Homemade cutting oil???

[krv3000]

HI all Bee wax works well for taping and turning

 

[Swede]

HI all Bee wax works well for taping and turning

I've used stick wax designed for band saws when tapping, and it works especially well to get chips out of a blind hole, as the chips pack into the tap flutes. But it can be a bit of a pain to clean the tap afterwards! Waxes do work well, though.

A lot of guys have lusted after the Trico "Micro-drop" system as an alternative to flood. For those who don't know the unit, the Trico system pretty much drips lube, kind of a sputter. Uses shop air. I bit the bullet and bought one, and honestly, it wasn't worth the money, because it can be replaced easily with a homemade device.

Here's what you do - get on eBay and find an old mechanical "syringe pump." These are precision devices used to meter drugs to IV patients, and can be set up with variable flow rates. They use stepper motors to sloooowly drive the syringe piston. Load a 35cc syringe with cutting oil, route the output to the work, and turn on the syringe pump. Works great, does everything the Trico does except no cooling air flow.

Syringe pumps. I have the first one...

 

[kwoodhands]

I have heard that milk is the best thing for getting a bright finish on copper.

Never tried it but have always been curious to try an experiment.

Or maybe the fellow machinists were just trying to get me to pour milk on my shaft for a laugh.

Milk does work, I use paint thinner on copper.Thinner doesn't have to be refrigerated and works almost as well as milk.Dark cutting oil for steel,the stuff the plumbers use for threading pipe. Not expensive by the gallon.
mike

 

[Silverbrewer]

I thought used motor oil was carcinogenic

 

[vguerrao]

What about water, motor oil and dishwasher soap? I tried and everything starts getting rusty very fast. Could only using water be best? where i live there are few options.

 

[versatile]

Hi,
after overheating 2 HSS endmills while milling mild steel I had some thougths about coolant.
I tried a mixture of about 6 parts water, two parts oil and two parts denatured alcohol applied with a brush before every cut.
So far I´m quite satisfied with this. The water and the alcohol is evaporating while cutting and thus cooling the endmill. All that is left is some oil. So you won´t have no problems with rusting either.

 

[Mawitö]

Wich kind of oil you use on that mix versatile?? motor oil, mineral oil, vegetable oil ? Sounds like a nice mix for people like me who lives in places with no machine shop product vendors araund.

 

[ROB 123]

I use tapping fluied with about 10% paraffin to drill and tap 12.9 shoulder bolts the tap is 3/8th - i just bought a jsn reversible tapping head to tap the blind holes it does a great job .
Rob.

 

[gus]

I use tapping fluid for cutting steel.

Is this a bad thing? It seems to work fine, but with all the alternatives is there any reason that tapping fluid shouldn't be used?

Kel

Hi Kel,

I use Tapmatic Tapping Fluid to machine Mild Steel and Grade 5 steel bolts with good finishing at 600 rpm spindle speed.
Tapmatic is expensive but I sparingly apply in dobs with a small artist paint brush. The cutting oil sold by Rigid for their pipe threading machine is also very good but dark brown and messy looking.Have seen some CNC Lathes using same oil too.

 

[goldstar31]

I use( and I have repeated this many times) lard oil. KRV300 uses beeswax and again this will stand very high heats like lard oil.- before it falls to bits. Between the two of us, we could make very good tapping paste.

 

[versatile]

Hi Mawitö,

I use transmission/hydraulic oil but I guess any "thick" oil would do the job.
Before this I used plain oil for lubrication only but it startet to smoke and the endmill overheated and got a dark blue colour. Since I use the coolant the endmill only got a light brownish colour.
So its primary function is to carry away the heat.

 

[MCRIPPPer]

i use atf on the lathe for steel. cant beat wd40 on aluminum tho.

at work we use the rigid dark cutting oil (sulfur) smells kinda interesting(not really bad). on the mill we have mist coolant (water, oil, and air) which works really good for keeping the end mill cool.

 

[doc1955]

In my opinion I think you should do yourself a big favor and purchase a coolant made for your application. I know I was doing the same trying to find the right concoction that would work. I came to the conclusion it just isn't worth it get it wrong you end up with shortened cutter life maybe rust to deal with and then the stench. So in my opinion the price of a jug for coolant is cheap. Here is what I use and we use it in the shop where I work and it is an excellent coolant. I do mix it a little on the strong side to make sure to keep the rust monster at bay.
http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PARTPG=INLMKD&PMPXNO=19507263&PMAKA=319-3899

Just my opinion for what its worth.

 

[pete]

Despite my............................................dumb as hell wrist slapping for how I worded my first post in this thread, I still stand by it. Cutting oil manufacter's today are still trying to replicate the animal fats, and they can come close, but AFAIK they still can't better them. That refrigerated and refined baking lard works better than any modern cutting oil I've tried so far for at least reaming. Tool and parts cleaning is an issue to prevent rancid fat. Again like I said, bacon fat isn't an option, but it could be recommended to terrorist's.

