Mill Spindle Lubrication

[bluwolf]

I have a Jet JVM-830 mill, basically the same as Daniel and Will's mill. It has oil cups for the lube points. The one for the spindle is under the belt cover. The plastic tubing runs down to the spindle housing but curves back up before going into the spindle. I can't seem to get the oil to flow back up the curve and into the spindle. The oil cup itself is higher than the top of the curve so I assume gravity should carry the lube up the curved tubing, but it doesn't. Am I missing something here?

Thanks for the help,
Mike

 

[gadget_lover]

I'd try a gentle squirt of compressed air to help it get past the surface tension or whatever else is causing the problem.

Daniel

 

[bluwolf]

Thanks Daniel,

That's exactly what I did try. But I can't seem to get enough oil in the oil cup/tubing to have enough to push. Yes, I know that sounds stupid. I think I need to get one of those oil squirt cans. The tip would hopefully fit in the tubing that is inside the oil cup. Why the tubing comes all the way up inside the oil cup tube is beyond me. The rest of the oil cups on the mill don't have that.

BTW, I finally got around to installing the quill DRO. I pretty much copied yours. It works great. I also did not make a top bracket for the same reason you said you were going to take yours off.

Thanks again,
Mike

 

[gadget_lover]

Have you tried putting the skinny little extension tube from a can of compressed air right into the tube? I have a few tubes from old WD40 cans that are very old and very flexible.

It seems the height of the tub in the cup is totally up to the person that crimped them. Mine was so far down it had come free. I realized that after pumping a squirt of oil into it.

Glad the quill DRO worked out. It does make it nicer.

Daniel

 

[precisionworks]

I can't seem to get the oil to flow back up the curve and into the spindle.

You may want to try using a lightweight spindle oil. The two I use are Mobil Velocite Light Spindle Oil #6 (ISO VG 10) and the slightly heavier Mobil Velocite Spindle Oil #10 (ISO VG 22). Both are available from MSC-JL for about $20 per gallon. These also work well on sliding surfaces like surface grinder ways, and many other applications that use an oil cup.

http://www.mobil.com/Canada-English/Lubes/PDS/IOCAENINDMOMobil_Velocite.asp#ProductDescriptionTitle

 

[bluwolf]

Thanks Barry,

I will have to look into that. I've been spending my time trying to figure out which lubes to use for a lathe...for when I finally get a bigger one. Which I hope will be soon. But that leads to whole buch of other stupid questions...

Anyway, I went out and got one of those oil squirt cans, I don't know what you really call them. It worked great. Fit perfect and had no problem pushing the oil through the tubing.

So now the question is, how often should you have to add lube to it? Once the oil cup and tubing are full does it start to draw it in by itself or does a little need to be forced in on a regular basis?

Thanks again,
Mike

 

[precisionworks]

how often should you have to add lube to it? Once the oil cup and tubing are full does it start to draw it in by itself or does a little need to be forced in on a regular basis?

It depends on where the oil is going, and how tight or how loose the shaft fits the bore. Most oil cups go to some type of brass or bronze bushing, or some other type of plain bearing (as opposed to a ball bearing or a roller bearing). There is normally a tiny flow or seepage of oil through a bushing, although it may be no more than one drop every day. Some people call this total loss oiling, as all the oil that goes into the cup flows through the bushing & drips out of the machine.

It isn't a bad idea to squirt oil into the cups whenever the machine is used. You cannot put too much in, unless so much runs out that it makes a mess

 

[bluwolf]

Thanks Barry,

As always I appreciate the help.

Mike