[R-390] Synthetic Oil

[Bob Camp]

Hi

I think you will find that our gear got exposed to a much wider range of solvents in the 1950’s than it does today. Those were the days of the “dunk it in the tank” approach to cleaning gear. Much of what got used is now outlawed. That’s not to say that it *liked* all those solvents. It probably tolerated them pretty well. 

I would consider isopropanol and ethanol to be pretty good candidates for cleaning “stuff”. As long as both are 99.something percent pure, there’s not much to argue with. Both are flammable, so they should be used with care. Yes there are some few plastics that you can have issues with. I don’t believe any of them got used in mil gear after WWII. 

Bob
 
On Jul 29, 2014, at 11:46 AM, Gary Geissinger via R-390 <r-390 at mailman.qth.net> wrote:

> Guys,
> 
> I am in the middle of restoring a Collins 18S-4A aircraft transceiver.  I had to perform research in order to determine the current solvent and aircraft grease that is compatible with the original early 1950s materials.  That was because the dynamotor bearings needed to be cleaned and lubricated.
> 
> I settled on Stoddard Solvent to remove the old grease.  It turns out that Grainger makes a solvent that seemed similar.  I spoke with a chemist with Grainger's vendor concerning the solvent.  The Grainger solvent is essential the same as Stoddard Solvent.  By the way, Stoddard Solvent is about 95% kerosene.  No wonder many A&P mechanics simply use kerosene to clean out aircraft bearing.
> 
> After going from obsolete military specification to obsolete military specification and finally to a current military specification I found that the current synthetic grease to use is AeroShell 33 which is available in small tubes from Aircraft Spruce.  This grease is just about the perfect consistency to replace the grease on shaft bearings and the like.  It also has another very positive attribute.  By military specification this lubricant does not have a "Rancid Odor" like most wheel bearing grease does.
> 
> Unfortunately my 30S-1 and T-368 were lubricated by the previous owners with "smelly grease"; that causes a "wife approval problem" whenever I run them for an extended period.  When it is time to clean out their bearings and lubricate them I will use the AeroShell 33 there as well.
> 
> While this isn't the light synthetic machine oil needed in some applications in an R-390, it is applicable in other places.
> 
> Gary WA0SPM, member US Army MARS
> 
> --------------------------------------------
> On Fri, 7/25/14, Renee K6FSB <k6fsb.1 at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Subject: Re: [R-390] Synthetic Oil
> To: "Tisha Hayes" <tisha.hayes at gmail.com>
> Cc: "R390A" <r-390 at mailman.qth.net>
> Date: Friday, July 25, 2014, 5:20 PM
> 
> I found that M1 ( or a light syn oil
> if M1 too heavy) with magic powder 
> does superb on my audiophool turntable, firearms, clocks,
> gee the list 
> goes on......
> Renée
> the other "crazy radio lady"
> 
> Tisha Hayes wrote:
>> I still use Mobil 1 synthetic cut with the magic
> powder. One quart will
>> last you forever.
>> 
>> Some of the things I found that were interesting was
> the oil that is used
>> by roller-blades by the skater crowd. It seems like
> more hype than anything
>> else. It is just a teflon based lubricant.
>> 
>> Another I found was on an audiophile (record
> turntables) site where they
>> get really obsessive about the spindle bearings and
> count how many
>> revolutions the turntable takes after power is cut off
> (seems somewhat
>> scientific). That oil seems a bit lightweight and
> appears to be better
>> suited for the little turbine motors in air tools.
>> 
>> A pen oiler would be nice but a toothpick seems easier
> to control
>> quantities so the radio does not get an oil bath.
>>    
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