Grease for plastic gears. Lubricant for laser printers Hewlett Packard, Oki, Xerox

The need for lubrication of gear mechanisms is obvious. This reduces friction, wear, and increases the performance of mechanisms. Depending on the design of the unit (crankcase or “dry”), the lubrication method also changes.

In the first case, liquid oil is poured into the assembly, in the second, grease is used, which is held on the gears.

Just like on metal components, plastic gear grease can be thick or thin. There is an opinion that gears made of PTFE or Teflon are anti-friction in themselves.

Is there a special lubricant for plastic gears?

Almost all manufacturers of lubricants have in their assortment formulations for plastic and composites based on it. Theoretically, standard greases for universal use can be used. However, not all of them normally interact with plastics.

1. When in contact with conventional grease, the plastic may lose strength and crack. The teeth are destroyed, the transmission unit fails.
2. The material of gears and gear racks swells when interacting with some compounds. Wedging occurs.
3. Adhesion on plastic gear surfaces is too weak, so standard lubricants do not stick and splash out during heavy rotation.

Interestingly, some traditional lubricants that have proven themselves in metal gears have a destructive effect on plastic gears. For example, when using, the teeth wear off, as if an abrasive paste is being applied.

For this reason, special adapted compositions are produced for plastic gears of gearboxes and worm gears.

Another technical note: plastic gearboxes heat up more than metal gear pairs. This is due to the low thermal conductivity of plastic: heat is not removed from the working area.

Therefore, a high temperature plastic gear lubricant must retain its basic properties, both cold and hot.

Application of grease for gears made of plastic

• multimedia equipment using outdated media (CDs, cassettes) that use rotation mechanisms;
• computers, servers (CDs);
• computer peripherals: scanners, printers, game controllers;
• printing equipment: plotters, large-format printing devices, copying equipment;
• office equipment: copiers, MFPs;
• cash registers;
• cooking mechanisms: for example, coffee makers;
• Medical equipment;
• air modeling.

Given the application areas, specialized greases must meet more than just mechanical requirements. In medical and food units, sanitary and hygienic certification is required. Therefore, such compositions, by definition, cannot be cheap.

Common lubricants for plastic mechanisms

Silicon Fett by Liqui Moly

perfectly adheres to the surface, repels water. Properties are maintained over a wide temperature range. Due to its good tack, it does not spatter at high speeds.

This composition has a long service life: the replacement is not due to aging, after a few years of use, the lubricant dries out naturally.

It interacts neutrally both with pure plastic and with transmission pairs made of various materials: plastic + metal, plastic + rubber.

note

The only restriction: it cannot be used in the food and medical industry if the gear mechanisms are not in a sealed area.

Another product from Liqui Moly

Thermoflex Spezialfett. It is a multi-purpose grease that can work in both metal and plastic gears. The undoubted advantage of this composition is the preservation of viscosity at low temperatures.

However, with strong heating, the lubricant does not hold well on the surface of the gears. Therefore, it is not suitable for high speed gearboxes. Not a food product.

Silicone grease SI-180

Good choice for local production. It is used mainly for aircraft modeling, so the release form is quite compact.


This grease withstands high temperatures and rotational speeds. In addition, it adheres perfectly to the teeth, and does not splatter. The limitation is traditional: the lubricant is not food grade.

Nutritional formulations

For example, OKS 1110. The instructions indicate the application: sealing mechanisms. In fact, such lubricants work great on gear pairs.

Outcome

If your plastic gearbox or worm gear works occasionally, you can get by with inexpensive silicone grease or a simple one.

And at high temperature and high-speed loads, it is necessary to carefully select the composition of the lubricant according to its characteristics.

Modern types of plastic and polymers make it possible to use them not only as seals, but also to make gears from them. This opens up many opportunities for engineers, but also many challenges. The main problem was the lack of suitable lubricants. Conventional products intended for metal are not suitable, as they can corrode plastic, change its structure and physical properties. Therefore, special types of funds have been developed. Lubrication for plastic gears allows you to achieve the necessary lubricating properties, protect the material from external factors and provide minimal friction.

Features of the use of grease for plastic gears

Many people think that if gears are made of plastic, they don't require lubrication. Unfortunately, this often leads to damage and premature wear of the mechanisms. Plastic grease should be used on almost all types of plastic gears, as it provides the following functions:

• ensures a long service life of plastic gears and prevents premature wear;
• ensures stable operation of mechanisms without interruption;
• prevents the occurrence of unpleasant noises and squeaks, providing almost silent operation;
• keeps the working surface of rubbing parts intact, without roughness and abrasions;
• prevents deformation of the working elements of gearboxes and the occurrence of cracks;
• protects nodes from the influence of external factors, especially high and low temperatures.

