The Modern Spartan Systems Starter Kit Plus found gunk in guns new and old. (Photo: Slowik)
Modern Spartan Systems is a chemical engineering firm that decided to make gun care products. Developed by Joel LaStella, MSS products are a by-product of the biodiesel industry and high-efficiency vehicles.
Starting with a synthetic oil additive, Modern Spartan Systems, or MSS, is also working on improving high-RPM engine performance and aerospace cutting and tooling life. In reality, compared to some of the other MSS enterprises, guns are relatively low-pressure, low-stress machines.
The fact that guns are low-stress machines allows many companies to get away with adequate lubricants. It doesn’t take much to keep a gun running, especially if you can provide enough preventative maintenance. Whether it’s wear prevention, rust prevention, or cleaning, it doesn’t take much to tackle the basics. But don’t you want something more from your gun lube?
A lot of companies bank on the fact you won’t, and will even charge lots of money to do the bare minimum. MSS aims to do better for less.
Both Starter Kits come with four bottles of cleaners and lubricant while the Plus kit comes with grease as well. (Photo: Slowik)
The Modern Spartan Systems Starter Kit Plus contains a set of Modern Spartan System’s core products, their lubricant, two solvents, and a lens treatment plus a jar of grease for parts that need more than oil for long-term reliability.
The company’s flagship product is their Accuracy Oil. Their lubricant includes a metal treatment that binds to surfaces to provide lubrication even after the oil layer is gone. It also acts as a surfactant to coat components even if they aren’t directly treated and as a water repellent for long-term rust prevention.
According to Modern Spartan Systems, the treatment doesn’t just bind to the outer layer of metals but also leeches into the pores of metal, filling the microscopic tears in machined surfaces. This provides a smoother surface and reduced friction and is intended for use in barrels to promote accuracy. It also keeps fouling out of the metal, making cleaning easier and faster.
Testing the oil for improved precision while shooting will take more time, but testing for cleaning purposes is easy.
This bolt carrier group had not been cleaned in years. (Photo: Slowik)
The two included solvents are purpose-specific. The kit includes the company’s Carbon Destroyer and Copper and Lead Destroyer. In reality, they can clean a lot more – the Carbon Destroyer is for organic deposits and the Copper and Lead destroyer is for metallic compounds.
The Destroyer cleaners are intended to work in conjunction with the Accuracy Oil. Together they form a system; the Destroyers strip metal to its surface while the oil builds a protective layer over it. This protective layer reduces friction and prevents fouling. The oil is a means to an end.
Modern Spartan Systems advertises their products as “green.” This doesn’t mean that the products are made from recycled lotion bottles. It means that the products are inert and non-toxic. Additionally, they have minimal smell and won’t irritate the skin under normal use. There is no Crisco in Modern Spartan System’s products.
“Thank goodness our stuff is green because if you get into the biohazard stuff…” explained MSS founder Marcus Kahn. “If you get into Hazmat stuff it’s crazy. A lot of women use our stuff because they can use it inside the house. If their kids eat a bottle of Accuracy Oil they might get extra poops.”
Just taking it apart was messy. (Photo: Slowik)
The Accuracy Grease has the same surface treatment as the Accuracy Oil, only suspended in a long-lasting grease. Some firearms require grease and the MSS grease is there so that users don’t turn to other products that might not work as well with their system. Both the Accuracy Oil and Accuracy Grease are designed to work in cold environments and exceed industry standards like CLP.
The Accuracy Grease is included with the Plus Kit, which runs $50. The Standard Starter Kit is $40. Both kits come in a latching plastic hard case with enough room for extra patches and small brushes, rods and jags.
Still, the carbon came off with one pass with a scraper. (Photo: Slowik)
Rounding out both Starter Kits is their Crystal Clear lens treatment. The lens treatment is suitable for optics and eye pro and adds a protective polymer layer that is designed to cut glare and add a protective layer over glass and polycarbonate lenses.
What exactly is the magic ingredient in their products? They’re not saying. Modern Spartan Systems won’t even patent their products because that would give away too much information. But after using their products it’s clear that they just work. They’re also competitively priced and long-lasting. If you’re thinking about trying something new or different this may be the stuff for you.
In early testing, the Accuracy Oil performed well. I treated a series of pistols and rifles with it and the lubricant draws itself across metal without leaving an oily surface behind. Even after months in the safe or hard range use there is a visible film on treated parts that remains slick and low-friction. The film is easy to see on Parkerized metals and matte PVD finishes. It doesn’t dry off or form any polymerized gunk.
The surface treatment makes cleanup fast and straightforward. If I was limited to using one MSS product it would be the oil. Combined with the cleaners it’s even easier. The cleaners wipe and dry free leaving a bare layer for the Accuracy Oil. The Accuracy Grease also holds up – as it should – without seizing in moderately cold conditions.
This muzzle had a hard-to-reach copper crust. (Photo: Slowik)
The cleaners also perform as advertised. The cleaners do a great job of stripping metals down to their finish. Both are essentially odorless. One thing to note is that they improve with time. For light fouling a quick pass after a day at the range should be all it takes – especially for parts treated with Accuracy Oil or Grease.
For built-up fouling it helps to apply the cleaners and let them sit for a while, even overnight, then re-apply and clean. What surprised me about the cleaners is how much grime they can find if you let them work.
I put the Carbon Destroyer to work on an old surplus P-64. I had already detail-stripped and cleaned this pistol before, but what I found was sure enough, more Cosmoline, out of a gun I thought I had cleaned thoroughly.
And the one product that I thought I’d never need I find myself using the most regularly: MSS Crystal Clear. The Crystal Clear lens treatment does something I never expected; it makes me a better shooter. Whether or not you need corrective lenses at some point, shooters put a set of polycarbonate lenses in front of their eyes at the range and in the field.
After a soak, it came off with a wet cotton swab. (Photo: Slowik)
Crystal Clear adds a thin layer of polymer over those lenses that absolutely cuts glare and improves clarity. Whether your lenses are worn from bumping around a range bag or just from everyday use Crystal Clear makes them new again. It also provides an anti-static layer that cuts dust and debris which keeps them clearer, longer. For eye pro and optics alike this stuff’s a winner.
As far as the accuracy improvements, that merits a trial of its own. Again, the Modern Spartan Systems Starter Kit products just work. The lube lubricates even as the base oil gets used up. It doesn’t gum or degrade over time. The cleaners do their jobs without gassing out a room. And the lens cleaner really does add a noticeable, glare-reducing protective layer.
And pleasantly enough, these products work just fine indoors, without fumes, for those post-range cleaning sessions on the couch.
For more information, visit https://www.modernspartansystems.com/.
Modern metallurgy and finishes have practically eliminated most rust and corrosion concerns but protection against them is still a valid test. Since you hint that a long term evaluation of how the oil affects accuracy, how about a rust test too? Even something basic like polishing up some 10d or 16d common nails with steel wool, coating them with Accuracy Oil and leaving them outside and through at least one rainstorm until you see rust. If you want to be more scientific, include untouched nails, polished and untreated nails, and polished nails treated with RemOil, Hoppes Lubricating Oil, Lucas Gun Oil, ALG Go-Juice, Frog Lube, etc. (i.e. the brands that most of us either have a half bottle of, was given a free sample of at the NRA Annual Meeting, or are thinking about buying for the next oil we try.)