Oil and grease for practice assembly

[crwilsn]

I am working to get to the point that I can service my own movements. In order to do that I have signed up for the the timezone level two course. I have a project movement (eta clone 2836 movement) bought off eBay. The movement seems to be of decent quality and I can take it apart and assemble many times before I do one that I care about.

I figure to become proficient I need at least 10 full times disassembling, cleaning, and reassemble with oil.

I have bought some tools but oils are very expensive, particularly to practice with knowing they are going to be washed off in the next cycle, not to mention the movement may get thrown across the room the first time I try to assemble it. While I know in the long run buying the best is the way to go, for the practice/trial runs I am thinking about using oil alternatives so I don't end up with $100 in consumables if I give up on this crazy idea.

As for the alternatives I am thinking Mobile 1 0w-20 in place of watch oil (D5, 9010, 9415) and Singer sewing machine grease for PML/KT-22. I can find both these around the house and get my technique down prior to investing in the correct lubricants. Both these seem to be alternatives discussed on various watch forums.

While I know these won't suffice for servicing and expecting years of use, will they work to allow me to put the movement together and get it reasonably well adjusted?

 

[ado213]

I have also read these oil will suffice for general use. However, the oils used and stated on Eta service manuals have been carefully selected and developed over years of trials.

The viscosity and longevity of theses oils are imperative to the correct functioning of the timepiece, particularly the 9010 & 9415. f you are serious about the level two course, I suggest you invest in the correct oils now, hey if you change your mind on the course you can always re-sell the oils on the bay or here.

Hats off to you for taking up the challenge and doing the course, it shows your interest and commitment, I think we will have a new watchmaker here guys!!.

 

[rb0087]

I have cleaned and assembled around 5-7 different movements, some of them many times for practice, all using incorrect, cheaper oils. I did a bit of research on the mechanical properties of the various lubricants on the spec sheet, and used oils that I thought would match them well. I have gotten all of these watches to run, eventually all of them keeping good time. Just last week, I bit the bullet and bought the actual recommended lubricants: 9010, HP1300 , 9415 . So I'll make my suggestions based on that experience.

FIrst of all: here's what I used:
9010 replacement: Team Associated 5421 20Wt Silicone shock oil, which has a viscosity of 200cSt.
HP1300 / 9415 replacement: Super-lube 51010 , silicone oil with PTFE nanoparticles, viscosity similar to 80Wt.

Both of those cost less than $10 for enough lube to start up a small watch factory. With that said, I would not necessarily recommend these.
I couldn't tell a big difference between 9010 and the silicone oil, but I have read that the surface tension and flow characteristics of silicone oil make it less than ideal for watchmaking purposes, because it doesn't stay in place as well. With that said, esslinger sells silicone oil for watches/clocks, so maybe it isn't bad.

The biggest difference that I noticed was the difference between HP1300 or 9415 (or D5 for that matter) and the heavy oil that I used (Superlube). HP1300 and 9415 stay where they are put much, much better. The oil that I used spread out on contact with a part, making the lubrication messy, and the surface that needed lubrication without a proper amount of lubricant. Perhaps a thicker oil, such as an ISO320 gear oil, would do better, but while that would be a better value per oz., it would cost about the same for a quart of that as it would a tiny container of HP1300, which is all you need.

Please note that this oil that was too thin/runny was 80Wt equivalent. If you use 0W-20 instead of that, it will be many times worse. HP1300 is around 1300cSt viscosity, while 0W-20 is going to be around 200cSt max. What I'm getting at here is that you're not going to be able to get your technique down if the oil doesn't behave like the correct oil does. I would say that 0W-20 would probably work just fine in place of 9010 for your purposes, but I think that you need HP1300 or D5 and 9415, or suitable alternatives, to really get your technique down. I fully support trying to find alternative oils, but 0W-20 isn't going to cut it. D5 is like a very heavy gear oil, not a thin motor oil.

Best of luck!

 

[crwilsn]

Thanks to all. I ended up bitting the bullet and getting a few of the correct oils. I got:

D5
9010
9415
Novostar barrel grease
KT22 for stem lube

Should cover all the basis and allow me to service eta movements to factory standards.

I will be getting some bottles and offering splits of the oils. More details to follow in a sales thread in a week or so.

 

[crwilsn]

Ok so the oils came in and I had a couple of surprises on the viscosity. First off the d5, 9010 went easily into the bottles without drama. Small eye dropper measured out the split perfect. The barrel grease was thick as expected and I was able to get it in the vials no problem as I was not as worried about waste. The 9415 was the big surprise. While the viscosity is low, it flows like grease. I am still trying to get it transferred but I may have to drop this out of the split as I do not want to risk splitting up 6 shares and loosing my remaining two as waste in the process. The k22 is so thick, it's not worth transferring, especially since it is so cheap. I should have the splits up for sale on the sales forum later today or tomorrow morning.

 

[crwilsn]

Figured out the 9415 and k22 so full kit is a go. Will post details in sales forum.