beeswax as grease

[AAvK]

I was looking all over, auto parts stores, online sites, searches for "petroleum based grease" among other terms... point being is a need for a thick, semi stiff yet soft lube for the screws in vises and whatever other basic needs like that, which do not "stink" to H-H like anything I could find. It seems petroleum/oil is at a premium so there is every other engineered chemical replacement, and they all stink profusely.

So searches like "wax as grease" turned up a recipe for 50-50 beeswax and motor oil, doesn't stink. But, leary of the wax flaking anyway if it's too much in the ratio, anyone think this is a correct ratio, or should it be a 60 oil / 40 wax, what should be proper? Is there a better recipe that can be used for the same purpose?

[George]

Anything that sticks to the vise screw will be stuck to by the dust you make. Teflon-based stuff that dries would be my preference. Under saw trunnions and such, graphite- based.

If you're hot to try it, get a wax toilet seal and slather it on. Save the rest for lubing screws put into wood.

[BobS]

Just made this post in another thread and I use it on my vise also.

10 year supply....

Fill a small baby food jar 3/4's full of Johnson's or Butcher's paste wax and stir in one very small tube of dry graphite from the auto supply store. Stir it all together until the solution is graphite black. May need to add a drop or two of mineral spirits to get a good mixture. If you get to much mineral spirits mixed in, don't worry - just leave the lid off the jar and it will evaporate out in a day or two.

As Charlie mentioned, clean off whatever is on them now and then use a toothbrush (yes even a used one will work) to spread the wax and graphite mixture on the gears. It beats the dry lubes and doesn't attract dust like grease does. Yes, dust will lay on top but will fall off when you rotate the cranks. All you need is enough to coat the bearing surfaces where the teeth mesh. Any slopped on the sides doesn't do a thing....

Bob S.

[Silvan]

I wouldn't even use motor oil. Oil attracts dust like crazy. I've been lubing my vise screws with straight beeswax for a long time now. I don't have to reapply it often (couple times a year maybe) and it works great.

[TWS]

Presumably not a used one... ;-) TWS

[AAvK]

Thanks Bob, I suppose this recipe I found should go to 60% oil and

40% wax to make my own paste wax (I got several lbs of beeswax, no worries there). But this thing with graphite, isn't it an abrasive at any degree?

The vise, as should have explaned, is an 1800's antique, and it's half nut is a super soft brass alloy (with tin?). Impossible to replace unless having it copied. The screw is iron, not steel, and maleable but FAR harder than the half nut. Your recipe sounds good though.

[AAvK]

Doesn't it flake off? Don't want that...

[AAvK]

Yeah, I have several lbs of beeswax, $4/lb. at the local farmer's market. It is wonderful stuff, start playing with it and warm it with a lighter and it retains the heat as you ply with it. Thanks for the advice!

[George]

Graphite is the ultimate slippery substance. No worries there. Now anything which will collect dust and sanding grit (like wax) will regrind your surfaces for you, which is why the drier the lube the better.

I'd do solvent and wax in a double boiler, with the objective of a minimal dry deposit on the screw. No oil, because that's going to collect.

[Silvan]

The excess flakes off the first time, but that's the end of it.

[Andy Dingley]

Actually the _most_ slippery is ferret shit on a varnished wooden floor.

DAMHIKT

[John DeBoo]

I thought it was snot on a doorknob?

[TWS]

Andy, is that observation based on your "Experimental Physics" research or some other experience ;-)

TWS

[J. Clarke]

Graphite is the standard lock lubricant. Very high grade slippery stuff if it's of high purity. If it's got crud in it, the crud can be abrasive--that's why you want to use graphite sold as a lubricant and not ground up pencil lead, which these days is graphite with ceramic additives to adjust the hardness and provide strength (a fascinating book if you're into the history of commonplace technology is "The Pencil" by Henry Petroski). Graphite has an interesting structure--I won't try to describe it here because it's one of those situations where a picture beats a thousand words--but the bottom line is that no, it's not abrasive to any significant degree, at least not when used as a lubricant--I don't know what it does if you shoot it out of a sandblaster.

An alternative would be powdered Teflon, but I suspect that that's more abrasive than graphite.

By the way, you might want to consider using "mineral oil", the stuff you find in a pharmacy, not motor oil, in any formulation that requires oil if you are concerned about odor.

Personally, I think you'll find that a coat of any good wax (Butcher's or Johnson's paste wax for example) will do the job just fine--don't try to get fancy until you've tried that and found out that it didn't work for you. Don't use car wax unless you're sure it is silicone-free--it will work fine as a lubricant/preservative but if you get the silicone on anything there goes all hope of getting a decent finish.

[George]

Ah, sweet college days when we used to put rubber cement on handrails and wait for the next to descend the stairs....

[Paul Kierstead]

Where I am from, it is whale shit on an iceberg...

PK

[AAvK]

Well I HAVE had a little experience with chicken shit... you sure it isn't that?

[AAvK]

That would take a long while on this vise. It is a handle controlled quick release, only little 3" sections of the screw are used at any one time on the

1/2-nut, within it's casing, no more than 1/4" of a turn to tighten onto the project wood.

[Patriarch]

Andy Dingley wrote in news: [e-mail]:

You, friend, lead an intersting life. Not one to which I necessarily aspire, but interesting.

The things you learn on rec.norm...

Patriarch

[Old Nick]

On Sat, 8 Jan 2005 11:42:54 -0800, "AAvK" vaguely proposed a theory ......and in reply I say!:

remove ns from my header address to reply via email

Only when the chickens see the ferret