You find out you needed threadlocker when the bolt backs out. Here is the shelf, job by job: five consumables this site has cross-checked, and four it hasn't yet.
Sort the shelf by job, not brand:
Owned products say so in plain text; nothing carries the seal until my measurements land.
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, and the forums' favorite, Kroil, finished dead last in his first episode. Every source agrees on one thing: 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.
Six tests, one consensus, and the Kroil disagreement explained.
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); my torque numbers are pending, so this is 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. Blue versus red gets its own page next.
Every spec against Henkel's sheet, the primer catch, the honest 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. 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); measurements pending, so this is 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, ruled 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 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); measurements pending. Kershaw describes a sub-micron, non-migrating formula in a drop-dispenser bottle; 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 here is the maker's own pick, no 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.
Kershaw's procedure, the bottle-size question, the food-safety answer.
For: Kershaw and other EDC folders — pivot care and rust prevention
Skip if: the blade touches food, or you want a needle tip (KPL)
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| Job | What it does | Cure / dry behavior | The site's 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 (researched) | 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 (researched); 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. Makers' data sheets and linked threads only — no verdicts 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, and a GarageJournal thread lands on 65 to 75 percent of dry. 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" — and the GarageJournal consensus 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 — a contact-cleaner maker, so weigh it accordingly — calls brake and carb cleaners "harsh on sensitive plastics" and "very flammable," and 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. Acme Locksmith says it best: oils "feel like they help because the lock loosens for a day, then the oil attracts dirt," while a PTFE dry lube like Tri-Flow "dries to a slick film that does not hold dust." 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. Read the can, not the listing.
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