Of Machine Oilers And Oil

[Rangemaster1]

I really get tired of trying to get a sufficient amount of oil into the little spring loaded oilers on my machines. My oiler is an older pump type that works perfectly until I try to use it on the oil hole caps. The Plews oiler has very small groves in the tip which are supposed to allow the oil past the ball. Not so much. I end up wiping up more oil than I get into the machine.

One day I was using a small needle oiler on some other parts and stuck it into the oil cap and bingo, oil went where I wanted and I wiped up very little. The light came on over my head. Why not insert a needle into the end of my pump oiler?

I found that a # 19 syringe needle fit the end of the oiler almost perfectly. I cut the pointy end off with my belt sander so I wouldn't inject myself with lubricant. Then I removed most of the plastic from the other end with a wire stripper to avoid damaging the needle and trimmed it to fit into the oiler tip. Screwed the tip back on with the needle in it and now lubing the machines is easy with little waste.

The Plews oilers are all over eBay and cheap. The older ones are best ( USA made ).

Now regarding the oil. When it comes lubrication, most of us have our preferences. Manufacturers usually suggest a particular kind of lubricant for the various parts of their machines. That, however, is merely a recommendation and certainly not cast in stone, often paid for by the company making the lube.

Quite a few years ago, and after a lot of research, I began using synthetic lubricants in all my vehicles. The reasons were many, but primarily to squeeze as many MPG’s out of them as I could. Also because of the longer drain intervals.

One day I needed to lube the ways on my lathe but had no more way oil so I used some synthetic engine oil I had. Everything moved easier. When I would wipe swarf off the ways, the oil tended to stay put unless I wiped real hard, and even then it was still there. I now use only synthetic engine oil for all my equipment.

Why not? It has a very high lubricity factor. It clings tenaciously to metal. It has exceptional shear strength. It's a designer oil made for the most extreme conditions. It prevenst rust. It doesn't dry out or evaporate. It won't gum up in extremely cold weather. It withstands extreme heat without break down. For what you get it's not expensive. A quart will last a long time. And,for what it's worth, it makes a great gun oil for a lot less money. For what you would pay for four ounces of gun oil you can buy a quart of synthetic motor oil. No one said you could only use it in an engine. I use 0-20 AMSOIL because it's not heavy, but other synthetics work just as well.

I hope this helps someone searching for a better lubricant.

 

[Silverbullet]

My thoughts are with yours I've been using synthetic oils for years in everything I own never had any trouble either. I use to clean guns at trapshoots to help pay my fees to shoot. I always use the same on others guns they always came to me at every shoot , because I did a good job of the cleaning and lubeing there guns. I'm talking guns that cost in excess of $50,000 dollars . Extreme care by me made them customers for me when ever I ws there. Even now some bring them to my repair shop just to get cleaning done , and cheap was $6 for a single barrel, $10 for doubles , combos were $15. I use to average $200 a day with the cleaning and most gave tips , I must say I earned it tho but it saved me lots of money I didn't have. Fees could run that much a day plus the cost of shells . The lube was as I said all synthetic oils and grease for hinges . Never had a gull mark on any I cleaned .

 

[Rangemaster1]

I built a VW bug engine that ultimately locked up at 60,ooo miles. I put too many shims on the crank shaft. I had used synthetic oil after break in. When I took it down, there was no noticeable wear on the main bearings or the cam and followers. The cross hatch marks were still in the cylinders because I didn't break it in long enough. I reset the shims, put it back together and drove it another 60,000 before the heads loosened up just before I sold it. Great oil. I use it on everything except as a cutting oil. It's too expensive for that. I use too much.

 

[kingmt01]

Synthetic is only a oil with a little more refining. So it has a few more impurities removed then standard oil. Impurities burn off at the high temperatures a engine runs at. Unless something has changed in the last few years in oil since I was schooled on oil the additive package is the same. It still starts with the same raw oil.

I use 0W-20 on most everything myself but I don't go to the added expense of synthetic. I don't see how you could get the extra benefit of a synthetic on something like your ways.

Of you content & it gives you the illusion that it is doing a better job then standard oil & is worth the extra cost by all means use it. It is better oil.

Sources is Valvoline. After they gave me the truths on oil then I was taught how to sale the propaganda.

 

[Rangemaster1]

Synthetic is only a oil with a little more refining. So it has a few more impurities removed then standard oil. Impurities burn off at the high temperatures a engine runs at. Unless something has changed in the last few years in oil since I was schooled on oil the additive package is the same. It still starts with the same raw oil.

I use 0W-20 on most everything myself but I don't go to the added expense of synthetic. I don't see how you could get the extra benefit of a synthetic on something like your ways.

Of you content & it gives you the illusion that it is doing a better job then standard oil & is worth the extra cost by all means use it. It is better oil.

Sources is Valvoline. After they gave me the truths on oil then I was taught how to sale the propaganda.

