leo
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2009
Posts: 6
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Post by leo on Aug 5, 2009 20:00:21 GMT -5
I did a search for this, apologies if it's been covered already. I recently got an old (~20yr old) 3lb lortone rotary tumbler that I got back to working condition. My question is, what is the best lubricant to use on the drive and secondary shaft bearings? Not sure if I have the terminology right, I'm talking about the rollers that the barrel rests on, one powered, one floating. On my model, the bearings are hard ABS type plastic sleeves that the shafts sit in. Right now I'm using white lithium grease as it is thick and tends to stay put, but I don't have much experience with metal/plastic contact lubrication and want to use whatever is best as we're talking about 24/7 use. Would powdered graphite perhaps be better? Thanks for any help you can give to a noob.
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Post by johnjsgems on Aug 5, 2009 22:02:35 GMT -5
I think Lortone says oil. Covington uses similar sleeve bearings in their "Roll-N-Tumble machines and send them out lubed with a white (probably lithium) grease. I don't think it matters a lot. When I had time to run my Thumler's I used a light weight oil (a few drops) at beginning of each batch. If you are in a dusty environment or have a grit spill clean and relube as needed.
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Post by connrock on Aug 6, 2009 6:56:07 GMT -5
I think grease is too thick as the steel shaft/plastic bearing combo creates a nasty black residue which slows the rollers down as it is. I use a light oil.Just a drop or 2 every so often. A long time ago I did a lot of tests using just about every lube on the market. I don't think there is a lube that won't react and cause that nasty black goop. Not to be beat by the problem I began to change the rollers and bearings on 1 of my 15lb Thumler's. After a few attempts to try to find the easiest way to do it the following photo's is what I finally decided on and it works GREAT no matter what oil I use!   I didn't like Lortone's idea of a barrel guide either so I put a "traditional" on on my Lortone tumblers,,,,,, You can see that the center of the barrel was starting to get worn with Lortone's guide,,,,,,  connrock |
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chassroc
Cave Dweller 
Rocks are abundant when you have rocktumblinghobby pals
Member since January 2005
Posts: 3,586
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Post by chassroc on Aug 6, 2009 7:59:57 GMT -5
Connrock...what's a "Traditional"?
csroc
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Post by MyNewHobby on Aug 6, 2009 10:40:38 GMT -5
Good Morning!
I do not know about the older Lortones, but I have a 33B and use 3-In-1 oil.
I have had no problems.
As always
Julie
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Post by connrock on Aug 6, 2009 14:59:49 GMT -5
csroc,
Well I guess a traditional wheel goes round and round where as a non-traditional Lortone wheel just scrapes it's side as it goes along the barrel bottom.
Kinda like if you had the tires on your car perpendicular to the side of the body rather then the traditional way of having them....
Or if you had one of them round pizza cutters and just dragged the side of it along where you want to cut rather then using it the traditional way of letting the wheel rotate along the line you are cutting.
Heck them Lortone people even put teeth on their guide so it will eat up the bottom of the barrel from the outside while the grit/rocks are doin the same on the inside! lol
Lortone also uses a steel headed bolt which goes through the aluminum cover.
Where the rounded head of the bolt under the rubber gasket hits the gasket is where the thing first wears out.
You can literally put a Band aid across the head of the bolt and add a couple thousand miles to your gasket.Some folks use duct tape,electricians tape,,,,all very good fixes.
Heck,,,,We don't make the product,,,,,We just make it better! lol
Traditionally,,,,
Connrock ;D
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MikeS
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2009
Posts: 1,081
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Post by MikeS on Aug 6, 2009 22:38:23 GMT -5
I use spray silicone lube on my tumbler
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Post by LCARS on Aug 7, 2009 12:10:19 GMT -5
Absolutely without a doubt, Molly Lube is THE BEST grease to use on the shaft rollers and bushinngs. Anything except the motor bushings that is, they need a thinner lower viscosity oil. I use a bit of 10W-30 motor oil mixed with Sr3 (aka Duralube) on the motor bushings after using a spray solvent stripper/cleaner and cleaning it thuroughly before re-applying only the smallest drop of lube when re-assembling the motor. Before applying Molly Lube to the shaft bushings, be sure to clean them thuroughly with lighter fluid or paint thinner to dissolve the hardened grease and use rubbing alcohol to remove the residue. Best to start fresh & clean when switching to Molly, it will last considrably longer without reapplying and is compatible with metal AND plastic when two moving parts of different composition are in contact.  |
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docharber
has rocks in the head
Member since October 2008
Posts: 716
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Post by docharber on Aug 7, 2009 12:45:40 GMT -5
I have a QT12 with metal bushings and a 33B with slit nylion bushings. At first, I used machine ooil and found it seemed to work OK, but i got the bklack crud anyway (maybe leaky barrels, deteriorating black plastic sleeves on the rollers or the barrels themselves contributed). At the suggestion of another member I tried lithium grease on both tumblers and it works fine, too. I think it may be viscious enough to seal tyhe interior of the bbearing surface in a way oil can't. I also got lots of drips with oil and it was pretty messy.
I guess the bottom line is what lubricant you use doesn't matter nearly as much as the fact you use it. I woul;d use the grease with a good cleaning every month at least and use a drop or two of oil weekly.
Mark H.
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leo
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2009
Posts: 6
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Post by leo on Aug 7, 2009 22:10:14 GMT -5
Thanks for all the good advice! I like connrock's nylon bearing solution, if the black gunk really gets to me I might give it a shot (if I get all the other projects done, I can just imagine the looks I'd get from my wife if I hunker down w/ the tumbler for an evening when the dryer is still screaming like a banshee).
LCARS, you mentioned molly lube, is that molybdenum disulfide? Do you use a spray or a thicker grease?
The Li grease has been working OK but I'm not thrilled with it. 2 weeks in, one of the bearings started squeaking and needed another shot of spray. Not a huge deal, but I think if there's enough friction for me to hear it, there's enough friction to do damage. Has anyone tried petroleum jelly? There isn't a large load on the bearing (3# drum), but I've never used petroleum jelly in a continuous duty application like this. Again, much thanks for all the help.
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Post by LCARS on Aug 8, 2009 17:44:05 GMT -5
Leo, in short, YES, and it's the grease formulation, not a spray or liquid. I used it when I was an electronics tech, it keeps machines from coming back in with squeaks and friction wear on moving parts.
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tomcloss
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since October 2008
Posts: 158
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Post by tomcloss on Aug 10, 2009 11:58:01 GMT -5
I use 3 in 1 sewing machine oil. But I like the idea of the silcon lube. Just my 2cents.
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