What are you using for Lathe Way Oil?

[Blue HeelerParticipant @blueheeler]

What are you using for Lathe Way Oil?

Cheers,

Jim

[Blue HeelerParticipant @blueheeler]

[Pete RimmerParticipant @peterimmer30576]

Way oil, if I'm not using coolant oil.

It might not seem cheap but it does go a very long way. I doubt if I get through a litre a year.

[Mike CrossfieldParticipant @mikecrossfield92481]

I use 68 grade Slideway Oil. As with all my lubricants, I buy it from Smith and Allan. Great service and low prices. 5 litres Slideway Oil is £11.55 plus vat and carriage. 5 litres lasts me 5 years+. I try to order a number of items (Slideway oil, cutting oil, spindle oil, paint etc) at the same time to spread carriage cost.

[Thor 🇳🇴Participant @thor]

I too use ISO 68 way oil since a friend gave me a 4L can, before that I used mineral based chainsaw oil mixed with a plain ISO 68 oil. The carriage seems to move slightly more smoothly using proper way oil.

Thor

[Roderick JenkinsParticipant @roderickjenkins93242]

I use a straight 30 engine oil as recommended in my Myford handbook.

Rod

[David George 1Participant @davidgeorge1]

Slideway 68 oil for me as well. Just borrow some from friend with an engineering company.

David

[VicParticipant @vic]

I’m also using Slideway 68.

[mechman48Participant @mechman48]

I use ISO 32 hydraulic oil; simply 'cos I have a fair bit stored away, in my lathe saddle gearbox I use 10 / 40 auto oil, both work fine for me.

George.

[HopperParticipant @hopper]

20/50 engine oil. I have a shed full of the stuff to hand.

[AdrianRParticipant @adrianr18614]

ISO 68 way oil on my larger lathe and Mill, ISO 32 hydraulic on they Myford ML2 as the oil can is never far from hand with plain bearings.

[I.M. OUTAHEREParticipant @i-m-outahere]

Chain bar oil on everything except the gearbox .

[thaiguzziParticipant @thaiguzzi]

ISO 68 hydraulic oil from auto factors, designed for tractor rear axles and gearboxes.

6 quid for 5 litres.

[john carruthersParticipant @johncarruthers46255]

iso32 'Jack Oil'

[old martParticipant @oldmart]

I use 5W40 semi synthetic engine oil, any oil is better than none.

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by old mart on 02/06/2019 16:17:07:

I use 5W40 semi synthetic engine oil, any oil is better than none.

Absolutely, but next time you buy oil look for SAE 20 rather than 5. 5W40 is good for cold starting a car engine on frosty mornings. It works by being thin at ordinary temperatures and thickening up significantly only when the engine warms up. It lubricates best at about 100°C. SAE20 is thicker at normal temperatures and more what we want of a lubricating oil.

IP68 Hydraulic Oil, SAE 20 car oil, and SAE 75W or 80W gear oils all have about the same viscosity, and each is broadly OK for splashing on a lathe. Way oil is distinctly sticky compared with all of them.

IP68 is often recommended. I think it's because Gear oil tends to be pricey because of its high-pressure performance and engine oil might contain undesirable additives. Not that I've ever heard of a machine tool being damaged by an engine oil!

Dave

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

Myford suggest 68 grade slideway oil for the 254S, but don't use it in gearboxes

[DMBParticipant @dmb]

"Guy Lautards Gunk" – made up of 3 diff oils in diff proportions. Seems to work OK. One is STP or equivalent to make it stick in place another graphite, molyslip to fill any minute gaps with graphite particles and third, EP oil. It's in one of his excellent books.

(He also had another concoction to aid drilling which I have found to be very good.)

[clogsParticipant @clogs]

DMB what is the drill aid please……..

[Anonymous]

An ISO68 slideway oil on the centre lathe and an ISO32 hydraulic oil on the repetition lathe. The repetition lathe is operated by levers and the slideways are sufficiently close fitting that a slideway oil adds significant drag.

Andrew

[Nick WheelerParticipant @nickwheeler]

Dextron 3. I've about 3l left over from topping up an auto gearbox(that I no longer have) a few years ago. It's basically light hydraulic oil with a dye, so I'm not going to buy anything else. It's one of those deals where any oil is better than nothing.

[Graham WhartonParticipant @grahamwharton]

Just be aware that some oil additives can corrode brass, bronze and copper. Thats why i would use an oil designed for machines where yellow metals are abundant not one designed for modern engines/gearboxes where yellow metals are no seen as much. I dont understand why people use engine/gearbox oils with all the nasty additives and detergents when slideway oils are readily available and no more expensive.

 

Graham

Edited By Graham Wharton on 02/06/2019 21:34:12

[Blue HeelerParticipant @blueheeler]

Cheers for all the replies.

Jim

[Martin WParticipant @martinw]

I oil when the slideways start to lose their film of oil and use Mobil Vactra No 2 Slideway oil. To date the beds have never shown any signs of rust/corrosion and a litre lasts for well over a year.

Martin

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