Wells Index Super 55 grease vs oil

afreeland

afreeland

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I recently picked this machine up to learn and add another skillset for tackling projects. I originally set out to just fix any low hanging fruit but find myself inching closer to a restoration at this point lol.

I removed the table to access the saddle and to see what kind of shape everything was in... Was fairly surprised when I discovered it was pretty much packed completely with grease. I've watched a good bit of videos on Bridgeports and people pretty much stating that you should never really grease hardly anything. After starting to clean this I may join that club. Is it safe to use oil, like a chainsaw oil, to lubricate the acme threads. I did pick up the Vectra oil and will use it on all the other places once I've flushed all the grease out.

tl;dr new milling machine, currently a greasy mess and looking for what "really" needs grease vs what can be simply oiled (yes, I've looked through manual but some stuff isn't available anymore)
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Cleaned it some but still working through it -_-

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A little nervous too because I realized there is very little factory flaking like I've seen on others. It's just hobby and learning for me... I'm not usually the ultra crazy precise kind of person with.. So it's probably good enough for me
 
Been there, done that. If it is like my model 645, it has zerks at all of the way lubrication points. These were meant for oil, but I think some people see them and just assume they are supposed to be greased. After you get it cleaned up, lube all the ways and screws with a way oil like Vactra #2. There are guns made for oiling the zerks. I can’t find a link to one right now, but I’ll look again tomorrow.
 
In for a dime, in for a dollar. We all had to start somewhere, and there is really no better way to learn, than rehabing your own machine. Might not be as bad as you think. Clean it up well, adjust your gibs, and see where your at, and welcome to the forum. Mike
 
FOMOGO said:
In for a dime, in for a dollar. We all had to start somewhere, and there is really no better way to learn, than rehabing your own machine. Might not be as bad as you think. Clean it up well, adjust your gibs, and see where your at, and welcome to the forum. Mike
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Agreed with all comments; grease has no place on machine tool ways; Vactra #2 is the way to go/
 
Appreciate the warm welcome! When it comes to the acme threads, do those get any grease or can they be simply oiled as well. I have a Logan lathe and just use chainsaw oil on it's acme thread and haven't had any issues. Was curious what others have used that is less of a mess. I think it called for like mobilegrease special but not sure what alternatives there are.

Had a box full of grease come out so far..
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afreeland said:
Appreciate the warm welcome! When it comes to the acme threads, do those get any grease or can they be simply oiled as well. I have a Logan lathe and just use chainsaw oil on it's acme thread and haven't had any issues. Was curious what others have used that is less of a mess. I think it called for like mobilegrease special but not sure what alternatives there are.
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There are many recommendations for oil but you may find good old "tractor oil" from TSC, the stuff formulated to not attack brass, bronze, yellow metal will do the job. Often found in 5 gallon pails for less than $50. We're not running factories for the most part on here so the amount of wear we'll see is probably minuscule compared to what your machine was built for.

John
 
Call Wells and give them your serial # and ask questions about the machine. They may give you some good tips and you will start to build a relationship when you need parts. Dave
 
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