Bearing Oil for your turntable?

ProAc_Fan

Addicted Member
I've never seen this topic discussed on AK. Just what sort of oil do you use for your table bearing? I've seen the ridiculously priced stuff ( $15 for 50mL) but there must be a reasonable alternative. I've heard everything from sewing machine oil to synthetic 0W-40 motor oil. What would you recommend for a Thorens TD-166? Or any table for that matter?

Mike
 
You can get a small bottle of oil with a 2 or 3" long needle for oiling model train locomotives at most any hobby shop. Thinnish oil that is made for something that is going to see higher speeds than any turntable. IMHO it should be fine.

Anthony
 
Dual recommends 10W/40 for the 731Q and 10W/30 for the 701.

I would guess either one would be fine for most bearings. The user manual as well as the service manual for TD-166 are available for free at www.vinylengine.com - check it out!

- Harald
 
any car engine oil will be more than sufficient to lube a tiny TT bearing. So don't waste your money on fancy stuff.
Go out to your car, pull the dipstick and collect what remains on the end of the stick.
That is if you don't have a qt. sitting around the garage. If you do have a qt. you can pacakge up a few drops in vials and sell em on ebay for $5 apiece as TURNTABLE LUBRICATING OIL, and start and an ebusiness. But don't forget to charge $5 for shipping and handling.
 
oldhifiguy said:
any car engine oil will be more than sufficient to lube a tiny TT bearing. So don't waste your money on fancy stuff.
Go out to your car, pull the dipstick and collect what remains on the end of the stick.
That is if you don't have a qt. sitting around the garage. If you do have a qt. you can pacakge up a few drops in vials and sell em on ebay for $5 apiece as TURNTABLE LUBRICATING OIL, and start and an ebusiness. But don't forget to charge $5 for shipping and handling.

I DO NOT recommend doing this. Who knows what contamination is in the oil from your car. At the very least get some "new" unused oil.

I would stick with what was recommended by the TT manufacturer. Some say heavier oil while others require light sewing machine oil. You can or will damage bearings by using the wrong oil. My 2 cents..
 
Oh come on. If it's clean oil it aint gonna hurt athing. I was just tryin to make a point.
I stand behind using motor oil, but if you want to spend your money, go ahead.
 
Using motor oil from the end of a dip stick is about the stupidest thing I have ever heard. Do you have any idea how close the tolerance is on a TT bearing. Now lets throw some metal shavings from you cars oil in there. Think before giving piss poor advice like that !

And yes I will spend MY money however I choose.
 
oldhifiguy said:
Go out to your car, pull the dipstick and collect what remains on the end of the stick.

YECCCCCCCHHHHHHHHHHH!!! :thumbsdn:

I'm with Grumpy on this. Why on earth would you take dirty oil from a car engine and use it on a cherished piece of audio gear??

Trust me, I can be as tight as a new drumhead, but this suggestion really is out to be tops in the Skinflint Hall of Fame. I mean really, what does a quart of new oil cost?? $1.59??? Just add the few drops from NEW quart you are adding to top off your engine.

Talk about pennywise and dollar dumb??

PS. I just used some Solder Seal Gunk Super Oil ("premium machine oil") on my TD-160 and it seems to work just fine.
 
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Light machine oil is fine. I use 3 in 1 light oil. Heck remember this stuff has been sitting in the ground for millions of years. all they do is boil off the impurities and bottle the different weights (cracking its called ) I used to use MOBLE light machine oil. Hard to find at your local gas station these days.
 
The bearing in my CS5000 is supposed to be oiled with a rather thick oil that has tackifiers in it to make it cling to the bearing surface. Remember we are not just lubing a slow speed bearing, we are supposed to be using an oil with sufficient film strength to keep the bearing surfaces from ever touching each other to reduce rumble. I don't think that really lightweight sewing machine type oils would be ideal at all. I haven't had to replace the oil yet but I think the closest cheap replacement would be chainsaw bar oil.
 
On some TT a heavier oil is recommended. Always check with manufacturer. All bearing tollerence and loads arnt the same. I had a Fairchild TT that was never turned off & no additional oil was ever added it spun for 30 yrs.
 
I wouldn't be too worried about "keeping bearing surfaces from touching each other" as it ain't happening on even a brandy new TT. Folks, we ain't talking about high performance high speed machinery here, sheesh. Most likely all TT's use a friggin Oilite bronze bushing (invented by Studebaker in the 30's).....this is a chunk of bronze that is a porous and is impregnated with oil. This oil is slowly excreted during use (under pressure or heat). You can "recharge" these bushings (bearings) by heating them up and soaking them in oil...think of them as a metallic sponge.

Anyway, my suggestion of the model train oil meets the criteria for TT use as it's cheap, plentiful, and has an applicator nozzle which will help reaching tight places. Go ahead and use your used motor oil with it's contamination of combustion by-products (VERY abrasive) if you want........that's beyond ignorant.

Anthony
 
:thumbsdn: on the used oil. As mentioned its contaminated, if not with metal, definitly with corrosives.

The difference between a light oil like sewing mach oil, and an engine motor oil is substantial. Also some oils are hygroscopic. (this comes up on my machine tools forum often, its the ability of oil to absorb water. Water + rust...) These should be avoided, as the absorbed water will corrode the bearings. Gun oil would be better than 3 in one as its certainly not hygroscopic.

The viscocity should be matched close to manuf specs, as too thick an oil could add a load to the TT rotation. Even if this did not affect rotational speed, it could add load to the motor, conceivably wearing/burning it out sooner. I colug imagine some using a very light grease, (NOT axle grease, probably something like gun grease.)

While I also agree using a special packaged vial isn't smart, (all you are really buying is packageing and advertizing...) using the wrong grade oil isn't either.
 
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I wouldn't use oil from a KIA that's for sure.However on another note,please go easy on Oldhifiguy,it is his belief and it is not like he is using motor oil on your TT.
I will now go back to my usual non-confrontational ways,want to make something of it??

Alan
 
There is NO one type oil for all Turntable. There are as many different types of bearings as there are tables.
 
definitly with corrosives.
Indeed it is!
There is no need to use any dead dinosaur product in this application anymore
as it will cake up eventually.
Most silicone greases also have useless additives that get ugly with age.
I hate auto talk here but Ford has a silicon grease that is just plain wonderful
as is their limited slip additive. Relatively cheap too.
Their silicone grease is what I use. :)

Carl
 
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Thought the only way oil came out of a Yugo was in smoke form.
 
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