I concur, the "wonder lube" WD-40 has been used for lots of things it might not have been originally intended for. It might deposit a thin, protective coating on the metal, but it will NOT inhibit rust from forming after a few days, yet many use it for that too.
There is a similar product that Amsoil makes (called "Metal Protector", I believe) that I was told about by the owner of the old Speed Equipment World in Lubbock, TX. The front door to his shop had a lock that would stick every so often. He used WD-40 to free it up, but it attracted dust (a real issue out there) and dirt. When he got turned on to Amsoil products for his Mopar race car, he found about about MP and started using it. It did the same things as WD-40 but did NOT attract dust and it did not gum things up.
I tried it and it worked better than WD-40 for automotive use on sliding hinges and such, but it kind of smelled like bug spray initially. In more recent times, I've found One Lube (or similar) with Teflon to be a better general lube (plus giving things a nice, silky feel as they operate). Then there's also Gunk's Liquid Wrench with PTFE that I've had good results with too. Basically, when WD-40 was discovered it was an amazing product that many used for things it might not have been designed for, but now there are other products out there that tend to be better for the intended purpose. Kind of like GoJo hand cleaner. I also concur that as a default reference, the factory service manual is a valuable asset.
Back to the Home of the Forward Look Network