CAD CAM EDM DRO - Yahoo Group Archive

Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Linear bearing lubrication

Posted by JanRwl@A...
on 2004-05-19 14:10:27 UTC
In a message dated 5/19/2004 1:54:51 AM Central Standard Time,
paul_davis@... writes:
I'm wondering what kind of lubrication (if any) they require? should the
bearings be packed in grease? They're seem to me fairly noisy and high friction
straight out of the box.

Paul: I have used $hundreds of Thomson stuff. The bearings are only oiled
with a high-grade of "light machine oil", one def. of which, I think, is
Shell-Tellus light, probably nearly identical to "3-in-One".

Grease is NOT at all a good idea for the "Super-" line! If you use their
"Super" pillow-blocks, you will note oil-holes. On the double-bushing ("long")
ones, you can see oil-retaining FELT between the bushings. Keep that wet with
oil by adding a bit through that "side hole" (which I THINK they now cover
with a neat plastic snap-in/out plug). The "single" pillow-blocks seem to me to
be a tad more difficult to keep oily. The OPN type are a REAL quandary! How
in [deleted] does one "keep" oil IN there??? Noisy? Yes, particularly if
the way-shafting is too small, and/or you have not TIGHTENED properly the OPN
versions. READ their catalog-pages! All that is a very useful WHOLE-nuther
M.S. in motion-high-tech!

One thing for certain: In woodworking, one must be VERY careful keeping the
wood-buggers out of these, as it will nupper linear bushings very rapidly!
If you used Thomson linear bearings in a tombstone engraver, I am sure you
would be replacing them weekly, and the shafting biannually!

ORIENTED properly (i.e., openings DOWN!), Thomson pillowblocks enable the
manufacture "at home" of fine stuff! Look in CCED's PHOTO section for
"HOME-BREw CNC Lathe". That, and the PCB-Drill to its right in that "album" are all
Thomson stuff. The lathe is used for turning hardwoods and Dymondwood, a
phenolic (Bakelite) wood composit, the dustiest [deleted] you can imagine. The
Thomson bearings have worked for 20 years without ANY problems (knock on
chipboard!) Jan Rowland


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Discussion Thread

Paul Davis 2004-05-18 23:52:10 UTC Linear bearing lubrication JanRwl@A... 2004-05-19 14:10:27 UTC Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Linear bearing lubrication