Depends on the rifle. Since this is an M1carbine thread, I will stay with that rifle. The manufacturer recommended lube for the M1 Garand was Lubriplate. I use it on my M1 Garand. Since the Garand and M1 carbine have similar operating systems and were manufactured in the same era, I figured I would also use it in my M1 carbines. I clean and lube each rifle every time I return from a shooting session. The Garand and both carbines function perfectly with the Lubriplate. It should be noted that many people do not like Lubriplate and do not recommend it. I do not use it in any of my other firearms. Hope that helps!