There is a misconception that plastic gears can be lubricated with conventional lubricants. It is absolutely impossible to do this, as negative consequences are possible.

Even universal compositions cannot guarantee high efficiency. The effects of conventional blends on plastics can have the following effects:

1. Under the influence of conventional lubrication, the plastic loses its strength, and small cracks appear on its surface. This quickly leads to damage to the gear teeth, which causes the failure of the entire mechanism. Then it will not work to restore the gear pairs with the help of lubrication.
2. Some types can cause surface swelling of plastic parts. This leads to jamming of the gears, which can lead to breakage of the teeth and the entire assembly as a whole.
3. Plastic surfaces exhibit poor adhesion. Because of this, the classic grease does not stick to the gears and scatters to the sides during fast rotation.
4. Some types, such as grease, act as an abrasive. During operation, the teeth of the gears can be erased before our eyes. This usually renders the parts completely unusable.
5. Classical lubricants cannot provide the necessary heat transfer. Plastic gearboxes differ from metal ones in that they get very hot during operation. Ordinary oil melts and loses the desired consistency, which leads to overheating of the plastic and changes in its shape and physical properties.

To date, plastic gears are used in various fields:

• computer equipment, especially servers;
• office equipment, including printers and scanners.
• multimedia equipment, the work of which is based on rotational mechanisms;
• printing equipment, copiers and devices for large format printing;
• in some nodes of cars;
• cash registers;
• food equipment, including conveyors, mixing and handling equipment.
• kitchen appliances;
• medical equipment;
• children's toys, radio-controlled models of aircraft and cars.

Particular attention is required for lubricants for plastic gears intended for medical and food equipment, since not only mechanical requirements are set for them, but also hygienic ones.

How to choose?

Before buying oil, you need to study all varieties, determine what it is for and make sure that it meets the following requirements:

1. Inertness to polymers (grease should not react with plastic, so as not to harm moving parts, even universal mixtures can damage the plastic surface).
2. Stability of the composition (grease for plastic gears must be well retained on the plastic surface and not change viscosity and density at low and high temperatures).
3. Versatility (very often, elements of not only plastic, but also metal with rubber are used in driving mechanisms, so the tool must be suitable for different materials).
4. Compatible with PTFE (most plastic gears are made from this material, so if there is no information about the material, this lubricant will almost certainly work).
5. Non-flammable (plastic gearboxes get very hot, so the grease must not spontaneously ignite from high temperatures).
6. Environmental friendliness (it must be safe for humans, since plastic friction pairs are often found in kitchen and other appliances with which a person comes into direct contact).
7. Moisture resistance (it must protect the mechanism from water and not be washed off by it).
8. Good adhesion (the plastic surface is very smooth, so conventional oils do not adhere well to parts).

When choosing a lubricant, it is important to consider the type of working mechanisms and the conditions under which they operate. Given this, several types can be distinguished:

1. For mechanisms with plastic and metal parts (grease must be perfectly retained on the surface of various materials, protect metal from corrosion and remove heat well).
2. For mechanisms operating at high temperatures (lubricant must retain its properties and structure at extreme temperatures)
3. For mechanisms that operate at low temperatures (ordinary oils freeze in winter or refrigeration equipment, therefore, a lubricant should be selected that can maintain the base viscosity, regardless of temperature).
4. For gears operating under high loads (normal grease under high load is squeezed out of the working area, as a result of which the protective film is destroyed and the life of the mechanisms is significantly reduced).
5. For food industry equipment and for plastic parts of household appliances (food production involves direct contact of working mechanisms with food, so conventional lubricants are not suitable for such purposes, because they contain substances harmful to humans).

Common formulations

For the lubrication of plastic gears, it is better to choose compounds from world brands that have specialized in the development of compounds for many decades. Among the most common are the following:

1. Silicon Fett. Universal plastic lubricant with excellent adhesion and water repellency. It can work in a wide range of temperatures, both at low and at high. When working at high speeds, it does not scatter, but is well retained on the surface of the plastic. It has a long service life, it does not require replacement until it is practically dry, which occurs after several years of operation. It can be used in mechanisms that combine plastic with metal or rubber.
   Cannot be used for food processing equipment and in open gearboxes. The analogue is Silicot silicone grease.
2. Thermoflex Spezialfett. It also belongs to the universal ones, which can be equally used not only in plastic mechanisms, but also in metal ones. It differs in that it retains its properties and structure at low temperatures. But it is not suitable for high ones, as it begins to melt and spread, as a result of which the protective film is destroyed and friction increases. Also not suitable for food processing equipment.
   
