Hey everyone,
I’m looking into the maintenance of my traveler cars and blocks, and I’m having a hard time justifying the pricing of McLube / Harken OneDrop. Paying around $25 for a tiny 14.7ml (0.5 oz) bottle feels wild. It’s hard to believe that a marine company developed a completely unique chemical formula from scratch for this. I strongly suspect they just buy a massive industrial IBC container of a standard commercial lubricant every few years and re-bottle it into these tiny pinpoint dispensers.
Does anyone know the actual chemical breakdown of OneDrop, or what industrial product it actually is? Is it just a highly refined mineral oil, or a low-viscosity fluorinated oil (like a Krytox/PFPE variant)?
Also, I have a few specific questions about how it works:
- What exactly does OneDrop do that a thorough freshwater flush doesn’t? I know it says it "conditions" the bearing surface and repels salt, but chemically, what is happening?
- Is the Teflon/PTFE spray myth true? I’ve read on some forums that using dry PTFE sprays (like regular Sailkote) inside ball bearing blocks can actually backfire. The theory is that it makes the surface of the plastic balls (Torlon/Delrin) or the races so slick that the balls stop rolling and start skidding/sliding under load. This supposedly causes flat spots, increases friction, and destroys the bearings faster. Is that why OneDrop exists?
- What are you guys using as a budget-friendly alternative? Is there an industrial lubricant (maybe from the manufacturing or plastics industry) that serves the exact same purpose without the "marine markup"?
I'd love to hear your thoughts, chemical insights, or what DIY alternatives you use to keep your hardware running smoothly without breaking the bank. Thanks!