way lube puddling under saddle

We've been going through excessive way lube lately. I've cleaned up under the table and saddle and don't see any leaks. If I cycle the pump 2 or 3 times it seems like most of the lube is pooling under the saddle near the front on the center right hand side. I removed the metering unit for that line and ran some paint thinner through it but it hasn't fixed it.

Ive traced the problem to the front saddle gib. It might have come loose on it's own or it could be because the ground shifted and the machine needed to be re-leveled. At any rate, I've only gotten as far as re-leveling the machine. The Turcite is halfway delaminated off the gib. It's in good shape it just needs to be removed, cleaned and reglued.

Where do you find Turcite glue? I've looked on FadalCNC.com and don't se it.

Thanks.

Ultra sonically cleaned the metering units and that seemed to solve the puddling. The right Y way feels a little dry. There's a thin film on it but it's not shiny and wet looking. How do you know how much film depth is correct?

as you mentioned a good test is to see if the waylube pump gets stiff if you manually cycle it. if it doesnt, you have a problem / big leak / broken old hoses. if your ways don't make little trickles of oil pretty well distributed around the machine, you have a different problem.

buying a new set of metering valves should set you back like $120 or something for both the saddle and head manifold with all the meters. it is very much so worth that preventative maintenance cost vs. having to pull the whole table and saddle off to redo the turcite.

i caught mine in the nick of time. all the old rubber hoses had broken and I had to replace all of them and all the metering manifolds. the machine had set idle for an unknown period of time in a warehouse between the previous owner and me. I posted about it. you can replace all the stuff without taking off the table.

waylube is boring, and dirty and a pain in the ass - but it is Very important. just fix it right and spend a (very) little $

What age is the machine? Later machines are PDI type and there is no flpw when the pump is running.

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Originally Posted by ifixcnc

What age is the machine? Later machines are PDI type and there is no flpw when the pump is running.

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this is a good point. my machine is 1992 and has the older style waylube similar to that you'd see on a bridgeport machine - not the air powered one. surely there's a way to repeat the experiment though just using the different mechanism.

Thanks for chiming in guys. The machine's a 1994 PDI type. All lines are either nylon or copper. Manifold assemblies have gone up. $300-400 each now. Still a good value compared to re-doing turcite.

I've been pulling out the gibs one at a time and cleaning them. They are surrounded by crud, through holes plugged etc. I've picked up some kerosene to flush things out but am worried that this will force the crud into the ways and make things worse. Is this a valid concern?

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Originally Posted by ddgman2001

Thanks for chiming in guys. The machine's a 1994 PDI type. All lines are either nylon or copper. Manifold assemblies have gone up. $300-400 each now. Still a good value compared to re-doing turcite.

I've been pulling out the gibs one at a time and cleaning them. They are surrounded by crud, through holes plugged etc. I've picked up some kerosene to flush things out but am worried that this will force the crud into the ways and make things worse. Is this a valid concern?

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Fadal Replacement Parts Lubrication

the manifolds here are like $80 ea. or less

Kero is good for everything, the factory PM used a high pressure pump. The K1 will break down the gunk.

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Originally Posted by mflux_gamblej

Fadal Replacement Parts Lubrication

the manifolds here are like $80 ea. or less

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Could that be for the non-PDI system?

Here's what my part looks like.

http://www.fadalcnc.com/index.php/lub-0042.html

Fadal used Bijur brand lube parts, maybe cheaper else where? The high preassure flush was for non pdi. PDI just drop the tank and fill it with Kero. Then manualy pump it on and off to get flow. K! would pour out all over as it is thin.

Thanks for clarifying that ifixcnc.

It turns out, cleaning the metering units didn't work, it just shifted the over-oiling problem to the Y axis ball screw. New manifold just arrived. Hope this solves it.

So the new saddle metering unit did the trick. Flushed with two tanks of Kerosene. Replaced the front and rear X way metering units. The front way seems to receive a thicker coating of lube than the rear one. The rear receives what I'd think as the minimum amount. Has anyone found a fix for this?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mflux_gamblej

as you mentioned a good test is to see if the waylube pump gets stiff if you manually cycle it. if it doesnt, you have a problem / big leak / broken old hoses. if your ways don't make little trickles of oil pretty well distributed around the machine, you have a different problem.

buying a new set of metering valves should set you back like $120 or something for both the saddle and head manifold with all the meters. it is very much so worth that preventative maintenance cost vs. having to pull the whole table and saddle off to redo the turcite.

i caught mine in the nick of time. all the old rubber hoses had broken and I had to replace all of them and all the metering manifolds. the machine had set idle for an unknown period of time in a warehouse between the previous owner and me. I posted about it. you can replace all the stuff without taking off the table.

waylube is boring, and dirty and a pain in the ass - but it is Very important. just fix it right and spend a (very) little $

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Hello Sir,
I opened the covers of 4020 fadal and no chance to see the mettering valves.
How you can do that without lift the table?

Best regards

Remove the Teleflex way covers. It is pretty easy but be careful. They are spring loaded.. What I do for mine is use vice grips to hold on to the spring and leave them on. The manifold assembly is on the left side way cover.