Ball type oil nipple & oil injector

Bob, I tried your aquarium hose trick and it worked great! Thanks for the tip.
To me the only down side is that it takes two hands to do. Then again, I have two hands available when oiling a machine...
 
My oiler is a plastic squeeze bottle with a brass screw on nipple on the spot. The nipple taper section just nicely sits in the OD ledge above the ball. socket. When I squeeze, the oil it seems to overcome the spring pressure & allows injection. So I think you're absolutely right, the little spring cant be that strong, its just pushes the ball closed & keep debris out. Having sad that, the metal on metal is probably not great for repeatedly contacting that same tiny segment of contact area & you are kind inclined to push down on it to seal. So maybe galling or distorting that teeny edge after many lubrication cycles. Going to try the flexible tubing trick. Or maybe machine a nipple from something softer like a plastic?

My lathe apron is removed & partially disassembled right now for a problem fix (pictorial expose forthcoming). What I discovered was some of the oil passages were filled with a (factory) waxy, mung grease. So all I was ever doing was dead-ending oil which never found its way to the shafts & surfaces intended to lubricate. Now I think if you cant squeeze anything in, maybe something is amiss. The things you find when all parts are in front of you :/
 
Some people really care about keeping their stuff pristine. I like to keep things in good shape and in good repair, but these are machines to work with, not to spit polish. To each their own... I just added it as another plus of using that method of oiling machines.

I completely understood, my friend, and again, no offense was meant.....I just had to laugh that's all....lol
 
On a somewhat related theme. I want to convert my lathe apron to an oil bath. Right now its an open casting & gears are coated with grease. I figure I can plate / seal off the bottom & drill 2 unobtrusive holes on the side with 90-deg fittings like sketch. The nipples would have a clear tubing between them. That way I can
- see the oil level without drilling a bigger hole & sourcing one of those round window oil level type fittings that many complain leak after a while
- use the upper nipple to fill & top up oil bath using a similar flex tube extension
- use the bottom nipple to drain 90% of oil out if I have to disassemble apron

I've located ZERK fittings, they come in a nice variety of flavors. My questions: They seem to be orientated to grease. Are the balls/springs inappropriate for typical gear oil viscosity? The bottom one needs to be ball-less so it could gravity drain. I see some straight ones like this but not the right angle versions. Can they be disassembled & spring/ball successfully removed?

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Alemite (Zerk) fittings work fine with oil. They are used on Bridgeport and other mills for oiling. Make sure that you will not have leaks from shafts and other through holes in the castings. You might need to modify things so that everything is properly sealed. Bulls eye oilers are more common that the type in the photo you posted, which are easily broken and much more difficult to install properly. Alemite fittings are only used for putting grease or oil in, not for draining it. How many decades has your lathe been working well with open gears, and without oil leaks? Is there really a good reason to make the modifications?
 
Good points. Here is what I'm mulling. The MDF is a pattern for what would be a metal plate held on with machine screws & gasket sealant. The Zerks were the least obstructive way I could think of to monitor oil level & fill & drain as mentioned. If ball-less 90-deg fittings aren't available I could make provisions for threaded drain plug on the bottom plate.

Yes, leaks crossed my mind too, especially through the shaft holes that go through the apron casting. I looked at a few lathe parts manuals similar to my '97 Taiwan 14x40. Seems like they all have this kind of splash bath. For the most part I didn't see any extra rings or seal hardware so just assumed it might be the occasional wipe-off, but goes with the territory. Right now there are oil passages that lead right to these very shafts from a different route so assumed that would be similar end result. Well.. as it turns out were largely plugged off by the grease & its a miracle any oil was getting to them. But that's not the grease's fault :/

In all honesty the gears look good. The grease itself - yeesh - looking a little stiff & waxy, but I never saw it when new (20 years ago now). Maybe it was like that all along. The machine has had pretty easy life up until the last 5 years or so as I started to make more things. So I guess my rationale was: carriage oil bath seems to be how all similar current lathes do these days it & it wouldn't be too difficult to retrofit mine. If I absolutely hated it or encountered unexpected issues, I remove everything & plug 2 holes that weren't there before.

Speaking of grease, what would be a good rec for this sort of application?

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From the photos it looks like the lathe was designed for a total loss oil lubrication system. Put oil in the oiling points, and it works its way by gravity to where it is needed, and then drips off the bottom of the gears and gear box. I think the grease idea is an effort of the previous owner to stop oil from dripping all over the chip pan, and perhaps to extend the lubrication intervals. The bad thing about grease is that it strongly attracts and holds swarf. Oil also washes out the metal byproducts of wear. If you do decide to go with an oil bath, you will only be able to fill the gearbox to the bottom of the lowest protruding shaft. Oil will have to climb its way up in the box by turning the gears, which gives a sort of a splash/dribble lube system. My Kent 13x40 uses that system, and they recommend way oil in the box to better help to keep the gears and other parts coated between sessions of use. For a drain plug, use a 1/8" or 1/4" pipe plug, square or socket head. Another idea is to use your bottom cover as a drain reservoir only, which would stop the dripping and and keep grit out, and then use the drain plug to let out the excess drippings at intervals you choose, and into a container.
 
I typed 'gits' in McMaster search box but didn't get results. I see grease nipples & oiler cans. Do you have a PN?
From my research, I found that if you want "oil cups" - the flip up lid type, GITS is the only place (or their distributors) to get the real deal. McMaster-Carr sell a similar unit, but they are not genuine GITS.
 
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