Myford oiler - advice needed

[Mike Ginn]

I am now on my 3rd Myford having started with a ML7 then 2 x Super 7Bs. Great machines but all with the same problem:- the oiler. OK its not really a lathe problem, more an accessory problem. I have tried various oilers and they all leak. My current nipple oiler is a Wanner from Switzerland which I had hoped would not leak but it is so bad that I keep it in a plastic box. I originally tried the Myford supplied oiler then some others (can't remember the makes but they all leaked)

So my question is - what do you guys recommend and is available in the UK and doesn't leak?

Thanks

Mike

 

[Charles Lamont]

I have not come across anything remotely adequate. It is one of the rare cases where I find brute force and ignorance works well. To fill these pathetic contraptions I grip the body in the vice (cap up), pull the spout down, take the cap off, fill, and tighten the cap with a pipe wrench. That way I find they leak less. These are Tecalemit jobs with diecast caps. I have a later one with a plastic cap, and I more careful with that one.

 

[Baz]

Finding one that doesn’t leak is pretty well impossible, I have tried cheap ones, expensive ones, new and second hand ones, they all seem to leak. Little tip though to stop oil leaking out of nipple while you are pumping oil in is to place a piece of rag ( think handkerchief) over nipple and pump oil through the rag. If you have access to Guy Lautards books, I think they are called The Machinists Bedtime Read or something similar I seem to remember him writing something about a leakproof oil gun. Hope this helps.

 

[Mike Ginn]

Thanks Baz. I'll see if I can find that book. I also remember that many years ago there was a oiler design in the UK Model Engineer but I can't find it.

I'll try the rag trick but I find that most of the oil leaks from the so called seals in the oiler - hence Charles brute force solution!

 

[rutzen]

I have the same problem on all my machines, I can never get any oil into those little oil nipples which have a spring loaded ball. I just put the oil on the slides. I know that's not the right way to go about it so I will be happy to be advised on how to get any oil into them. I have an oiler which is a plastic bottle with the metal end on it that came with the new chinese mill but it is useless for anything more than dripping oil onto a surface.

 

[stof]

I use a small syringe with a tube attached, that fits tightly over the nipples on the myford . This allows one to see the flow of oil into said nipples and most of the time there is no leaking . I may have to squeeze the tube onto nipple if there is a lot of pressure to open it , but works for me

 

[rutzen]

I'm referring to the oil points that are flush with the surface. How do you get oil into them?

 

[stof]

all my oil points on my old super 7 are raised nipples but I do have flush bearing nipples on my combination felder [wood working machine] which I struggle with, will be keen to hear a solution from members.

 

[Mike Ginn]

At least I am not alone!!!
Apart from the leaking issue I have no problem in introducing oil into the nipples be they flush or raised as per the ML7. I simply make an adaptor to fit onto the end of the oiler. My Wanner, which is supposed to be suitable for the Myford, could not oil the back gear pully or the back gear nipple in the recess of the lever. I needed to extend the nozzle of the Wanner and make it smaller. With the flush oilers I use a cone shaped adaptor - not ideal but works.

 

[ccolby]

I am now on my 3rd Myford having started with a ML7 then 2 x Super 7Bs. Great machines but all with the same problem:- the oiler. OK its not really a lathe problem, more an accessory problem. I have tried various oilers and they all leak. My current nipple oiler is a Wanner from Switzerland which I had hoped would not leak but it is so bad that I keep it in a plastic box. I originally tried the Myford supplied oiler then some others (can't remember the makes but they all leaked)

So my question is - what do you guys recommend and is available in the UK and doesn't leak?

Thanks

Mike

Mike,
Here in Pennsylvania we use most any high-quality pump-style oil can to force oil past those tiny spring-loaded balls. Currently, I'm using vintage oil cans made by Eagle, here, or Reilang in Europe somewhere. Vintage oil cans from Sears, Roebuck (Craftsman grade), Plews, and Gustave Lidseed also work well. These can be easily be found on eBay-US and I assume on eBay sites based in GB or EU.

A little leakage at times is normal and acceptable unless your lathe is located on your parlor or dining room carpet...!

Clark.

