daxliniere
Member
- Messages
- 133
- Location
- North London, UK
Hey all,
I've got a Meddings M4 mkII from May 1967 and I'm in the process of cleaning it up. I've opened the gearbox with much difficulty (pulley bolt was stuck). It looks fairly okay inside, all metal parts look beautiful and the Delrin(?) gears are serviceable.
The sump had a lot of very fine metallic powder that looked a bit like aluminium, though there's no obvious signs of wear and the runout at the chuck end is only 0.07mm. I've practically hosed the entire thing down with brake cleaner and it's now clean as a whistle.
I would love to get some expert advice on lubrication. What should I put into the bearings? The lower bearings are submerged, but I'm fairly sure the upper bearings are not. (Oil volume is 2/3 pint/380ml) There is a direction to add Shell 'Alvania' grease to the grease nipples once a month, but of the top bearings, only the front one has a nipple above it.
Should I pre-grease all the 4 bearings before reassembling and filling with gear oil?
Also, I have a tub of Castrol HTB high-temp bearing grease. Will this suffice? This drill will not be used on a daily basis, but of course I want it to be 100% when I do need to use it.
Last thing, the gear selector arm has a very old-world oil seal. I was surprised at first, then realised I was pulling out 18" of natural fibre twine! Can anyone suggest a modern replacement (rubber gasket with a conical shape?) or should I just use more twine? (I have some already)
Thanks in advance and all the best,
Dax.
P.S. I have another post about this press regarding the Delrin(?) drive gears.
I've got a Meddings M4 mkII from May 1967 and I'm in the process of cleaning it up. I've opened the gearbox with much difficulty (pulley bolt was stuck). It looks fairly okay inside, all metal parts look beautiful and the Delrin(?) gears are serviceable.
The sump had a lot of very fine metallic powder that looked a bit like aluminium, though there's no obvious signs of wear and the runout at the chuck end is only 0.07mm. I've practically hosed the entire thing down with brake cleaner and it's now clean as a whistle.
I would love to get some expert advice on lubrication. What should I put into the bearings? The lower bearings are submerged, but I'm fairly sure the upper bearings are not. (Oil volume is 2/3 pint/380ml) There is a direction to add Shell 'Alvania' grease to the grease nipples once a month, but of the top bearings, only the front one has a nipple above it.
Should I pre-grease all the 4 bearings before reassembling and filling with gear oil?
Also, I have a tub of Castrol HTB high-temp bearing grease. Will this suffice? This drill will not be used on a daily basis, but of course I want it to be 100% when I do need to use it.
Last thing, the gear selector arm has a very old-world oil seal. I was surprised at first, then realised I was pulling out 18" of natural fibre twine! Can anyone suggest a modern replacement (rubber gasket with a conical shape?) or should I just use more twine? (I have some already)
Thanks in advance and all the best,
Dax.
P.S. I have another post about this press regarding the Delrin(?) drive gears.