Lubricants for Milling Machines

[ml_woy]

I being new to milling machines, just getting my first one this month, decided to send for the operations manual for the machine. In reading it I discovered a list of lubricants required by the machine for it to operate properly. Next it was off to find the products and yes, I found that all were available from my local petroleum distributor but in rather large quantities for the hobby machinist. I took the time to read about each product, thinking that I could substitute other common lubricants I already had on hand, but found out that each of the three products are specifically formulated for milling type equipment in their formulation and that, given the price of the equipment, I decided it would be wise to use them.

The three products are all made by Shell Oil Company and their current names are:
"TONA S2MX68", for lubricating the swivel, rack pinion shaft, overarm slide, table slide and knee slide.
"OMALA- S2G320", for the back gear housing
"GADUS - S2V100-2", for the Feed gear box, Quill bearings, Motor, Bearing.

Now Toma and Omala both come in 5 gallon quantities only and Gadus, a grease in tubes, comes in cases of 10 tubes only. These products, priced on the West Coast market sell for $105.00 for the oils and $34.00 for the grease.

Does anyone out there have these products on hand now and would be willing to part with a smaller quanity of each and maybe a tube of the grease? Or does anyone know of a supplier who sells smaller quantities like quarts and single tubes? I think that the quantities I have found for the oils are the smallest quanities the suppliers package the products in.

If anyone else would be interested in purchasing some of these products I would be game to split an order to help reduce the costs to all.

Anyway guys thanks for the time to read the thread

M.L. Woy

[EdK]

What's the brand and model number of your mill? Enco likely has suitable substitutes in 1 gallon sizes.

Ed

[ml_woy]

(08-21-2012, 12:05 PM)EdK Wrote: What's the brand and model number of your mill? Enco likely has suitable substitutes in 1 gallon sizes.

Ed

The mill is a Beaver manufactured by Balding Engineering. I checked with ENCO and they do not carry the equivalents. I did find out that McMaster Carr has the equivalent in Mobile products for the Gadus and Tona but do not carry the Omala equivalent in the 320 weight. So now I just have to find a supplier of the Mobile product Gear 600xp320 in gallon containers.

[EdK]

(08-21-2012, 01:50 PM)ml_woy Wrote: The mill is a Beaver manufactured by Balding Engineering. I checked with ENCO and they do not carry the equivalents. I did find out that McMaster Carr has the equivalent in Mobile products for the Gadus and Tona but do not carry the Omala equivalent in the 320 weight. So now I just have to find a supplier of the Mobile product Gear 600xp320 in gallon containers.

Actually Enco does carry the equivalent of the Tona.

http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PARTP...PP505-1987

It's $7 cheaper than McMaster.

Ed

[ml_woy]

(08-21-2012, 03:54 PM)EdK Wrote:

(08-21-2012, 01:50 PM)ml_woy Wrote: The mill is a Beaver manufactured by Balding Engineering. I checked with ENCO and they do not carry the equivalents. I did find out that McMaster Carr has the equivalent in Mobile products for the Gadus and Tona but do not carry the Omala equivalent in the 320 weight. So now I just have to find a supplier of the Mobile product Gear 600xp320 in gallon containers.

Actually Enco does carry the equivalent of the Tona.

http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PARTP...PP505-1987

It's $7 cheaper than McMaster.

Ed

Ed, Enco's website keeps bringing up Mobile product called Vactra Oil #2. I talked to Mobile Technical support yesterday and they gave me the product name of Vaculone 1409. Here is what Mobile says about the product. But actually the other product from Mobile probably would work.

"Mobil Vacuoline Oil 1405 and 1409 are special oils for machine tools which need one common lubricant for
both the slideways and hydraulic system. Additionally, they are recommended for machine tool slideway
systems where excellent separation from water-based coolants is required.
These products are made from solvent refined mineral base oils blended with friction modifier and anti-wear
additives.
Benefits
Mobil Vacuoline Oil 1405 and 1409 offer the following benefits:
· Ability to satisfy slideway lubrication and hydraulic system requirements with a single oil
· Rapid separation from water-based coolants
· Suitable for all slideway material combinations
· Good work finish results from a reduction of stick-slip and chatter
· Good protection against rust and corrosion
· High precision due to reduced slideway wear
· Good hydraulic performance
· Low maintenance costs due to reduced unscheduled downtime
Applications
Mobil Vacuoline Oil 1405 and 1409 are recommended for use in machine tool hydraulic systems in which a
continual bleed lubricates the slideways – and for slideway systems where rapid separation from water-based
coolants is required."

[Highpower]

(08-22-2012, 10:28 AM)ml_woy Wrote: Ed, Enco's website keeps bringing up Mobile product called Vactra Oil #2. I talked to Mobile Technical support yesterday and they gave me the product name of Vaculone 1409.

As I understand it the original Vactra Oil #2 contained tackifiers and was an outstanding product. A couple of years ago they changed the formula and removed the tackifiers. This resulted in sub-par performance and Mobil has since come out with the Vacuoline 1409, which is the same as the OLD Vactra Oil #2. (Tackifiers added in again.)

[Mayhem]

That is what I am lead to believe as well Ed.

A friend and I have purchased our oil in 20L drums. It actually works out cheaper. I think the ISO 32 spindle oil was $88 for 20L.

[Rickabilly]

Just my opinion here, but as a design engineer quite often after designing a piece of equipment you are asked to recommend lubes for it, so you just go to the nearest catalogue of your company's usual supplier and pick out the nearest thing that looks like it'll do the job, I would guess that this is the origin of the grades in the manual.

Many years (15) ago I designed a line of Limited slip differentials and recommended a lubricant to one particular customer, about a decade later I bumped into that customer who informed me that he had not been able to obtain that lube any more but had gone to the trouble of mixing two other oils in order to get exactly the same properties as recommended by his oils supplier, I didn't have the heart to tell him, that I had literally just looked in my catalogue for LSD oils and picked the cheapest one off the list that wouldn't affect the bronze parts and there was nothing more critical in my choice than that.

I would suggest that the oil manufacturers would be better qualified to specify a lubricant than most manufacturers, as the machine manufacturers are not lubrication specialists.
Regards
Rick

[EdK]

Good thoughts Rick. I think for hobby use, as long as you use way oil for ways and gear oil for gears the actual brand and model is not that important, to a point anyway. You need to be reasonably close to the recommended viscosity anyway.

Ed

[stevec]

I'm not qualified to speak hrere (but that never stopped me before). I'm of the opinion "use the oil you have" if it goes away fast , put it on faster.