Removing grease from oil channels

3

3strucking

Registered
Registered
Joined
Jan 30, 2017
Messages
261
Someone used grease instead of way oil on a Index mill I purchased. Has anyone had success removing grease from the channels without having to disassemble the table and knee? I thought about trying to pump kerosene or something that cuts grease through the zerks after digging out what I could. I really dont have the time or want to tear this mill down.
 
I really think you are trying to just delay the inevitable. If I was going to try, I would try and pump oil and or air in to force out the grease. Once you have some excess room for oil, just keep pumping it in. Once you decide to tear the machine apart, it really won't be as bad as your are anticipating and you'll have a better job you can live with. I myself would avoid pumping in some kind of solvent with out a teardown. Your method will also be really messy. There is no way to reason your way out of doing it the correct way. Good luck with your decision and let us know how it turns out.
 
3strucking said:
Someone used grease instead of way oil on a Index mill I purchased. Has anyone had success removing grease from the channels without having to disassemble the table and knee? I thought about trying to pump kerosene or something that cuts grease through the zerks after digging out what I could. I really dont have the time or want to tear this mill down.
Click to expand...
The problem I see with pumping solvent is often there are multiple paths that the oil is suppose to follow from one zerk. The solvent is going to find one point to blow through, and the other area(s) will remained blocked with grease. Even if it is just going to a hole and a groove on matching way faces, often that hole is in the middle of the groove's length and it is likely to blow out only one side, leaving the way face only partially lubricated when you then use oil.
 
How long are the passages? Pipe cleaners? I know; sounds silly.
 
I've never cleaned a metal working machine like that, but the channels and (and plumbing if there is any) which is different, but not that different in their design or operation than the bearings, bushings, trunions, and such that I care for pretty regularly. My opinion is that you can ALWAYS "flush" them to take new lubricant, to some degree, and in the case of a rotating bushing, that may well be enough, but you can NEVER flush them completely. So when I translate that in to longer, straighter channels, I don't think the motion of a table, knee, or any linear slide really is going to get "flushed". Part of it will for sure. You'll see "flush" come out, and it'll bring some grease with it, and then you'll see it clean up. But I don't think you can "force" all the leftover binders out of there to a degree that will get the oil to everywhere it needs to be.

So my opinion (as a mechanic/technician very familiar with having to flush grease from things), is that this will be more likely to lead to a false sense of success, and probably a partial success on any given sliding surface, but I highly doubt you'll get it all. And of course you won't have any way to know what percentage you did or didn't get, where the oil is in the spots you can't see, where it's still blocked, so you'll have very limited ways to guestimate as to what's going to be adequate.... I'd take it apart.
 
I have two machines where priors (or their wage monkeys) used grease instead of oil.

The simple one was my mill, the FSM says to use oil in the top rear zerk, but the data plate says grease. PO used grease. I switched to oil, and it took 20 hours or more to flush through, as evidenced by the significant quieting of my mill head. It took a lot of oil and some months to clear.

The more relevant case is my lathe. PO used black moly instead of oil on the ways. I didn't pull the saddle during rebuild, saving it for later (or sooner rather than later as it turns out). Instead, I spent days pumping way oil and cranking the handwheel. It took a lot of work to get it moving and the oil flowing, and I still get black sulfur moly on the ways. Worse, I have no clue whether all passages are clear, or just the main part that dumps on the way. I've probably pumped a liter of way oil through the Gitz ball. I won't be confident until I pull the assembly and clean it on the bench.
 
A blast of shop air pressure at 175 psi might move the grease along. I can't see where it could be harmful in any way.
 
cathead said:
A blast of shop air pressure at 175 psi might move the grease along. I can't see where it could be harmful in any way.
Click to expand...
Naturally the first thing I did on the lathe. After 25 years, grease gets a little waxy and stops flowing. Air pressure works great for freeing up pins on a backhoe, but in a lathe carriage I make no assumptions about the grease being fresh enough for that to work. I don't see the harm in trying either.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top