Question on Fadal spindle oilers

Hey all! I have a question about the spindle lube system on a Fadal VMC40 with a 10K RPM spindle. Is it supposed to be an air mist all the time the spindle is running, an occasional squirt, other?

I pulled off the larger cover from the head, is the lube connection the smaller of the two hoses in the attached pic? What is the larger for?

Thanks, Ed.

That is for the spindle cooler. It should use dowfrost , but I have used premixed hd truck anti freeze when i had a hose break. Dowfrost is a mixture of deionized water and propylene glycol, probly has some other additives for corrosion too


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When you say "That is for the spindle cooler " do you mean the upper or lower? Is one inlet and one return?

Maybe I do not have oil mist to the bearings?

Ed.

Big one is spindle chiller. Small one is oil.

And you very well may not have an oil mist spindle even though
you have the hook up. Maybe early 90's was the last time Fadal
used an oil mist, so if that spindle was replaced at some point
in time, its probably a sealed unit.

Bobw, that would make sense as the mist unit was unhooked, The machine is from 1988 so probably changed at some point. There was no chiller pump or other parts on the machine when I got it, would this make any problems?

Thanks, Ed.

atex57 said:

Bobw, that would make sense as the mist unit was unhooked, The machine is from 1988 so probably changed at some point. There was no chiller pump or other parts on the machine when I got it, would this make any problems?

Thanks, Ed.

Click to expand...

If you aren't running constant high spindle speeds, you will be fine without the chiller.
Are you sure the chiller isn't there? Its in its own cabinet, left side of the machine
when looking from the front, right on the back sheet metal.

It wouldn't be hard to hook one up if you wanted, I really think the refrigeration is a
bit much for a Fadal, just a fairly large reservoir and a pump.. Maybe run through a heater
core or something on the way back to the reservoir.. And don't ever run just straight water,
just don't.. Trust me.

If you do still have the spindle mist system installed, and it has not been replaced like Bobw mentioned, the oil mist lubrication will be on anytime the spindle is turning. Mine generates a visible mist at the spindle. I have a very early VMC40 in pristine condition with the original oil mist system intact, so let me know if you need any photos etc. That said if I needed to replace the spindle to I would love to change it over to a sealed unit, less hassle.

Bobw said:

If you aren't running constant high spindle speeds, you will be fine without the chiller.
Are you sure the chiller isn't there? Its in its own cabinet, left side of the machine
when looking from the front, right on the back sheet metal.

It wouldn't be hard to hook one up if you wanted, I really think the refrigeration is a
bit much for a Fadal, just a fairly large reservoir and a pump.. Maybe run through a heater
core or something on the way back to the reservoir.. And don't ever run just straight water,
just don't.. Trust me.

Click to expand...

Love the cooling system on my Fadal! It wasnt working when I got my machine and the spindle would heat up considerably even at 8000 rpm. I used to aim a couple coolant nozzles at the spindle housing but didnt help too much. Made me nervous about the bearings. And of course heights would vary due to changing temperature. Harder to hold tolerances.

Had a HVAC Tech fix a leak and got it up and running again. Works awesome now. Spindle is always ambient temperature no matter how long I run at high rpm. Heights always stay exactly the same. Tools less likely to stick in spindle. Works awesome. Always amazes me how much heat the little unit throws out. You can certainly feel it with your hand when running.

I would recommend a refrigeration system over heater core. Heater core may help your bearings a little but trouble is that it needs temp difference in order for it to transfer heat. So maintaining constant temp, and sizes will never be the same as with refrigeration unit. If your going to do it, might as well do it right.

OK. I think I see what we have. The two lines shown in the pic attached to the first post are for the spindle cooler. There is a small line going in the top of the spindle cartridge that was the oil mist supply, which was unhooked at the Bijur mister.

I ran the spindle at 5K RPM's for about an hour no load and it rose about 20 degrees F and stayed there.

My uses at this time are simple 2.5D work with 1/2 Carbide EM's and drilling holes with HS tooling. If it gets important we will do it up better.

Thanks for the help. Always taking advice.

Ed.

atex57 said:

OK. I think I see what we have. The two lines shown in the pic attached to the first post are for the spindle cooler. There is a small line going in the top of the spindle cartridge that was the oil mist supply, which was unhooked at the Bijur mister.

I ran the spindle at 5K RPM's for about an hour no load and it rose about 20 degrees F and stayed there.

My uses at this time are simple 2.5D work with 1/2 Carbide EM's and drilling holes with HS tooling. If it gets important we will do it up better.

Thanks for the help. Always taking advice.

Ed.

Click to expand...

Just take one of the coolant nozzles and aim it at the spindle case.
I been running for 5 years with out a chiller on mine as theres some leaks I need to fix at 9k and its never been hot not even warm. on surfacing I started running one nozzle on it, its cold all day long.