Coolant is a totally different subject. A water / oil / synthetic combination will out produce any straight mineral or vegatable cutting oil made. Coolant and a proper cutting oil combination that doesn't eat paint, lubricates, cools the workpiece and cutting tool, DOESN'T CAUSE RUST, doesn't degrade to the point of a lump of solid cottage cheese in the coolant tank, doesn't require very expensive skimmers, test equipment, air bubbler's, inert mineral free water, Etc,Etc,Etc..............................................it just hasn't as far as I know been invented yet. What industry can use on there equipment doesn't work on most of our equipment that might go day's between each use.

Pete

 

[goldstar31]

Hi Pete

Thanks for the giggle- but you are so right.

What we are trying to suggest is that lard oil lubricates and continues to lubricate at temperatures that will have water thinned products far more useful than getting superheated steam coming out of your lathe or mill.

If your water is going woosh into steam- what is it going to be good for?

I use purified lard oil- presumably from the food industry. Those who use synthetic compounds are 'saving money' and the engineering industry has been cutting costs since Pontius was a Pilot.

If you suddenly are transported into the canning industry, you will probably find that they are still using edible things- like vegetable oils.

I'm old enough to remember something called Castrol which Wakefields in the UK sold for racing engines on cars, bikes and planes. Castrol was nothing more than castor oil. When I used to fart about with toy compression ignition engines- I used cheap cow castor oil in the mix. I wasn't the only one.

The Red Baron- before someone shot him up the rectum( it killed 'em') had a does of the sh1ts- as did every other flying ace in WW1. Castor oil, as every school boy knows- is a fine cure for constipation.

Castor oil was one of the plasticisers is paints and varnishes. Like vegetable and animal fats, it will stand hellish high temperatures.

We'll leave it -before we get bogged down.

 

[versatile]

hi goldstar31,

"If your water is going woosh into steam- what is it going to be good for?"

Actually, that´s the trick . As the water evaporates it consumes a considerable amount of heat. This heat is drawn from the endmill thus keeping it cool.

Flooding the mill with coolant will keep it somewhat cooler, but it´s always a mess, especially on small machines.

Pure oil didn´t work for me as it wasn`t able to carry away the heat when cutting with high speeds and removing larger ammounts of material.
But i will try lard or something like that for reaming and tapping.
Especially on reaming steel I have some isssues getting a smooth surface.

 

[doc1955]

Coolant and a proper cutting oil combination that doesn't eat paint, lubricates, cools the workpiece and cutting tool, DOESN'T CAUSE RUST, doesn't degrade to the point of a lump of solid cottage cheese in the coolant tank, doesn't require very expensive skimmers, test equipment, air bubbler's, inert mineral free water, Etc,Etc,Etc..............................................it just hasn't as far as I know been invented yet. What industry can use on there equipment doesn't work on most of our equipment that might go day's between each use.

Pete

You should give Trimsol a try I think you will be very surprised when mixed properly it will not cause rust can set for very long periods without stinking or clumping and isn't that expensive. I think 1gal of concentrate is just under $20. I mix it put it in a squirt bottle and also have it in my coolant tank on my n/c machine. I don't have any skimmers or any other set up and my machine sets weeks between being use in the summer months with no problems.

 

[goldstar31]

hi goldstar31,

"
Flooding the mill with coolant will keep it somewhat cooler, but it´s always a mess, especially on small machines.

Pure oil didn´t work for me as it wasn`t able to carry away the heat when cutting with high speeds and removing larger ammounts of material.
But i will try lard or something like that for reaming and tapping.
Especially on reaming steel I have some isssues getting a smooth surface.

I always thought that making models was a rather refined hobby.

Chucking gallons or litres of stinking coolant over one's person is not, in my humble opinion, what refined people do to return to one's better half 'stinking like a poke of devils'

If you want make your hobby into a factory or a Dark Satanic mill- so be it.:hDe:

And as it is said in the Bible --- And Lo! He stinketh!:fan:

 

[Tin Falcon]

There are hundred of commercial products to choose from as well as dozens of common products . So material cut and personal preference will dictate choice.
Every good machine book has a chart of what to use.

Like mentioned earlier a water soluable oil is pretty much the one product fits all solution. mix and maintain the proper ratio and you will be fine.

the evaporation of water cools the tool the oil left acts as a lube.

dabbing or squirting is fine for HSS but letting a carbide bit get hot an then cool it it will crack . carbide and flood coolant is the way of a production shop. and if a home shop guy want to use it why not.
I do not use flood coolant it tends to be messy and is extra work to maintain.

GS no one is forcing you to install a coolant tank.

Tin

 

[goldstar31]

I do not use flood coolant it tends to be messy and is extra work to maintain.

GS no one is forcing you to install a coolant tank.

Tin

In a foolish moment, I bought one. In a wise moment, I dumped it.

I have a very efficient little glass jar which contained French pate, a cheap Chinese paint brush and a bit of lard oil. I have visits from people who think that I have a Chinese restaurant