....rife ambrosia.


A look at the lid and brush all glooped up with the life sustaining Automatenfett:



Here's a slightly closer look at one side of the brush/gas valve scraper tool thingee:



And, just for grins, the other side:



An illustration of the scraper with a SAN 551 valve:

You just ram it in there and start rotating it until all the carbon falls out. All rifles in the SIG 55x range use an almost identical valve. Only the size and number of gas ports differ.


Here is one side of the handle:

This looks almost identical to one variation of the 57 handle but they are not interchangeable because the threads are different. We'll look at that a bit closer in a moment.


And the other side:



Handle markings:

I have absolutely no idea what the "1" means nor do I know what the "EB" means although I assume it denotes the manufacturer. But I do know that this handle was manufactured in September of 1998. See, I'm not completely stupid.


The Sacred Mirror looks familiar:



Have I mentioned that I love these things? I feel that I must have mentioned it already. Yeah, I know I already told you just how smitten I am with these things. Just this evening, I was using one to inspect an M1 Carbine bore after cleaning and reassembly. I love these little gadgets!!


I mentioned earlier that the handle in this kit is not interchangeable with the handle found in the 57 kit. That's true. Furthermore, NONE of the rods will interchange between the kits either Let's take a look at why:

In the picture above, the upper rod came from a 57 kit. Notice that the threads are completely different. Unfortunately, just as US standard cleaning kit accessories will not fit the 57 rod, they won't fit the 90 rod either.


The actual rod itself is the same diameter between the two kits:



This picture illustrates the other major difference between the rods:

The 57 rod (shown at top) has a brass bore protector. The 90 rod lacks any such thing. I guess the thinking is that, if you can use a steel bore brush, a steel rod won't hurt anything either. Again, everything I've read states that the bore is designed to stand up to steel rods and brushes and the Swiss have certainly been using these things for decades now but I just cannot bring myself to use either a steel rod or brush in any firearm I own. Call me silly.


This picture shows the two different jags I found in this kit:

The one on the bottom is the proper jag for this kit and it threads right onto the various rods. The other one is of a different thread and quickly stops on the rod. I can only assume that someone, somewhere at some time stuck this in there for reasons unknown. I figure that it's a commercial do-dad. I'll just leave it in there because it came in there but I'm certain it ain't supposed to be in there. That's lots of there's in there.


The last picture of this post shows an assembled rod and bore greasing brush with a SAN 551 upper for size comparison:

Dig that flash suppressor machined as part of the barrel. That's some crazy stuff there!


One more kit to go. Yay!

In this post, we'll take a look at the current 55X series "export" or "NATO" cleaning kit. I'll tell you right off the line, this kit makes me sad. I'll explain as we go.




Does this pouch look familiar to you? It does to pretty much every grunt in every NATO country. That's because it's the standard NATO pouch......the damn Swiss have sold out and gone all conformist!!


Look at the inside of this thing:




And here is all the stuff that stores inside it:

Where are all the little loops to hold the individual parts? How in the hell are you supposed to keep it all organized and Swissficient if it all just gets thrown in the pouch willy-nilly?? Where are the sacred grease cans??? OH NO!!!!! WHERE IS THE HOLY INSPECTION MIRROR???? GAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!! This thing is nothing more than a standardized, thrown together from foreign components, craptastic mess of mostly junk if you ask me. Well.....we gotta' cover it anyways so here we go.
At the top of the picture are three steel cleaning rod sections in a phosphate finish. They aren't stainless steel and I'd lay money on it that they aren't even Swiss made but most likely Italian in origin. Now, I have nothing against the Italians. In fact, they make some mighty fine equipment. But a Swiss made rifle SHOULD come with all Swiss made stuff, including the cleaning rod!
Below the rod sections is a brush/scraper tool as seen in the 90 kit and a rod tip slotted for a cleaning patch. The scraper is most likely Swiss made. I doubt the cleaning patch tip is.
Next is the pouch with an ALICE clip on it. I've already gone off on a rant about the pouch. The ALICE clip is just another slap in the face.
Below, we have a rod handle, oil bottle, grease tube, a pull through and some cleaning wicks sealed in a plastic bag, several wipes and some brushes. They are, from left to right, a nylon grease brush, steel bore brush, copper/bronze chamber brush and steel gas tube brush. The brushes might be Swiss.....but they may just as likely be Italian or even Chinese made for all I know. Ugh....this is making me sick.
Remember that I said earlier this is the "export" or "NATO" kit. What that means is that this it the one included with each rifle sold outside of Switzerland. If sold domestically, the kit is quite a bit different and is called the "Swiss" cleaning kit. I wish I had one to show you but I don't so you'll just have to use your imagination a bit. In that one, the pouch is the same but all of the contents are identical to those included in the Stgw 90 kit illustrated earlier including the stainless steel rods, Automatenfett canisters, scraper tool, brushes/jag and the all important Holy Inspection Mirror. It still sucks because you still have store all of the bits jumbled up in that damn NATO pouch. Oh, the thought of all those nice things mixing together all unorganized like and just clunking against each other in a common pouch.....it just makes my stomach turn. Moving on now.


Here is a closeup of the markings on one side of the rod handle:

"STILCRIN". Hmmmm. I wonder...….let's look at the other side:

Made in Italy??? What???? Come on man.....really??