3. SI-180. Domestic silicone grease. It is sold in small volume syringes, as it is used to lubricate small mechanisms. The white grease adheres perfectly to the plastic surface without changing its properties at high temperatures. It does not belong to the food group.
4. Lubricants for food processing equipment. This is a separate group, the price of which is much higher than usual, used in household equipment and in production. The most popular is OKS 1110, which is used not only for lubrication, but also for sealing. You can also highlight the food grade lubricant Loctite for plastic and rubber, made on the basis of silicone.
   The service life of plastic mechanisms directly depends on their care. Choosing a quality lubricant will allow you to achieve optimal, trouble-free operation and save money on repairs.

The world of printer lubricants is a mess right now. Printer lubricants are usually sold by parts dealers who have no idea what they are doing or why, so they can easily sell lubricant for old Xerox copiers under the guise of thermal film lubricant for modern Hewlett Packard printers. At the same time, the prices for lubricants border on the prices of precious metals.
The Oltar company, together with the representative office of the world-famous manufacturer of lubricants Molykote, decided to bring order to the issue of sales of lubricants for printers on the Russian Market. All lubricants offered are tested and recommended by experienced Molykote technicians and not by homegrown parts dealers. You can be sure of your choice.

The main types of lubricants used in Hewlett Packard laser printers.

1. Lubrication of gears of gearboxes, where the latter rotate at an average speed at temperatures up to 80 °C. The load on the gears is uniformly rotational. In this regard, HP grease works perfectly. This lubricant is not available for sale. Instead, various lubricants are sold that satisfy the tasks at 50 - 70%. As a rule, sellers have no idea what they are selling, what properties and durability their product has.

2. Thermal film lubricants. HP uses a unique lubricant that is perfectly matched to the application. The lubricant does not flow, has negligible viscosity, does not evaporate, does not lose its mechanical and chemical properties over the course of years. The thermal film rotates solely due to the pressure of the Teflon-coated rubber roller and does not have any gears. Works at temperatures up to 240 degrees, has several basic types. Grease for thermal films is a separate issue. Buy it is not real. On the Russian market, there are either mediocre lubricants that can work for a limited time at temperatures up to 200 degrees or just a frank surrogate, after which blurry images appear, paper jams in the oven, image repetitions and others. Typically, after 700 - 1200 copies, such a lubricant turns brown, becomes sticky, viscous and slows down the rotation of the thermal film.

3. Lubricant used in oven gears (image fusing units). This is the most difficult case. Gears work with vector or directional load. In addition, gears operate at sharp temperature changes and at speeds much higher than average. From 20 to 120 degrees. HP uses the same lubricants as in paragraph 1. This approach is fundamentally wrong. Lubrication is squeezed out of the teeth and the gears work no more than 50 - 70.000 copies. The problems of these lubricants are clearly shown in Fig 1, Fig 2.

4. Lubricants for bushings, bearings, teflon-rubber shafts for stoves. Hewlett Packard generally does not use any lubricants in fusing bushings. In modern high-speed laser printers, this leads to the fact that after 30 - 60 thousand copies the bushing is eaten out by 1 - 2 mm, the rubber roller sags, the film falls to one side and eats its edge. The gears begin to work on the edges of the teeth with a lot of noise, turning into a loud crack. The printer is broken and needs repair.

Oltar offers the following types of lubricants for printers.

1. For lubricating gears of gearboxes, as well as for lubricating oscillating units of stoves and gears of rubber shafts of fusing units - Molykote EM-50L grease.
Unlike conventional lubricants, the proposed lubricant works up to 150 degrees Celsius, does not thicken over time, is not afraid of temperature changes and does not lose its properties over time. This lubricant can be used on both plastic and metal gears.

2. Lubricant for thermal films of printers, both polymer and aluminum. Lubrication type - Molykote HP-300 Grease. The grease works at temperatures up to 280 degrees, does not evaporate, does not change physical and chemical properties over time. The lubricant does not become sticky and does not slow down the movement of the thermal film, the image is not smeared. The lubricant is universal and can be used both in home class printers such as HP LJ 1012, and in powerful modern printers such as HP LJ P4515 with a print speed of 45 sheets per minute. Lubrication is also good because even if the thermal film is punctured, it continues to work. While other lubricants under the influence of the toner begin to crystallize and cut the rotating film from the inside.
The grease is excellent for bushings of rubber shafts of printer ovens, does not corrode plastic bushings and does not introduce additional heating into the aluminum shafts of the printer rotating under high temperature. Lubricant does not destroy the protective layer - aluminum oxide!