Namerifrats

Gonna get some grease for my gearboxes today at some point. Read here that white Lithium grease is the best kind. Can I just grab some at a Auto parts or hardware store? Would it be the same stuff that prob cost 3X as much at a hobby shop?

heavyaslead

Yes.

Got a 10z. tube at ACE Hardware and still some left over after 3 model builds. Never had an issue with the grease and plastics.

Max-U52

White lithium grease is basically all the same, but I stick with Lubriplate, just because it's familiar and I can get it cheap through my job. I think it's CRC that makes it in a spray can but that gets pretty messy.

scottlarson925

My Feedback: (2)

In all my hobby projects requiring grease rather then oil, I use Amsoil Synthetic grease. It sticks well without slinging off and is plastic-safe and doesn't stain. I use Amsoil 20-50 Synthetic racing oil for lighter-lube applications like motor and gearbox bearings. Considering these products are actually for automotive applications makes them incredibly cheap per-ounce and their quality is exceptional, not some generic made-in-China, over-priced, private label hobby grade stuff; you never know who makes some of that "lowest bidder" crap or what it actually is...Just my two cents, no change required.

Tanque

I use Lubriplate, I swear by it.

Jerry

philipat

This stuff?

Max-U52

Tanque

Yup, I have it in pint cans.

philipat

cool...thanks.

Namerifrats

Whats the best way to apply it without making a big mess? Couple small dabs on a toothpick placed in 2-3 spots on a single gear?

Max-U52

I use a small brush. I use a run down 9v battery to spin the motor and let the brush ride over the gears, spreading the grease as they go. Of course, that only works if the boxes are out of the tank. If they're in I'll brush all the parts of the gears I can reach, turn the pinion with my finger to rotate the gears to a new position and brush them again. You don't need a lot, but you will get a little spatter after application, and that's why I like those styrene strip splatter shields so much, they pop right in and keep the grease out of the back of the tank.

Tanque

This stuff, this is the goo that sticks and works. "It's the film".......... Lubriplate!

Imex-Erik

I'll have to try some Lubriplate the next time I run out, I've been using a huge tube of Lucas white lithium grease I've had since my last 3d printer and its still half full.

Green Amphibian

I load up a syringe with no needle, and a section of aquarium air hose on it, with the lubriplate and just inject a small amount on each gear while rotating them by hand to distribute it on the gears. Don't forget a light machine oil for the bushings and/or bearings the gear shafts ride on too.

Herman

Max-U52

Good catch, Herman, and you'll hear a bunch of different opinions on that, too, but I use plain old 3 in 1 oil, one drop on each bearing or bushing.

Marc780

Nothing wrong with white grease in the tube or can. The thing to avoid is the spray white lithium grease. Not sure it even lubricates anything at all since most of it evaporates, the rest then turns to chalk after too long, I know some people swear by it but it just seems wrong to use on the gears since there are so many better products. I was thinking perhaps the perfect gear lube, would be CV joint grease, the automotive kind. It is thin enough to penetrate, thick enough to cling on to the gears, at least longer then anything else similar. And it is cheap.

In truth as long as you use some kind of lube, and clean it and relube every so often, most oils and grease-type lubes would be perfectly good. Since the load is so low and the clearances are so loose, can't seriously imagine the gearboxes have ANY lube related failure unless there were dirt, or the owner just never lube anything and ran them dry,

I use Auto chassis grease since i have a huge tub of it. I apply with a dedicated small paint brush. Also the bushings a drop of break free, silicone race car shock oil, or the like on them too. One fellow swore by thick viscosity silicone shock oil and just used that. I suspect it worked but also imagine the mess inside after a bit.

Towards the idea of keeping the gear brease in the gearbox instead of spattered all over the inside hull - I made grease shield guards for the gearboxes. They were simple and cheap to make. All you need is thin sheet alumin or even tin, (the fasteners section at lowe's has small sheets of these in the "hard to find/hobby" section". Also most hobby shops have similar metal too.). The thin gauge metal you want, is thin enough to hold its shape and be easily bent by hand - but not too thick to cut and bend by hand, easily.

So once you have your metal sheet, just cut (using tin snips or similar), a long narrow sheet that's just wide enough to cover the top of the gearbox bay where all the gears are. As shown in the T-34 photo it overlaps the sides a bit but about what you want. So eyeball or measure the width of the long strip you will cut from the metal - 1.5 in to 2 " (50 mm) in width is about right. The motor of course remains uncovered only the gears are covered.

Then to cut the shield to length - size it and bend it so it tucks snuggly under the front of the gearbox. (ONE DETAIL please not to forget - leave some metal for a mounting tab, about 3 " in from the end, to mount your grease shield to the gearbox - using strong magnets. I have tried this method, it does work well , and its simple)

Now you've sized your gearbox grease guard, hopefully left a tab about 25 MM long for mounting bend it back down to cover the rear of the gearbox, with about 1" (25 mm) overlap on the end, to tuck under the rear of the gearbox. Perfect, and actually almost attractive if you do it right.

Here is from someone else's post, hopefully he doesn't mind i lifted it. The grease shields are almost hard to see, they are at the rear of the photo, seem to be copper or brass sheet. This is a T-34, gearbox at back, anyway, he did quite good workmanship simply bending the copper sheet by hand to cover the grease fly off from the gears.




