Maintenance

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Spartacus
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Joined: Sat Jan 16, 2016 2:43 am
Model of CNC Machine: Exel SL6090Pro
Location: Redcar, Cleveland, UK

Maintenance

Post by Spartacus »

Can anyone recommend oil and grease to use for general maintenance available in the U.K. and what do you recommend in terms of frequency/hours of use etc. I contacted the manufacturer and they sell a maintenance pack which includes oil, grease, grease gun etc but want to charge me £250 for the kit. I just wondered if anyone can give me some advice on this that's a bit cheaper.

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FixitMike
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Re: Maintenance

Post by FixitMike »

You don't want to use a lubricant (such as oil or grease) that leaves a residue to lubricate a sliding surface. It will attract dust and dirt. I use a Teflon spray, although a silicon spray should also work. On this side of the pond, they are available in most hardware and auto part stores.

Frequency? It depends entirely on what you are lubing and the environment it is used in. If the manufacturer offers a lube kit, they should also be able to recommend frequency.
Good judgement comes from experience.
Experience comes from bad judgement.

Spartacus
Posts: 9
Joined: Sat Jan 16, 2016 2:43 am
Model of CNC Machine: Exel SL6090Pro
Location: Redcar, Cleveland, UK

Re: Maintenance

Post by Spartacus »

Thanks for the reply. There are grease nipples on the machine mostly around the z & x drives where it connects to the ball screws. I was advised to keep these greased and then oil the rails for the y drive. Is it best to use the teflon or silicon as opposed to grease and oil then ?

Regards

Neil

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IslaWW
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Re: Maintenance

Post by IslaWW »

Neil...
It is always advised to follow the manufacturers recommendations for lubrication frequency and products. Having spent 30+ years in a woodworking shop I had a stack of "dry" (read as non oil or grease) lubricants for my fixed machinery. None of that applies to CNC machines as they have completely different lubrication requirements.

As a service tech I have seen dozens of machines with thousands of dollars in damage to bearings, linear rails, racks and pinion gears due to the owners resistance to use oil or grease. Good for business, not so good for the Owners checkbook.
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Spartacus
Posts: 9
Joined: Sat Jan 16, 2016 2:43 am
Model of CNC Machine: Exel SL6090Pro
Location: Redcar, Cleveland, UK

Re: Maintenance

Post by Spartacus »

Thanks

I appreciate your advice. I will get the kit from the manufacturer. I just wondered if there was a cheaper alternative. I suppose the cost is justified as opposed to thousands spent on repairs if things go wrong for the sake of skimping on the maintenance kit.

Kind regards

Neil

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IslaWW
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Re: Maintenance

Post by IslaWW »

Neil...
I'm not saying to buy a kit, especially if you can get a greasegun that fits the fittings, which is the case with most 6mm and above zerks. Many of the smaller versions require special adapters that are sold by the bearing mfgrs. In that case it may be your only option.

The machine mfgr or the bearing mfgr should publish a lube spec which means a suitable product can usually be purchased at a higher quality auto supply house. Do a little homework, you may save a bunch.
Gary Campbell
GCnC Control
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martin54
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Re: Maintenance

Post by martin54 »

This is always quite a difficult question to answer, yes I am almost certain that you would be able to buy the same or equivalent products elsewhere & save yourself some money but buying & using the kit the manufacturer sells should make things really easy should you have to make a warranty claim.
If it were me then I think I would probably stick with the manufacturers kit while the machine still has a warranty on it & then look at possibly changing once it expires. At least if you buy the kit to start with you will know what products to buy in the future when those in the kit run out :lol: :lol: :lol:

They should also provide you with a complete maintenance schedule so you will know what needs to be done Daily, weekly, monthly, 3 monthly, 6 monthly & annually :lol: :lol:
20 Years in the Royal Navy working with maintenance schedules taught me the importance of such things :lol: :lol:

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