You find out you needed threadlocker when the bolt backs out. Here is the shelf, job by job. Five consumables I checked against outside tests, three of them on my own shelf, bought at retail. Four more I know only from the makers' data sheets.
Sort the shelf by job, not brand:
Three of these I own and use, and their cards say "Bought at retail." The rest I picked from other people's measured tests and the makers' sheets.
The most measured data and the least agreement. Project Farm's four-video series (his disclaimer: "only for entertainment purposes") produced three different round winners. Practical Sailor's corroded-trailer test went to PB B'laster. The forums' favorite, Kroil, finished dead last in his first episode. The one thing the measured tests agree on: time beats product. In his finale every can did better at 24 hours than at 1, and in Episode 1 a torch beat the best oil. The best upgrade in this category is going to bed.
My own can is plain WD-40, which the tests say is not a penetrating oil. My rule at home: "Anything that makes noise gets a squirt." It has freed some tough screws for me. It also lost to a pool pump screw, which I ended up breaking out after WD-40 and larger and larger screwdrivers.
Six tests, one ranking, and why the forums and the camera disagree on Kroil.
Won the one-hour round (115.0 vs 131.6 ft-lbs untreated); the finale's best all-rounder.
For: one can that does everything
Skip if: raw unseizing power is all you want
Check price on AmazonWon Episode 1 (97.3 vs 125.9 dry); finale runner-up at 1 and 24 hours.
For: the glovebox shelf
Skip if: you soak overnight
Check price on AmazonRunner-up in Episode 3; the can GarageJournal veterans bring up unprompted.
For: rust the usual cans failed on
Skip if: you want the most-tested option
Check price on AmazonLoctite Threadlocker Blue 242 is the tube on my shelf, bought at retail. I have not measured torque, so the numbers are Henkel's data sheet. Medium strength for 1/4-inch to 3/4-inch fasteners, fixtured in about 10 minutes, cured in 24 hours, 70 to 150 lb-in breakaway, hand-tool removable. Plated or black-oxide fasteners need a primer (the newer 243 doesn't), and it stays off plastics: a FIRST Robotics coupon test showed polycarbonate crazing. Red 271 is another decision. Henkel calls it permanent, 150 to 300 lb-in, freed only by heating to about 450°F.
Mine went on a pocket knife pivot screw that was tight until I loosened it, then wanted to walk out on its own. It also went on my fishing magnet, because pulling up the line and finding nothing attached gets old. Henkel says hand-tool removable. It came loose with a screwdriver and some elbow grease; the sheet leaves out the elbow grease. For around-the-house jobs, 242 has done it, and I never found the need for 243 or red.
The specs against Henkel's sheet, the primer catch, the cons.
For: mower decks, bikes, motorcycle and car hardware you'll service again
Skip if: plated fasteners without primer (buy 243), or plastic nearby
Check price on AmazonThe internet's most-cited glue tester never put CA on wood. Project Farm's 2018 comparison was metal and plastic. The one large load-cell study that did, James Wright's 32-glue test, found thicker CA bonded stronger than thin, and that accelerator didn't help. With thick gel it hurt: the spray that makes the glue set faster is the spray that makes it hold worse. He published rankings, not per-glue loads, so no numbers are invented here. CA is a repair glue, not joinery. In Matthias Wandel's measured joints, PVA broke the wood first.
Thin, medium or thick, and why your last bottle died.
The medium bottle woodworking forums converge on; anti-clog cap, 20-month guarantee.
For: the one-bottle default
Skip if: it's a hairline crack
Check price on AmazonWater-thin, wicks by capillary action; BSI states over two years of shelf life.
For: cracks and punky wood
Skip if: you want strength (Wright's weakest tier)
Check price on AmazonThick CA plus activator: the clamp substitute, and the CA family in Wright's test.
For: jigs, miters, hold-it-now
Skip if: you need maximum bond
Check price on AmazonWD-40 Specialist Silicone is the can on my shelf, bought at retail. I have not measured it, so the specs are WD-40's data sheet: -100°F to 500°F, NSF H2, dries in seconds to a clear film safe on rubber, vinyl and plastic. Its 4-ball wear claim (0.60 mm scar vs 1.10 for Liquid Wrench and 2.75 for CRC) is the maker's number, not independent. WD-40's customer-care team, on a Honda Odyssey forum, recommended silicone over white lithium for mixed plastic-and-metal tracks: lithium holds dirt. It's flammable until dry and separates fast. Shake hard or you spray solvent.
The sheet lists tracks, rollers and weatherstripping. Mine went on the windshield wipers of my Tesla Model X, which were making an awful lot of noise even after new rubbers. The squeak got quieter, not gone. The part I did not plan on: at around 55 mph and above, raindrops virtually jump off of the windshield, and that lasted a good few months with no Rain-X. The wipers were the excuse. The windshield was the result.
The specs, the wear claim in context, silicone versus lithium.
