[R-390] Gear train lubricants

Wed, 30 Apr 2003 16:37:21 -0700

Other than age, there is no problem. At the time these manuals were written,
that was the best available. As well as being Qualified for Mil use, which
means they were probably years older than the 390 when they were qualified.
Now there are VASTLY superior lubricants in a range of choices that defy
this list's ability to qualify. I've mentioned the Tri-Flow brand of
Silicone with Teflon grease and Red-Line synthetic gear lube, others prefer
something more crepuscular.

YMMV & TANSTAAFL,

Bob
Portland, OR

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]On
Behalf Of Robert Simpson
Sent: Wednesday, April 30, 2003 2:08 PM
To: Terry O'Laughlin; [email protected]
Subject: Re: [R-390] Gear train lubricants

Does anyone know what the ingredients were in the "Grease, Aircraft and
Instrument (GL)" specified in the Organizational Maintenance Manual - TM
11-5820-358-20 for gear teeth, cam edges and guide slots?  If my feeble
memory serves me correctly, it was a white grease.
Was there a problem with this lubricant?

Bob
Vacaville, CA

At 01:17 PM 4/30/03 -0500, Terry O'Laughlin wrote:
>Your Phil Woods must be compromised or an ancient formula.  The grease in
>the tube I have is quite thick.  As far as price, one tube has lubed dozens
>of bicycle bearings and three R-390s and is still half full.  I use it
>pretty sparingly in an R-390 because the excess collects dust and spoils
>the appearance.
>
>I offered my advice because I have tried Lubriplate and Mobil 1 and found
>them wanting, especially Lubriplate which is atrocious stuff.  I tried Phil
>Woods because it worked so well on my old Eddy Merckyx bike that it seemed
>a possible solution.  I lubed the first R-390 RF deck and gear train a long
>time ago and it's worked out better than I ever expected.  I'd be
>interested in hearing from people who have actually tried some of these
>other lubricants and have some time tested results.
>
>Best,
>Terry O'
>
>
>At 09:09 2003-4-30 -0700, you wrote:
>>Hi ,  I think one of my reactions to the Phil Wood grease was that it was
too
>>thin,  but then the Mobil synthetic gear lubricant seems thin also but I
used
>>it.  I picked up a "review" of the PW grease
>>Strengths: Good lubrication. Pretty green color. Smells like a machine
shop.
>>Beautiful Phil logo. Weaknesses: There's no such thing as waterproof
grease.
>>Expensive. Similar Products Tried: Lubriplate. Gold Medal. Chassis lube.
>>Bottom
>>Line: A good grease with lots of sulfur in it so it has that good
>>machine-smell
>>(and scuff resistance too). The green color is cool, but RED chassis lube
is
>>cooler. Don't know where the waterproof claim comes from. This grease will
>>eventually wash out like any other if exposed to water. You can get
comparable
>>performance from regular auto bearing lube or chassis lube for MUCH less
>>money.
>>The squeeze tube is convenient though.
>>
>>In searching I came across "Militec-1"  touted as a gun lubricant.  It is
>>pretty
>>expensive except for the free sample that you can get.  ($28 for 16 oz -
like
>>the quart of Mobil 1 I bought,  that's a lot of lubricant).   Does anyone
have
>>experience with Militec-1 relevant to 390 gears?  Evidently it is hard to
get
>>off your hands and a little goes a long way,  and it's a synthetic oil?
Dan.
>>
>>Bob Tetrault wrote:
>>
>> > Synthetic is synthetic. They don't evaporate. That's why they are the
only
>> > lubricants for gas turbines and such. Thicker is better for the gear
train
>> > as it is less likely to wander. You can get synthetic wheel bearing
grease
>> > if you talk to your local race car parts store. I use RedLine 75-90
>> gear oil
>> > and their CV/wheel bearing grease for everything needing lubricant.
Well,
>> > almost. My Audi quattro has 286K miles on RedLine, still gets 5K/quart,
>> > original clutch, though that's my fault, I take it outta gear at the
>> > stopsign even. But the running gear is original and still breaking in
>> as far
>> > as it feels.
>> >
>> > Bob
>> > Portland, OR
>> >
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]]On
>> > Behalf Of Dan Merz
>> > Sent: Monday, April 28, 2003 3:19 PM
>> > To: Terry O'Laughlin; R-390 List
>> > Subject: Re: [R-390] Gear train lubricants
>> >
>> > Hi,  another data point....  in a sea of 390 experience.   I have some
Phil
>> > Wood's around somewhere that I bought when I was into bicycle lub
tasks.  I
>> > thought about using it when I starting cleaning my 390a but instead
>> followed
>> > the "conventional wisdom" posted somewhere about Marvel M O and Mobil
1.
>> > I'm
>> > glad to hear that Phil Wood's grease works so well.  Maybe I'll dig it
out
>> > and
>> > see if mine has congealed yet,  hi.  As I recall it was still pretty
>> "juicy"
>> > and flowed out from the light green plastic toothpaste type tube it
came
>> > in - I
>> > may have tossed it because it was about 30 years old 2 years ago.
Another
>> > data
>> > point may have been lost,  but maybe today's Phil Wood's grease is
>> different
>> > than the stuff I had.   Dan.
>> >
>> > Terry O'Laughlin wrote:
>> >
>> > > The best lubricant I have found for a freshly stripped and cleaned
R-390
>> > > gear train in Phil Wood's bicycle grease.  The viscosity is perfect,
it
>> > > does not creep and it maintains the same viscosity for years.  It
makes
>> > the
>> > > gear train feel almost silky, which is no mean feat.
>> > >
>> > > I did my first R-390A with it seven years ago and the tuning still
feels
>> > > almost silky.  I use lacquer thinner to strip the old lubricants, but
I
>> > > also clean and relube the slug rack.  I clean all the slug rack
rollers,
>> > > guides and cams with swabs and lacquer thinner.  I use a swab to put
a
>> > thin
>> > > coat of Phil Woods on the appropriate edges of all the rack parts.
>> > >
>> > > I've done three complete cleanings this way.  They still feel great
(two
>> > > have been sold).  It's a one time job with no need to pull the radio
for
>> > > periodic lubrication.  Oil does not evaporate.  Every re-application
is
>> > > just replacing oil that migrated somewhere else inside your radio.  I
>> > > wouldn't do that to my R-390s.
>> > >
>> > > Phil Woods is commonly available at better bicycle shops and it works
>> > great
>> > > on bicycles as well.
>> > >
>> > > 73     Terry O'     WB9GVB
>> > >
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