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Monarch AA headstock oil pump not working

Mike Lucius

Plastic
Joined
Oct 3, 2012
Location
Greeneville, TN
I just bought a Monarch AA lathe and the oil pump in the headstock isn't pumping oil. I'm going to drain the oil and flush it with kerosene so I can hopefully find out the problem. Does anyone on this forum have any suggestions as to what I might look for/do to get it working. I'm completely new to it and have not been able to find a manual or any other information that might steer me in the right direction. Thanks in advance for any and all help, advice, or suggestions.
 
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Tell us how you know its not working. There are (at least in my CW) metering plugs that can get stopped up

To see if my pump was working, I disconnected the oil lines from the metering plugs
 
Thanks johnoder, I could see in the sight glass that no oil was pumping so I took the top off the headstock and disconnected that line from the manifold. I probably should have, after seeing your response, kept on going. I'm going to continue on like you've suggested and see what I can find.
 
Lowest speeds or you will get more of a oil bath with the cover off. Pump has one "cycle" each time the spindle makes a turn - since it is the plunger style
 
I removed the metering plugs and made sure they were clear and the plunger on the pump looks to be working as it should but still no oil pumping. I did run a soft brass wire through the discharge line down to the pump and it's clear as near as I can tell but still not pumping oil so I'm about at a standstill. Looks like the only way to get to the pump is to remove the spindle. Is there a better way to get at it? I sure hope so but I'm not seeing it. Thanks again.
 
I just bought a model 60 Monarch and noticed the same thing, nothing in the upper sight glass. I took the back cover off to watch the pump work and also watched the oil being dripped on the back gears, the pump is working. I then pulled the top cover off and pulled the line, cleaned the metering valve and I still don't have oil in the glass. Don't run the machine with the cover off! I also cleaned the pick up screen on the bottom of the oil pump, still no oil in sight glass, but the back gears are still getting oil. Still not sure what to think.
 
Harry Bloom (beckley 23), now passed on, wrote extensively about his Monarch(s)

I think I recall him writing that the pump comes out without spindle removal

Maybe so, but I was never successful in getting the pump out of my CW 16 X 102. I could get it loose, but not OUT

Fortunately it still works
 
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Looks like the only way to get to the pump is to remove the spindle. Is there a better way to get at it? I sure hope so but I'm not seeing it. Thanks again.

I just managed to remove and install the oil pump in my 14C without removing the spindle. It was an absolute nightmare of a job.

Long painful story short... You have to remove the pump from the bracket that drives it. Getting at the 4 slotted screws that hold it in place is awkward at best. Wrestling with the assembly to be able to reach the screws is an ongoing battle throughout the process.

I replaced the slotted screws with socket caps. With them, it was far easier to reassemble the pump to the bracket. A ball nose allen key works wonders.

Good Luck
 
After reading many of the posts, I decided the best way to remove the Bijur oil pump was to remove the spindle. Took about 2 hours with phone help from Scott at Monarch tool.
Waiting now for the filter kit to complete the job.
 

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On my 60, the headstock sight glass required eye torture in order to see oil moving.

We "know" the line that shows oil movement doesn't fill the sight glass; it just gives a steady drip. I say "we know" this a bit loosely, since I'm basing it off of all threads I've been able to find on this subject. Many hours spent!

Anyway...I became tired of how difficult it was to see this drip, so just last week I tried some pipe cleaner. Just a 1" length, ends finely crimped over and loose hairs removed. It sticks out of the oil line just enough to bring the drip line outward, away from the oil level plate and up against the back of the sight glass. WAY better view, noticeable at first glance.

Now, the drip itself doesn't fill the glass. But that may not necessarily mean the glass is/was not supposed to show an actual level, also. I remember finding a comment made years ago here on PM where the poster said something about the FRONT headstock sight glass originally being "vented", allowing an actual level to form. By accident I realized this works, after so many times I removed/installed the sight glass while the spindle was running. If I notch the top of the gasket and leave the top screw a little loose, the glass fills to 1/4 level at lower spindle speeds, and up to the level (middle) mark at top speed. You can see this is separate from the "pump is working" metered line when you run the headstock with the glass off.
 








 
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