09-06-2017, 09:23 AM
Cutter head lubrication is a bit less straightforward. The bearings are greased, but the 90deg gearbox runs oil.
The original manual specifies 600W oil, which is Mobil Cylinder Oil (ISO 460 grade). Still made today but not easy to get hold of in small quantities. ISO460 is the same viscosity as SAE140 gear oils which ARE easy to get hold of.
Whenever there's an oil/gearbox discussion it always brings up the subject of not using EP oils as they will eat bronze bits in the machine. I was doubtful that there would be any bronze in the cutter head, but given the age of the machine and parts (un)availability didn't want to risk it if there was.
So to make myself feel better about what I could use, I opened up the cutter head to have a look:
Here's the pinion gear on the ram:
And the mating gear in the cutter head:
Good thing is the gears look to be in pretty good condition.
Not so good is there's no sign of oil in the gearbox - just the remains of the grease from the bearings that has made its way through the seals.
Bad news is that when I rotated the spindle, it felt like it had quite high preload, and was notchy. Bugger :(
The ram gearbox is nice and smooth though..
So its onto the bench for a proper stripdown of the head to check the bearings.
Upper bearing was worn, but not stuffed.
On the other hand, the lower one is definitely past its prime:
Both bearings are up against shoulders with no easy way of getting behind them to pull them out. You can see in that photo the small recess behind the inner edge of the bearing - only about 1mm to try and get anything onto.
Not having a suitable puller to do that, I had to resort to running a bead around the inside of the cups and then welding a small bar across them so I could tap them out.
The photos may be offensive to some so I'll omit them !!
After removing it, I found the lower bearing cup had a 1943 date engraved on it. So it still had the original bearings in it after all these years.
The seal above the lower bearing must have been original too, as the rubber lip just crumbled with light pressure.
Hopefully the bearings and seal aren't too hard to source, but I'm a little anxious they could be. Will find out tomorrow.
Oh - and I've confirmed 100% there aren't any bronze bits in the head so no need to worry about having to use a bronze friendly oil .
Steve
The original manual specifies 600W oil, which is Mobil Cylinder Oil (ISO 460 grade). Still made today but not easy to get hold of in small quantities. ISO460 is the same viscosity as SAE140 gear oils which ARE easy to get hold of.
Whenever there's an oil/gearbox discussion it always brings up the subject of not using EP oils as they will eat bronze bits in the machine. I was doubtful that there would be any bronze in the cutter head, but given the age of the machine and parts (un)availability didn't want to risk it if there was.
So to make myself feel better about what I could use, I opened up the cutter head to have a look:
Here's the pinion gear on the ram:
And the mating gear in the cutter head:
Good thing is the gears look to be in pretty good condition.
Not so good is there's no sign of oil in the gearbox - just the remains of the grease from the bearings that has made its way through the seals.
Bad news is that when I rotated the spindle, it felt like it had quite high preload, and was notchy. Bugger :(
The ram gearbox is nice and smooth though..
So its onto the bench for a proper stripdown of the head to check the bearings.
Upper bearing was worn, but not stuffed.
On the other hand, the lower one is definitely past its prime:
Both bearings are up against shoulders with no easy way of getting behind them to pull them out. You can see in that photo the small recess behind the inner edge of the bearing - only about 1mm to try and get anything onto.
Not having a suitable puller to do that, I had to resort to running a bead around the inside of the cups and then welding a small bar across them so I could tap them out.
The photos may be offensive to some so I'll omit them !!
After removing it, I found the lower bearing cup had a 1943 date engraved on it. So it still had the original bearings in it after all these years.
The seal above the lower bearing must have been original too, as the rubber lip just crumbled with light pressure.
Hopefully the bearings and seal aren't too hard to source, but I'm a little anxious they could be. Will find out tomorrow.
Oh - and I've confirmed 100% there aren't any bronze bits in the head so no need to worry about having to use a bronze friendly oil .
Steve