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Micrometer Oil

D

Dinosaur Engineer

Aluminum
Joined
Jun 20, 2010
Location
U.K. Hampshire
I have a set of vintage Reed Small Tool Works micrometers. 6 in the set , 0-1" to 5-6" all with the drop forged frame with dull nickel finish. I'm in the process of cleaning them prior to checking out the calibration. What's the best spindle thread lubricant to use ?
I have a good set of OPUS carbide slips for the calibration.
Will post pictures when all cleaned up & calibrated.
 
There's a micrometer expert here somewhere who says to take it apart 20 times a day and use no oil. :crazy:

I use synthetic watch oil. If I didn't have that I'd use Starrett M1.
 
Dinosaur Engineer said:
Perhaps my question should have been , When should a micrometer be cleaned and re-oiled and what oil should be used ?
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing. The only method I've seen (assuming the micrometer isn't stripped apart and cleaned with an alcohol type fluid) is a minute drop of good quality thin oil on the fully extended spindle and this screwed back into the barrel. Any extra is then wiped off.
 
Dinosaur Engineer --

I generally use a light petroleum solvent for cleaning -- Ronsonol-type lighter fluid, Varnish-and-Paint-Maker naptha, or spray-can brake cleaner or electric motor cleaner from the auto supply store have worked well, although some brake cleaners will attack ink and/or plastic -- and some sort of light oil for lube, with Singer-brand sewing machine oil being my "usual". Having said that, I know of field-expedient cleaning and lubing of a conventional micrometer that had been dropped into a mud puddle and allowed to soak for a couple of hours by disassembling it, boiling in clean water, re-boiling in clean clean water, dried, and then lubed with Lubriplate 105 grease (which is VERY soft grease). Its "action" afterward was smoother than before its mud bath.

John
 
John Garner said:
Having said that, I know of field-expedient cleaning and lubing of a conventional micrometer that had been dropped into a mud puddle and allowed to soak for a couple of hours by disassembling it, boiling in clean water, re-boiling in clean clean water, dried, and then lubed with Lubriplate 105 grease (which is VERY soft grease). Its "action" afterward was smoother than before its mud bath.

John
Click to expand...

I don't recommend you do that with a digital micrometer.
 
Good Day, Gordon --

I don't necessarily recommend that treatment for a conventional micrometer, but under the same circumstances I might be willing to try a similar recovery effort for a digital micrometer. Very high-priority job, way out in the field, and the more-generally-accepted "repair" begins will calling back to base to ask 'em to round up a chopper pilot . . .

John
 
I use Starret surface plate cleaner to clean the threads on the spindle and the anvil using q-tips (cotton swabs) I then use a clean swab and saturate it with wd-40 and run it around the threads and bearing diameter on the anvil frame then blow out any excess oil and reassemble, never failed a calibration in over 30 years with the same set of mics. 0-6"
 
I ran out of a can of sewing machine oil I have had for a long time so had to find something else.

We have Marvel air tool oil so I gave it a go thinking air tool oil can't become gummy like WD does or it would foul the air tool.

It works a charm!

I wet a clean clothe to wipe down my digital calipers with and apply liberally to micrometers then wipe down with clean clothe or my shirt tale.
 
I use WD40 or Kerosene...........on my surface plate :D

I don't remember what I use on mikes, but I might take both apart and use white lithium grease.
 
A couple quick things:

1. Now that I've told my story of the mud-puddle micrometer, I'm starting to feel a wronged memory squawking in the back of my mind. I'm starting to think that it wasn't Lubriplate 105 that I used on that micrometer, but some sort of Teflon-bearing lube.

2. Several folks have mentioned Starrett M-1, which I recall to be a solvent-cut petrolatum in a spray can. . . primarily a corrosion preventive, rather than a lubricant. On the other hand, Starrett sells their Tool and Instrument Oil as a precison-instrument lubricant appropriate to micrometers.
 
Starrett Instrument oil here. I used a teflon lubricant on a mic once and it was a bad idea. It felt like little cubes of something being rolled around in the threads. I had to clean everything out and start over. Since I can't reference it by brand I won't tar every teflon lube, but SOME at least are a bad choice.
 
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