 

[ccolby]

Mike,
Here in Pennsylvania we use most any high-quality pump-style oil can to force oil past those tiny spring-loaded balls. Currently, I'm using vintage oil cans made by Eagle, here, or Reilang in Europe somewhere. Vintage oil cans from Sears, Roebuck (Craftsman grade), Plews, and Gustave Lidseed also work well. These can be easily be found on eBay-US and I assume on eBay sites based in GB or EU.

A little leakage at times is normal and acceptable unless your lathe is located on your parlor or dining room carpet...!

 

[william_b_noble]

I agree with Clark - at least in my garage shop, I use cutting oil, way oil and whatnot and oil gets all over the machine anyway, a little spillage oiling the oil points is nothing. I don't clean it often on the basis that the oil protect it from rust (or maybe that I'm to lazy or don't have time) and that combination works for me. I admire the folks with a pristine shop that looks like you could safely conduct open heart surgery in it (if only you were a heart surgeon), but to keep that beauty takes a LOT of time. On the other hand, if I lived with my family, in an apartment and I had a little lathe to set on the dining room table, I think I'd be forced to sing a different tune.

 

[Richard Hed]

I have two pump oil cans. ONe has a smaller nose than the other. The small nosed one pushes the ball down and then it is able to pump into the oil hole. the other one will not work.

 

[clockworkcheval]

Don't worry, a little oil drip is good for our machines.

 

[Mike Ginn]

Guys - the issue is not spilling oil onto the lathe (always a good thing!) but the continuous leaking from the oil gun when stored. I keep my gun in a plastic box which gradually fills with oil. If life were long enough then I would fill the oil gun, use it and then empty it. I can do without the hassle and it is reasonable to expect an oil gun not to leak. Maybe I should strip down my gun and replace the seals or follow Charles suggestion of using a pipe wrench(s) to tighten the caps. It's 2022 and nearly 2023 so we really shouldn't be faced with this irritation which in my case has lasted over 50 years.
Mike

 

[BaronJ]

Hi Guys,

Ignoring the Myford plastic oiler contraption and its cousin that came with the Fobco drill which both leak like sieves, I use an old plastic hair dye bottle, the one with a sharp pointed spout to oil the flat ball oilers that are on various bits of machinery ! The spout nicely fitting the hole and depressing the ball. However the oil does migrate through the threads of the bottle very slightly after using and collects in the shoulder of the bottle making it easy to wipe clean.

 

[rutzen]

I bought a Reilang oiler years ago which was very expensive. It leaks through the alloy body! I ended up pouring some lacquer into it, shaking it and pouring it out, then letting it dry. That stopped the leak but I agree we should be able to buy a good quality oiler that doesn't leak and does the job.

 

[awake]

Guys - the issue is not spilling oil onto the lathe (always a good thing!) but the continuous leaking from the oil gun when stored. I keep my gun in a plastic box which gradually fills with oil. If life were long enough then I would fill the oil gun, use it and then empty it. I can do without the hassle and it is reasonable to expect an oil gun not to leak. Maybe I should strip down my gun and replace the seals or follow Charles suggestion of using a pipe wrench(s) to tighten the caps. It's 2022 and nearly 2023 so we really shouldn't be faced with this irritation which in my case has lasted over 50 years.
Mike

I have had to seal the seams in a couple of oil cans using some RTV. But from earlier posts I am guessing your issue is more at the top end ... ?

 

[Mike Ginn]

Hi Awake
North Carolina - I worked in Greenville for a period and frequently needed to drive through NC - happy memories!
I have been using the Wanner Swiss made oil gun. The leaks occur at all the "seals". The top cap, which is easy to sort if the gun is kept vertical, the lower cap which is more difficult to fix and the seal on the plunger. When I have a moment I will make a real effort to tighten the threads and maybe use a thread sealant. My next step would be a rebuild. BUT BUT BUT why are these oil guns so bad and so far, on this forum, nobody has suggested a oil gun which works and doesn't leak.
Very frustrating
Mike

 

[ccolby]

I have found that leakage out of the spout tip seems to at least partly occur due to daily changes in temperature or barometric pressure. On those oil cans, leaving the cap or top loose between oiling sessions seems to minimize leakage from that phenomenon.

That "paper towel diaper" fix is also pretty fool-proof.....

Clark.