Ah, my friend, I'm afraid that Valvoline's information is not the whole story. Quite the contrary. Many synthetic lubricants are "man made" from the ground up using plant based materials. The petroleum companies use their petroleum base stocks because that's their business model.

I strongly recommend you look up "Synthetic oil" on Wikipedia for a useful education. Perhaps it will help you understand why synthetic will work better on your ways. Pay special attention to the parts about greater lubricity and shear strength. That means it's slicker and doesn't go away under extreme pressure.

 

[kingmt01]

Actually there is polymers in standard oil that cause it to bond to the metal also. It is part of the secret formula of the additive package. Usually someone talking about motor oil is refiring to petroleum so I assumed the same here.

I'm not sure refining plants makes it anymore synthetic then refining petroleum.

I'm not a oil expert by any means. I find that the more I learn about oil the led I know. Oil is a great mystery to midst people. There is several additives that you can add to any type of oil to increase it's function.

 

[Rangemaster1]

Well, my friend, it's been a long day.

I didn't start this post to debate petroleum vs. synthetic. I just wanted to, hopefully, assist those not versed in the subject with an alternative, or if you prefer, another point of view regarding lubricating there equipment. If you choose to use goose grease on your ways and lard in your head stock, that's fine with me. I'm sure the parts manufactures will be happy too. On my part, I prefere using a known and tested product that gives me the best results for my money. I want my equipment to last a long time with the fewest problem and failures. So I use what I consider to be the most efficient products available. But I want you to use whatever makes you happy.

For what it's worth, if it weren't for additives added to ALL automotive lubricants you wouldn't get ten miles down the road before your engine seized up tighter than a bulls a$$ at fly time. And none of them are a secret formula.

Happy machining,

Ron

 

[kingmt01]

I completely agree with you except for the specific formulas that each company uses. I really got a laugh out of the lard comment also.

 

[Rangemaster1]

You're absolutely correct about different formulas by individual companies. They all have proprietary recipes they feel are best. But they are far from secret. Any lab can use spectrography to analyze the individual properties of any given formula and determine what is in it and how much. No such thing as a secret. Not in this day and age. All that being said, all we care about as machinists is how well it works at ambient temperatures, and is it cost effective.

Have a good evening,

Ron

 

[roy c]

You're absolutely correct about different formulas by individual companies. They all have proprietary recipes they feel are best. But they are far from secret. Any lab can use spectrography to analyze the individual properties of any given formula and determine what is in it and how much. No such thing as a secret. Not in this day and age. All that being said, all we care about as machinists is how well it works at ambient temperatures, and is it cost effective.

Have a good evening,

Ron

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I really get tired of trying to get a sufficient amount of oil into the little spring loaded oilers on my machines. My oiler is an older pump type that works perfectly until I try to use it on the oil hole caps. The Plews oiler has very small groves in the tip which are supposed to allow the oil past the ball. Not so much. I end up wiping up more oil than I get into the machine.

One day I was using a small needle oiler on some other parts and stuck it into the oil cap and bingo, oil went where I wanted and I wiped up very little. The light came on over my head. Why not insert a needle into the end of my pump oiler?

I found that a # 19 syringe needle fit the end of the oiler almost perfectly. I cut the pointy end off with my belt sander so I wouldn't inject myself with lubricant. Then I removed most of the plastic from the other end with a wire stripper to avoid damaging the needle and trimmed it to fit into the oiler tip. Screwed the tip back on with the needle in it and now lubing the machines is easy with little waste.

The Plews oilers are all over eBay and cheap. The older ones are best ( USA made ).

Now regarding the oil. When it comes lubrication, most of us have our preferences. Manufacturers usually suggest a particular kind of lubricant for the various parts of their machines. That, however, is merely a recommendation and certainly not cast in stone, often paid for by the company making the lube.

Quite a few years ago, and after a lot of research, I began using synthetic lubricants in all my vehicles. The reasons were many, but primarily to squeeze as many MPG’s out of them as I could. Also because of the longer drain intervals.

One day I needed to lube the ways on my lathe but had no more way oil so I used some synthetic engine oil I had. Everything moved easier. When I would wipe swarf off the ways, the oil tended to stay put unless I wiped real hard, and even then it was still there. I now use only synthetic engine oil for all my equipment.

Why not? It has a very high lubricity factor. It clings tenaciously to metal. It has exceptional shear strength. It's a designer oil made for the most extreme conditions. It prevenst rust. It doesn't dry out or evaporate. It won't gum up in extremely cold weather. It withstands extreme heat without break down. For what you get it's not expensive. A quart will last a long time. And,for what it's worth, it makes a great gun oil for a lot less money. For what you would pay for four ounces of gun oil you can buy a quart of synthetic motor oil. No one said you could only use it in an engine. I use 0-20 AMSOIL because it's not heavy, but other synthetics work just as well.

I hope this helps someone searching for a better lubricant.

I hope this posting is done correctly as I am a newby, first post.
Thank you rangemaster1 for answering a question before I asked it. I am referring to the needle idea but I will try synthetic oil also.
roy c