leaky sight glass

niedz · Post by **niedz** » Mon Jan 04, 2010 11:39 am

the sight glass on my V10P leaks!
when i fill the headstock so the oil is visible halfway into the glass, it slowly leaks out to just below the glass.
this bothers me!

are there any recommendations on how to seal this up?
should i try to pop out the sight glass then apply some sort of sealant and pop it back in? or should i just try to run a bead of some sealant around the glass without removing it?

im a little nervous about trying to remove it, the last thing i want is a busted window and new random chip intake hole!

MikeA · Post by **MikeA** » Mon Jan 04, 2010 4:54 pm

Hello Niedz,

I'm a very new owner of a V10P (4 days and counting!) and am just getting familiar with it, so any suggestions I have are totally unqualified.

One thing I do know, unless you put the sealant on clean, oil-free surfaces it will not provide a good seal. It might slow the leakage but not eliminate it.

From the exploded parts diagram I have it appears (make sure you note 'appears') the sight glass may be a friction fit with an o-ring seal. Again, it 'appears' it should be removed from the inside of the gear box.

I think I'd try popping it out, and if catastrophe strikes, I doubt it would be a big deal to make a replacement out of plexiglass rod with a couple of o-rings to act as seals, aided by a generous dose of sealant.

I'd like to hear how you make out whatever you do as I will likely be doing the same on mine.

Best,
Mike

MikeA · Post by **MikeA** » Mon Jan 04, 2010 5:17 pm

Hello Niedz,

Just a quick follow-up, found this on another forum

http://www.jwwinco.com/products/section ... 5QodnV5BRQ

It's a listing for a company making sight glasses - bet you can find what you're looking for.

Best,
Mike

Jose Rivera · Post by **Jose Rivera** » Tue Jan 05, 2010 1:06 am

The sight glass I think that is supposed to show half-ways, at least I keep mine there.

You said "leaks", where does the leak ends up?

niedz · Post by **niedz** » Tue Jan 05, 2010 1:34 pm

it runs straight down and pools on the table pretty much right below the sight glass.

dly31 · Post by **dly31** » Tue Jan 05, 2010 8:32 pm

It might not apply or help at all but sometimes oil leaks are caused by lack of or stopped-up vents. Gearboxes, etc., will build up pressure as they warm up unless there is some kind of vent. Just something to consider.

Don Young

niedz · Post by **niedz** » Wed Jan 06, 2010 11:23 am

dly31 wrote:It might not apply or help at all but sometimes oil leaks are caused by lack of or stopped-up vents. Gearboxes, etc., will build up pressure as they warm up unless there is some kind of vent. Just something to consider.

Don Young

thanks for the input, but i think that is not the problem considering it pools overnight when the machine is cool.

Jose Rivera · Post by **Jose Rivera** » Wed Jan 06, 2010 12:39 pm

One thing that I was warned by a old Maximat salesman in Germany named Otto Wolf was to make sure that the spindle gear box cover must have the visible slot it leaves when in place facing to the back and not the front.

This may not be your problem but I though I mention it to you.

niedz · Post by **niedz** » Tue Jan 12, 2010 11:53 am

i seemed to have fixed it.
i got an o-ring from the local hardware store, and managed to get the bottom half of the o-ring to wedge between the headstock hole and the sight glass. seems to have stopped the leak!
maybe at some point i will get a new sight window but for now this keeps the oil off my bench!

Jose Rivera · Post by **Jose Rivera** » Tue Jan 12, 2010 1:28 pm

niedz wrote:i seemed to have fixed it.
i got an o-ring from the local hardware store, and managed to get the bottom half of the o-ring to wedge between the headstock hole and the sight glass. seems to have stopped the leak!
maybe at some point i will get a new sight window but for now this keeps the oil off my bench!

You will have to make one.
I doubt very much that you can find one new.

If you do, make it out of clear polycarbonate (Lexan). Acrylic will crack very easily, even months later after finished, it could crack.

niedz · Post by **niedz** » Wed Jan 13, 2010 10:41 am

i didnt mean replace the sight window with an original emco part, we all know those are non-existant! (although i bet there is a warehaus in austria filled with emco parts)

i figure i can find something that will work from here:

http://www.jwwinco.com/products/section ... 5QodnV5BRQ