Actuator Arm Lubricate

[Keystone7]

Hello,

Checking to see if there is some type of lubricate to apply to the dish actuator arm? What would work the best to clean it up. Has anyone done this before? Thank you!

 

[Lone Gunman]

Hummm, could you be a little more specific with which brand and what parts you want to lube/clean? A picture might help too.

 

[Keystone7]

Sorry about that. It would be the outer tube only where the weather gets to. Check the type of actuator in my signature.

 

[turbosat]

Von Weise has no grease fitting? I would be surprised, even my old cheap superjack has a grease fitting. I just stick the grease gun to it about once a year, can't believe this one has lasted over ten years , lol.

 

[gabshere]

the outside tube will rust no matter what you do to it . when its first made i think it had dichromated tube and a zinc plated screw

there is no point in greasing / oiling the outside tube it will just collect dust .

now if you want to remove the tube and place something like marine grade grease on the screw ( thats what i did ) that might help .

 

[Lone Gunman]

I've got a VonWeise on my Windgard and I wire brushed it and painted the outer tube with several coats of RustOlem paint using a 2 inch paint brush.

The inside of those screw housings don't have grease in'em, or at least the ones I've had apart didn't. The acme thread screw is cadmium plated steel and the nuts they use appear to be molded glass filled nylon. Over time that cadmium plating will still allow some rust to build up on the screw, which isn't good for that nylon nut!

The inner shaft seal out on the end is "suppose" to keep water and dirt out but they don't last forever especially if rust builds up on the inner tube. I have made new seals for the VonWeise with automotive radiator hose and SS hose clamps and only tighten the end that runs out on the inner shaft tight enough to make it seal. I suppose that those factory seals are still available from VonWeise though since they are still in business.

There is a thread here started by me that shows how I replaced the nylon nut with a brass one and I actually put a bunch of light grease inside that one to make sure that it had lube. It's been up and running now for over a year I think and it's doing fine. When I run it down to 139W it will pick up some of that lube, which collects at the bottom when the dish is up in the upper part of the arc. FYI, Here's a link to more info I posted on my racing site about nut replacement and some other stuff.

Motorsports Village • View topic - Von Weise Acme Nut Repair

 

[Keystone7]

Thanks guys for your information. You gave me some good ideas.

 

[guacharaca]

I used "white lithium grease" for the threaded shaft when I was restoring the actuator. This is what I normally keep in the van for such applications. Of course one has to disassemble the shaft in order to apply it. The proof will be in the pudding in a year or two to see if it worked well.

 

[jsattv]

Used White Lithium Grease (from a tub I purchased at Canadian Tire) when I overhauled my Von Weiss Actuator re Gabshere's excellent Step By Step Instructions and it has worked well for over 5 years now. When I took it apart it was full of Rust and could hardly move.

 

[gabshere]

I've got a VonWeise on my Windgard and I wire brushed it and painted the outer tube with several coats of RustOlem paint using a 2 inch paint brush.

The inside of those screw housings don't have grease in'em, or at least the ones I've had apart didn't. The acme thread screw is cadmium plated steel and the nuts they use appear to be molded glass filled nylon. Over time that cadmium plating will still allow some rust to build up on the screw, which isn't good for that nylon nut!

The inner shaft seal out on the end is "suppose" to keep water and dirt out but they don't last forever especially if rust builds up on the inner tube. I have made new seals for the VonWeise with automotive radiator hose and SS hose clamps and only tighten the end that runs out on the inner shaft tight enough to make it seal. I suppose that those factory seals are still available from VonWeise though since they are still in business.

There is a thread here started by me that shows how I replaced the nylon nut with a brass one and I actually put a bunch of light grease inside that one to make sure that it had lube. It's been up and running now for over a year I think and it's doing fine. When I run it down to 139W it will pick up some of that lube, which collects at the bottom when the dish is up in the upper part of the arc. FYI, Here's a link to more info I posted on my racing site about nut replacement and some other stuff.

Motorsports Village • View topic - Von Weise Acme Nut Repair

I like the wire brush idea with a rustOlem type paint job just didn't know how long it would endure. the seal replacement / repair sounds interesting i think i seen a pic of it posted here somewhere just didn't ask. I've got mine covered with duct tape to help it endure the sunlight / uv's . i think the zerk fitting is one downfall of the vonwise actuator and have considered adding one. might have to make it a project soon

 

[Anole]

A = white lithium
A+ = molybdenum disulfide (used for axle bearings?)

Others in the past have emphasized the importance of cleaning rust off the screw.
Maybe try Scotchbrite pad instead of steel wool.

 

[Magic Static]

I use a "Moly" type grease that is used for CV joints on drive axles

 

[Lone Gunman]

The lube I used is some stuff I got from where I used to work. It is a relatively high fluid type grease but not watery like oil. It's also a lithium based grease too. My theory is that with a semi-fluid grease, when the dish is up in the arc then that fluid grease will collect at the lowest point, which is next to the gearbox. And when I run down to 139 then the nut will become submerged in that fluid grease and some of it will wind up back up inside that nut since I drilled a couple of holes in front of where the nut is in that inner tube.

Ennywho, I guess there's probably a thousand ways to do stuff like this. I just went this route because I already had the grease here in the shop.