For: window and door tracks, weatherstripping, garage-door rollers
Skip if: metal-on-metal under load (grease), food contact (H2 isn't H1), or a surface you'll paint
Check price on AmazonKershaw Knife Oil is the bottle I use, bought at retail. I have not measured it against anything. Kershaw describes a sub-micron, non-migrating formula in a drop-dispenser bottle, and its procedure is the method: a drop on pivot and detent, cycle, wipe, light coat before storage. Knife Informer picked it, dinging only the missing needle tip KPL has. Kershaw's care guide concedes most household oils work; the case for this bottle is that it is the maker's own pick and not an aerosol. Not food-safe (Prop 65); BladeForums says food-grade mineral oil for kitchen blades. It keeps the Kizer Drop Bear and Sheepdog Mini cycling; folders live at the pocket-knives hub.
I use it on most new knives. The higher-end ones usually arrive smooth and don't need it. Mid-range knives have a little friction out of the box, and a drop makes them feel buttery smooth again. Two gripes: a white, wax-like buildup in the bottle that I can't explain, and a plastic nose too wide for many pivots, so you've got to get creative. KPL's long metal needle fits almost every groove, and based on what I've been hearing from other enthusiasts, I'd point you to KPL first. I haven't tried it. This is the bottle I have.
Kershaw's procedure, the bottle-size question, the food-safety answer.
For: Kershaw and other EDC folders, for pivot care and rust prevention
Skip if: the blade touches food, or you want a needle tip (KPL)
Check price on Amazon| Job | What it does | Cure / dry behavior | My pick | Full page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seized fasteners | Creeps into rust and the thread gap | Never cures; better at 24 h than 1 h (Project Farm finale) | Seafoam Deep Creep (not owned; from the tests) | Best penetrating oil |
| Fasteners working loose | Anaerobic acrylic that hardens between threads | Fixtures ~10 min, cures 24 h (Henkel); hand-tool removable | Loctite 242 (bought at retail) | 242 review |
| Bonding and repairs | Cyanoacrylate; cures on trace moisture | Seconds to minutes; accelerator costs thick-gel strength (Wright) | Starbond EM-150 (not owned; from the tests); thin: BSI; kit: FastCap 2P-10 | Best CA glue |
| Rubber, plastic, tracks | Silicone in a volatile carrier; dry film | Dries in seconds; doesn't hold dust (WD-40 TDS) | WD-40 Specialist Silicone (bought at retail) | Silicone review |
| Pivots and blades | Thin, non-migrating oil | Doesn't dry; wipe the excess or it collects lint (Kershaw) | Kershaw Knife Oil (bought at retail) | Knife oil review |
Four more belong on a complete shelf. I don't own these, so what follows is the makers' data sheets and the linked threads, with no verdict from me.
Permatex Anti-Seize Lubricant is aluminum, copper and graphite in grease, rated by its data sheet from -60°F to 1,600°F; Loctite LB 8008 C5-A is the copper version, rated by Henkel to about 1,796°F. On torque the sources split. Permatex says "reassemble parts using normal torque values." NGK says anti-seize can alter torque up to 20 percent and bans it from its plated plugs. A GarageJournal thread lands on 65 to 75 percent of dry. Three sources, three answers, one bolt. Follow the fastener maker; Permatex adds: not for wheel lug nuts or studs.
Permatex Dielectric Tune-Up Grease is a silicone dielectric compound rated -65°F to 400°F; its data sheet lists spark-plug boots, coil connectors, headlamp sockets and trailer plugs. It insulates, hence the argument over whether it blocks the connection. Permatex's directions settle it: coat both halves "while maintaining metal-to-metal contact." The GarageJournal thread agrees. Pin pressure clears the contact path while the grease seals the rest. Keep it out of crimps.
The wrong can for a corroded connector is brake cleaner. Chemtronics calls brake and carb cleaners "harsh on sensitive plastics" and "very flammable," and it makes contact cleaner, so weigh that accordingly. A GarageJournal member put it plainly: "I HAVE melted plastic with it." CRC QD Electronic Cleaner is the can that comes up instead. CRC describes a plastic-safe, non-conductive, non-chlorinated cleaner that evaporates without residue. Flash point below 0°F, so extremely flammable, and not for mass-airflow sensors.
The category exists because oil attracts dirt. Oils "feel like they help because the lock loosens for a day, then the oil attracts dirt," Acme Locksmith writes, and nobody has said it better. A PTFE dry lube like Tri-Flow, in the same article, "dries to a slick film that does not hold dust," which is the whole pitch. The catch with the best-known can: WD-40 Specialist Dry Lube's current technical sheet (August 2026) describes a quick-drying, dust-resistant, NSF H2 film and no longer mentions PTFE. WD-40's current safety data sheet is filed under a "no PTFE" filename and lists mineral oil where the older sheet listed PTFE. The maker's own paperwork dropped the ingredient the category is named for. Read the can, not the listing.
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