I hate t o repeat but for less problems installing and using the shields -when you are cutting the sheet strip a tab to fold down the side of the gearbox. You need this tab to let you use a magnet to secure the grease shield to the gearbox. This tab you will locate where to cut by eyeballing how the rest of it fits, just leave some spare material while cutting the long strip. I suggest cut to length but leave spare material about in the middle of your strip, so you have the material to cut to shape once you see how it all fits.

From my long post perhaps it may seem making these grease shields is a whole lot of work, in reality once you have the parts and tools can be done in 10 minutes for both sides, from cutting the sheet to gluing the magnets.
There may be wires running by the metal shields chafing against them. Any portions where wires may contact, I apply a piece of duct tape to protect them, could also CA something else soft and thing like Elec tape. That or slit apiece of shrink wrap and afix to the wires to prevent chafing.

The tab should bend over and down at the widest part of gearbox, in front of the motor. Now to hold it on securely, all you need is a small but strong, magnet about the size of a dime. Glue this magnet to the tab using Cryo/CA glue and clamp it while drying, Magnet will now clamps to side of gearbox and doesn't seem to affect the gears or even the motor, maybe since the magnet's small...Now removing and reinstall the grease shields is a breeze!

Lastly on this far too long post, and on the subject of gearboxes - I am very happy with my bearings-fitted gearbox from Heng long store/Ali Express. I paid $60 for the "up-motored" with fast blue motor and they have a regular motor model for $50, well worth it IMO. These gearboxes have real roller bearings for EVERY gear even the motor shaft, and even both inboard and outboard roller bearings on the output shaft. They are noticeably smooth and powerful in performance, with these blue motors very fast and consistent - no drifting even at high speed. I am very happy i got these, on larger tanks with heavy parts I'd say they're a must - and fit in like the regular steel gearboxes.



After breaking in, thorough cleaning with solvent and compressed air, and relubing, final insp, it was time for installation, into my Panther G, where they happily reside.

Max-U52

Here's a quick way to make grease shields

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=viAtlqZhp4g

Max-U52

I emailed this company to ask what they recommend for our application. Tanks are not high temp or high pressure so that can make a big difference. Anyway, they were pretty snarky about it, acted like I was a complete moron and not worth their time, asked a bunch of questions about what grease I use now (why they need that to recommend their stuff I have no idea) and once I answered all the questions in a couple of emails I never heard back from them. Now I don't care if their product is the best thing since canned beer, I still won't be using it.

Max-U52

Hey Marc, I went to heng long store and checked out those boxes, and my only problem is that, if their photos are accurate, they don't have them in a four shaft (sometimes called 4:1) gearbox. The four shaft are pretty much all I run, so I was wondering if the ones you got are exactly like the ones in the photo you posted. Those are obviously three shaft (the four shaft only come in the high/low configuration), but if they have four shaft boxes like that I'll definitely order some to try them out. Any info you can provide will be most appreciated.

Marc780

Well lets see Max, i have some photos of my actual boxes i took while i as breaking them in, does this one help?

I don't actually know the difference between 3 and 4 shaft? If its torque you need, this motor has tons of that. I bought some high speed motors from ebay before, they were way more powerful then stock HL...and these blue motors were way more powerful yet again. Using the scientific method of hooking up a battery and listening to the sound - these are by far the most powerful motors i've used. If speed is what you want, i can tell you they're fast too.

I tried buying some of the brass wattersons gearbox through GOrcgo site and they froze my paypal payment (without ever taking the money) and i never heard from them again. So i gave up on that site, and those particular brass gearboxes. So i guess i might never get to try those. In the meantime, like i said, very happy with these - smoothese gearboxes i ever had.

Max-U52

Here's the difference between three and four shaft gearboxes in just under three minutes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKz1rTDO2qY Marc, yours are three shaft. They'll have higher top speed but not as much torque. Those boxes would be really great for my ZTZ-99A and just about any other modern tank. Right now the 99A has three shaft black steel gearboxes with the bearings at the axle but not the gearshafts, and the RS360SH motors from evilbay ($7 for two, including shipping. I thought that was a good score), so I'm sure yours run much smoother than those, and with the more powerful motors they should produce closer to scale top speed in a modern tank, but I'm pretty close with what I have. The real 99A tops out at 80 kph and I'm getting about 75 kph. What kind of tank do you have those in? I'll bet they'd be awesome in a Leo. If I can find those boxes in four shaft I'd really like to try them out in my WWII tanks, especially the King Tiger. That's a good price, but I'm doing a lot of WWII tanks and the three shaft boxes are just too fast for those (except maybe the Hellcat). But I'll also probably get a set of the three shaft just like yours for the 99A, and if they're as cool as I think they'll be I'll put them in the Abrams (when I finally get one).

Max-U52

One more thing, Marc, it's hard to tell in this photo, but I don't see any capacitors at the end of that blue motor. Does it have them? If not, have you had any trouble with EMI (electromagnetic interference)? I think I might add the caps if I put these in a tank with a hobby grade board.

Marc780

no it has no capacitors, no problem with EMI, i used 2.4 ghz radio system anyway, so no problem with radio interference anyway.

Panther F

IF you do not mind one more opinion... I use "Ultra Lube" sold in a tube at Lowes hardware stores.

Works for me as I have used ALL of the grease marketed in the past because my field of expertise was that of an ASE Certified Auto Technician.



Jeff

Namerifrats

Marc780, I noticed all those wheel weights on your tank. Debated adding a little weight myself. Did you do it for more realistic appearance with the suspension flexing, or better climbing ability? Wonder if it would have any negative effects on the motor life with an extra pound or two added.