At lease it's designed so that the rod can spin in the handle:



The oil bottle:





Probably made in Italy. I don't even know what you are supposed to do with this thing. Everyone knows you use only Automatenfett on a SIG/SAN rifle.
Die Verwendung von Öl ist verboten!!


Here is the grease tube:



"Made in Italy" Gee.....what a surprise. I never would have guessed.


Here is the sealed bag containing the pull through and cleaning wicks:

I have absolutely no idea what you are supposed to do with this thing. No idea at all. My very soul weeps.


He brushes and patch tip:

There is no way on God's green earth that slotted tip is Swiss made. The brushes might be but, judging by the fancy little lines on their stems, I'm guessing not.


As an example of just how generic this kit is, here is the kit that came with my Czech made CZ 805:

Each kit has some rifle specific bits, e.g. the scraper in the 55x kit and the "T" shaped tool in the CZ kit, but the majority of stuff in the kits is almost a cookie cutter assortment of components. Swiss individualism is officially dead my friends. The end of life as we know it is near.

I can't end this article on such a negative note. SOOOOO, to that end, here are a few comparison pictures of the various grease cannisters (and a yucky oil bottle) shown in the kits we've looked at:





Swiss stuff is cool!! YAY!!!!



Well, that's it. This was by no means an exhaustive or scholarly article on all Swiss cleaning kits. There are various and many kits I did not cover because I either do not own them or I am totally unaware that they even exist. It is also an absolute certainty that there were variations within each design too that I am unaware of. But none of those things matter because I never intended this article to be those things. Rather, this was just what the title states, a detailed look at some Swiss cleaning kits. I wrote it for my Mom. I love you Mom. I also wrote it simply for the fun of it and to share. I hope you enjoyed reading it too. Until next time, have fun and pay attention to the seemingly boring things in life. You just may find out that they turn out to be interesting after all! Bye!

Than you and your Mom for an education in Swiss cleaning kits.

You are most welcome sir.

This post is a short addendum concerning Automatenfett. I know I joke around calling it the "life giving grease" and such other weird stuff but the fact is, it really is an excellent and time proven product. I don't think the word "Automatenfett" is even a real word in German but rather a concoction by the Swiss (although I may be wrong). If you type it into google translate, it comes up as "automatic grease". Whatever the case, Automatenfett is nothing magic or mysterious. Its just an extremely well made grease that works wonderfully well on rifles and handguns. I've seen this stuff on/in rifles that haven't been regreased or cleaned for over fifty years and it's still as gloopy and slick as what's sealed in a can; it's that good.

But what is it?? For the longest time, I had no idea but I did know that I wanted to use it on everything. To that end, I bought every little can of the stuff I could find....to the point that I'd be almost embarrassed to show you how many little cans of the stuff I have squirreled away. Don't ask because I'm not showing you. I hoarded the stuff away and would only use it on certain rifles and pistols, all the while looking for more. Well, last year I finally found out what Automatenfett is. Without going into all the research and lucky discoveries, I found out that it's really nothing more than repackaged common (at least in the aircraft industry anyway) AeroShell 64 Grease. It smells just a hair different but that may be either because of age or because the formula is reworked a bit by Shell for the Swiss government. It used to be called 33MS grease and maybe that smelled more like what I'm used to......I don't know. But what I do know is that AeroShell 64 is, for all intents and purposes, Automatenfett. And the great thing about that is that AeroShell 64 is readily available here in the US! Let's take a look:

Here are two 14 ounce plastic tubes shown with a cannister of Automatenfett for size comparison:

The caption reads "Synthetic grease for aircraft, containing molybdenum disulphide. If you look this stuff up, you'll find that it'll run you about 20 to 25 bucks a tube. It ain't cheap but Quality never is.


Here's a shot showing a diameter comparison :

One tube should last you quite a while I would think. This is the bottom of the tube and it's marked "Euro Cartridge". The other end is fitted with a friction fitted cap.


Here, we see a comparison of the contents:

The color is the same, the consistency is the same too. They just smell a bit different. The Automatenfett smell like ambrosia while the AeroShell smells like...well, grease. Not plain ol' wheel bearing grease but grease nonetheless. I can't put my finger on it exactly but I've smelled it before and it had nothing whatsoever to do with grease. I'll figure it out eventually.


It's made in Switzerland too:



This sticker is on each tube:

I'm not sure what the point of this sticker is because it says pretty much the same thing on the tube already.

Now, I'm no chemist but I do 100% know this stuff is perfectly OK to use on both steel and aluminum alloys. That means you can use it on even the most modern firearms. For years, I used CLP as my lubricant and I still use it as a general rust preventative. But I now use AeroShell64 almost exclusively for wear protection. If it's been good enough for the Swiss since 1957, it's good enough for me!

I’ve got one of these tubs of Automatenfett and it’s got little white beads in it. Does the Shell grease have those too?

No sir. I've never seen little beads in any Automatenfett. Can you post a picture please? And, if you're interested in selling that tub, I'd be very interested!!

Combloc said:

No sir. I've never seen little beads in any Automatenfett. Can you post a picture please? And, if you're interested in selling that tub, I'd be very interested!!

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I dug up some really old Automatenfett, and you’re right—the smell is definitely different, more fragrant. Maybe it’s lanolin or something like that? The old stuff is smoother and less like a jelly than the newer formulation. The new stuff just smells like grease.