Cleaning up my Mill / Drill

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cfellows

cfellows

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I have an Enco Mill Drill, AKA Rong Fu, which I bought from Enco around 17 years ago. Todate I done little maintenance other than replace one belt and add a homebrew power drive on the x-axis. I decided the time had come to do a tear-down, clean-up, and any modifications that might be advisable.

I did decide that the lead screw nut on the x axis needed replacing and was lucky to find that Enco still has a few. I'll know for sure when it arrives here... The ways look to be in pretty good shape with little wear. At least I can still see the originall milling marks very clearly.

So, how should I lubricate the way when I reassemble... should I use grease or liberal amounts of way oil? Also, thinking I need to install some kind of better oiling system for future way oil. Any ideas from the group?

Thx...
Chuck

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Chuck
 
I think I can see the milling marks on the ways too. I'd say use what you were using the last 17 years, seems that it did its job.

I read in the south bend manual to avoid grease on ways; use way oil instead. It [grease] traps grit and this is detrimental. Vactra#2 receives high recommendations, but even a detergent-free (old-type) automotive 30 wt oil would do, according to what I read in the various blogs; I actually found such oil in Autozone.

People say detergent free as the oil in our little machines is a total loss, not filtered, so it would suspend any pollutants to be removed by a filter which is not there. I dunno what to make of this explanation for the use my machines see.

take care,
tom in MA
 
Hi Chuck. I used non-detergent 30W oil for years. I would occasionally get the dreaded stick-slip which indicates a hard metal to metal contact.

A few years back I switched over to using Mobil Vactra #2 and noticed a huge difference. No more stick and the tables move slick! I bought a small 16 oz bottle on E-Bay along with spindle oil.

When I take my mill apart I'll be adding two 90* elbow oil cups on the front and back of the X table. The factory installed single horizontal ball oiler's are a pain to use, and leave me wondering if they provide enough oil.

I have the same model mill as yours. Last year I changed my belts to more flexible and smother running belts.

http://www.vbelts4less.com/Classic-Cogged-AXBXCX-V-Belts_c_8.html

-MB
 
Thanks, MB. I agree that oil cups would be a good addition for the slides on the table. Placement of the front ones could be tricky if I want to be sure and get oil between the dovetail and gib. I also wonder about lubrication of the leadscrew nuts...

Chuck
 
I have never used this stuff but a friend of mine swears by it.

Casite Motor Honey

He says, "It will last as long as it took for the dinosaurs to rot into the stuff that makes it."

It's a lot like the old STP oil treatment from the 1970's. I have used that in hard to relube
situations and it worked very well. I need to research this product a little more.

Rick
 
A story to consider, when in HS we had an old round ram bridgeport, this machine had zerks installed to lube the ways with OIL. Our new fresh out of college shop teacher said time to lube the mill, as he brought out the grease gun, a couple of us said it looked like oil not grease weeping out of the ways, but he's the teacher so each of at least a dozen zerks was lubed well with grease. just as we finished the job, the senior shop teacher came in, what the h... are you guys doing with the grease, he took a few turns on the table and that was it, the table almost impossible to move with the grease in there. The students laughted all day at the chewing out the teacher got. To fix it they pumped solvent in to thin the grease and make the machine useable again. Still funny after 40+ years.

Vactra works great as it should, designed for the purpose.
 
I'm with the Vactra #2 crowd, that's all we use in all of our machines at work. I also bought a small bottle along with a bottle of spindle oil on Ebay for my home shop. I even used it to lube the engines I've completed.
 
my65pan said:
I'm with the Vactra #2 crowd, that's all we use in all of our machines at work. I also bought a small bottle along with a bottle of spindle oil on Ebay for my home shop. I even used it to lube the engines I've completed.
Click to expand...

Mark, you have a link for that?
 
It has been a couple of years now, try a search for Vactra #2.
 
I do have some generic way oil from Enco and I also have some chainsaw chain oil which is supposed to be real "sticky". Also, Enco sells Vactra #2 for about $15 a gallon. Not too concerned about the ways. I do plan to take MB's suggestion and put in elbow oilers on the milling table. My real concern is the acme lead screw nut. It's in a realy difficult place to oil and the old nut was worn so bad that the peaks of the acme thread were razor sharp. I wonder if synthetic grease might be OK to use just on the nut? Somehow, regular oiling seems like a better alternative.

Chuck
 
cfellows said:
Thanks, MB. I agree that oil cups would be a good addition for the slides on the table. Placement of the front ones could be tricky if I want to be sure and get oil between the dovetail and gib. I also wonder about lubrication of the leadscrew nuts...

Chuck
Click to expand...

If you shift the X table all the way to each side (left & right) the screw (under the table) is completely exposed. This also exposes all the sliding surfaces under the table, including the gib. I just use a small pump oil can with Vactra #2 in it.

If you shift the Y table all the way to the front and back all the sliding sufaces are exposed for easy oiling. I bring the table forward and take off the way cover behind the table for easy oiling of the back ways, gib, and Y screw.

If you oil up everything well, you'll be mopping up the excess that puddles up or drips off for days!

Oh, I almost forgot...While I'm at it I lower the quill and coat that along with the column.

The style can shown in the link below is what I use.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-GOL...917?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a17380dad

-MB
 
Metal Butcher said:
Hi Chuck. I used non-detergent 30W oil for years. I would occasionally get the dreaded stick-slip which indicates a hard metal to metal contact.

A few years back I switched over to using Mobil Vactra #2 and noticed a huge difference. No more stick and the tables move slick! I bought a small 16 oz bottle on E-Bay along with spindle oil.

When I take my mill apart I'll be adding two 90* elbow oil cups on the front and back of the X table. The factory installed single horizontal ball oiler's are a pain to use, and leave me wondering if they provide enough oil.

I have the same model mill as yours. Last year I changed my belts to more flexible and smother running belts.

http://www.vbelts4less.com/Classic-Cogged-AXBXCX-V-Belts_c_8.html

-MB
Click to expand...

MB, have you ever oiled the spindle bearings on your mill/drill? I never have, but wonder if I should be. And I wonder how I would do that since there doesn't seem to be any oil holes...

Chuck
 
OK, I just rechecked and determined that oiling the spindle bearings is a pretty simple process. There are openings in the spindle downtube that provides access to the lower bearing and removing the front (spindle speeds) plate from the head exposes the top spindle bearing.
 
cfellows said:
MB, have you ever oiled the spindle bearings on your mill/drill? I never have, but wonder if I should be. And I wonder how I would do that since there doesn't seem to be any oil holes...

Chuck
Click to expand...

Nope, never oiled the bearings. No way to get to them with out disassembling the quill. They must be like wheel bearings, permanently lubed with grease??? There are also 2-sets of bearings in the mid (inter) belt pulley

-MB

 
+1 for the Vactra Chuck. As far as how to apply, I don't see any oil passages on the ways, so roll the table to one end, spread some way oil and roll it back.

I am with Tom, evidently what you've been doing for 17 years is working fine. Clearly your keeping the ways clean.

Dave
 
I would strongly recomend molybidium grease the blue type only a smear will do.

Bob
 
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