Is Zoom Spout Oil, turbine oil, ok for metal lathe?

[SusanX]

Hi,
Newbie here. I have an old 1938 Craftsman 101 little 6"x18" metal lathe that I recently acquired. I was thinking about using Zoom turbine oil for oiling this machine. What is your experienced opinion? Can I use it for everything on the lathe or only some parts of it? Also, this lathe has some old oil in it already. Do I need to take this lathe apart and put in a parts washer to remove all of the old oil/grease from machine and its gears? Thanks!

[Atkinson_Railroad]

Yes, Zoom Spout oil is perfect for a lathe. It's machine oil.
What's in your zoom spout is likely a 20 weight non-detergent oil, if it contains the original turbine oil.

When it comes time to refill it, seek out NON-DETERGENT oil to replenish the container.

John

[SusanX]

Thanks, John. Do I need to clean out the old oil if it isn't the exact same as my Zoom Oil?

[Atkinson_Railroad]

There could be 10 wt oil in that spout. There are lots of trade-named oils similar to it.
Mobil DTE Light is one that comes to mind. A 10 weight oil would be used in higher speed applications.

As far as cleaning your machine, etc. it makes sense to remove the old oil which will likely have debris
mixed in with it from age.

There's going to be a text-book answer as to how to go about reconditioning your machine.
And among all those answers, you'll have to decide for yourself the best approach for you.

As you take things apart, try to remember to "match-mark" parts in some way to assist you later on
during reassembly.

I'll let the rest of the crowd chime in on machine reconditioning.

Welcome to the forum.

John

[spro]

This is beginning to be a project in itself, even though the recommendations are sound. I would say use old toothbrushes and clean hardened grease and chips out of everything you can see. Clean off and lubricate everything with that oil -rotation and slide points. Anything which slides or spins needs lube. Then you can check a few things before wearing some out. For example; The bed ways are cleaned and lubed. Wipe them with paper towel and see how dirty they are after the carriage moves back and forth. More lube. Chips, dirt ? Maybe okay.
What I'm getting to is seeing what needs attention before entire dis assemble and a project.

[spro]

The other thing is this lathe has not been in a hayloft for 70 years. It has had other owners over time and they lubed certain points or you wouldn't have it now. It is one thing to dunk the whole thing into a degreaser but that isn't right. Every small pinion or bushing which had a film of oil, is now invaded by a degreaser agent. That means it all has to come apart. Certain areas don't need that hassle.

[spro]

Oh boy or oh girl.. it is the same with lathes. I just can't see it turning into a rebuild project until you know it better. When it is all lubed up and together, you can explore the controls, how it works and note certain areas which seem to need attention. Some smooth running is not going to destroy the machine while you investigate. Just don't slam back gear in because somebody says to. Know how this works and by all means, turn the pulley by hand to see what is happening before applying power to it.