Need advice on how to disassemble Royal live center

[markba633csi]

Personally, I would leave it alone. I think it just sat for a while and will loosen more as you use it.
The factory probably has special tools which you don't have- and a cleaner assembly room
-Mark

 

[9t8z28]

If I refrain from disassembling it but want to further loosen up the dried grease, what kind of oil do you guys recommend I use?

Personally, I would leave it alone. I think it just sat for a while and will loosen more as you use it.
The factory probably has special tools which you don't have- and a cleaner assembly room
-Mark

 

[9t8z28]

I spoke to Chris at Royal Products and he helped me as much as was feasibly possible. He informed me that the Tri-Bearing models were discontinued in 2001 and it has been closer to 30 years since they revised them to the quad bearing they now offer and even though the Quad bearing is superior, the Tri-Bearing models are still a stout center. They no longer service the Tri-Bearing models but they do offer to replace it with the quad bearing for 30% of the cost of the new quad bearing model.
He also told me that to disassemble the unit I need to remove the rear pipe plug and press the bearing assemble out from the back towards the front and there is no need to remove the 5/32 SHCS before pressing it out.
I will post pics up here when I get it apart. Hopefully this will help others who may find themselves with the same dinosaur

 

[Z2V]

What did Royal recommend as far as what oil to use?

 

[Alcap]

Did they fellow from Royal say if pressing out the bearing will damage them ? Maybe your planning on replacing them anyway . I was always taught never have the pressing forces go through the bearings when installing, the same as when removing if they were going to be reused .Going by the picture that was posted it looks like that my be the case , I might not be explaining this well enough.

 

[mksj]

At the cost they are offering a new replacement, it may pay to to exchange it for a new quad bearing live center, by the time you get new bearings and get everything back together. I recall another member who ended up in a similar situation. You will have a center that should last a life time. I have a few centers for different applications, the better quality ones are a pleasure to use. As far as oil, I would either use spindle oil or ISO32 oil. Most of my centers either have a small screw in the body for oil or a screw at the back of the taper. One of my earlier CNC centers was a Shar's and was gritty and stiff form the start, I flushed it with oil and ran it for awhile, it is better, but I regret getting it. I now use a much smaller CNC point Rohm shown below, and also a Skoda with interchangeable points/tips. I also have an inexpensive bull nose that I infrequently use.

 

[tq60]

If there is a hole in the end for access then clean it out.

Fill with solvent and hold it vertical and spin the tip.

Flip to drain and see what comes out.

Repeat until clear or let soak overnight and repeat.

Once done shift to atf and use it a bit.

Atf is very high detergent and is designed to keep things clean.

Flush out and add correct oil.

Sent from my SM-G781V using Tapatalk

 

[9t8z28]

What did Royal recommend as far as what oil to use?

Did they fellow from Royal say if pressing out the bearing will damage them ? Maybe your planning on replacing them anyway . I was always taught never have the pressing forces go through the bearings when installing, the same as when removing if they were going to be reused .Going by the picture that was posted it looks like that my be the case , I might not be explaining this well enough.

I mentioned to the tech that it appeared to have sat a while unused and the grease dried up. I suggested that I take it apart and try to re-pack it with grease and he agreed that it could possibly bring it back to life. He did not correct me and tell me it needed oil nor did he say disassembling it would destroy the bearings.
Yes I agree that there is a right way and a wrong way to press bearings during disassembly but in my experience if the bearing comes out without too much force rarely does it do any damage

 

[9t8z28]

If there is a hole in the end for access then clean it out.

Fill with solvent and hold it vertical and spin the tip.

Flip to drain and see what comes out.

Repeat until clear or let soak overnight and repeat.

Once done shift to atf and use it a bit.

Atf is very high detergent and is designed to keep things clean.

Flush out and add correct oil.

Sent from my SM-G781V using Tapatalk

thanks tq60. I think this is the best method to determine whether it can be freed up. If the solvents don’t free it up I will know that it’s not worth disassembling

 

[9t8z28]

At the cost they are offering a new replacement, it may pay to to exchange it for a new quad bearing live center, by the time you get new bearings and get everything back together. I recall another member who ended up in a similar situation. You will have a center that should last a life time. I have a few centers for different applications, the better quality ones are a pleasure to use. As far as oil, I would either use spindle oil or ISO32 oil. Most of my centers either have a small screw in the body for oil or a screw at the back of the taper. One of my earlier CNC centers was a Shar's and was gritty and stiff form the start, I flushed it with oil and ran it for awhile, it is better, but I regret getting it. I now use a much smaller CNC point Rohm shown below, and also a Skoda with interchangeable points/tips. I also have an inexpensive bull nose that I infrequently use.
View attachment 390835

Those are some nice centers you got there. What’s the one in the middle?

if I do disassemble it I will try to revive the bearings first. If that doesn’t work then I’ll assess my options. Getting a replacement from Royal would probably be a few years down the road. I paid very little for it and truthfully I would rather try my luck buying another used center.