So it happens that I had to open up and restore an older Mitutoyo dial gauge to use in my machine shop.
Many decades ago I'd moved the return spring from it's post to another point to provide for a weaker return action. I had used the gauge back in my teens on a stand for measuring the thickness of balsa wood that I sanded down to use in the making of indoor duration models. The stock return tension was too high and it dented the wood.
So anyway... while I had the back off I was noticing that it didn't seem as smooth as it could or should be. So I figured on oiling it with a roughly 1:20 mix of light oil and mineral spirits.
The idea for this came from my antique camera days where a solvent and light oil mix like this was a good way to both clean and lubricate the escapement actions in the cameras. In this case though I couldn't just dunk it so a small artist's brush was used to apply small amounts of the mixture directly to gear teeth and pivots.
Considering the light body oils I had I pulled out the tin of 3in1. The oil that had accumulated on the top of the can from running down off the spout has been sitting there for a good 8 years or more. And the can of oil was purchased at least 25 years ago. The oil exposed on the outside was still totally liquid with no signs of any jelly like congealing or any other issue.
Yet I see posts from time to time saying that 3in1 gummed up one thing or another. Could it be that they are using a different and cheaper oil now than they did 25 or more years ago? Should I sell my half a tin for collector pricing on Ebay?
Best of all this newly resurfaced gauge that was MIA for a number of years will serve me well in the machine shop. It's the one with the large face and only .25" worth of travel. Best of all the graduations are in .001 steps with .0005 marks as well. And the half thou marks are about an 1/8" apart so seeing movements of down to a tenth is more than practical, it's downright easy. It doesn't have the marks to use for actual sizing at that level but it'll work superbly for comparing and looking for differences.
Many decades ago I'd moved the return spring from it's post to another point to provide for a weaker return action. I had used the gauge back in my teens on a stand for measuring the thickness of balsa wood that I sanded down to use in the making of indoor duration models. The stock return tension was too high and it dented the wood.
So anyway... while I had the back off I was noticing that it didn't seem as smooth as it could or should be. So I figured on oiling it with a roughly 1:20 mix of light oil and mineral spirits.
The idea for this came from my antique camera days where a solvent and light oil mix like this was a good way to both clean and lubricate the escapement actions in the cameras. In this case though I couldn't just dunk it so a small artist's brush was used to apply small amounts of the mixture directly to gear teeth and pivots.
Considering the light body oils I had I pulled out the tin of 3in1. The oil that had accumulated on the top of the can from running down off the spout has been sitting there for a good 8 years or more. And the can of oil was purchased at least 25 years ago. The oil exposed on the outside was still totally liquid with no signs of any jelly like congealing or any other issue.
Yet I see posts from time to time saying that 3in1 gummed up one thing or another. Could it be that they are using a different and cheaper oil now than they did 25 or more years ago? Should I sell my half a tin for collector pricing on Ebay?
Best of all this newly resurfaced gauge that was MIA for a number of years will serve me well in the machine shop. It's the one with the large face and only .25" worth of travel. Best of all the graduations are in .001 steps with .0005 marks as well. And the half thou marks are about an 1/8" apart so seeing movements of down to a tenth is more than practical, it's downright easy. It doesn't have the marks to use for actual sizing at that level but it'll work superbly for comparing and looking for differences.
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