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Lubricants


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Hi George,

welcome to the forum. I've purchased many items from Elisabeth and all the oils are genuine top quality. I've also purchase from j Borel hee in the U.S.  and Elisabeth is cheaper even with shipping from France--as long as you can order so that she ships in one shot. 

 

JC

 

Hi Noirrac1j, I live in BErlin, so shipment is "only" 11€. Problem is, as someone already pointed out, it is a bundle, and the oils I do not need are waste of money basically...

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Hi George,

 

Your link appears to refer to a bundle...and it is not what I would buy right off. I'd rather hand pick what I need since oils expire and if you don't use them you will lose the money. All that said, I would get D5, 9010 and some other essentials for the barrel and pallets...there are options, the bundle doesn't have them. Just an opinion though.

 

Cheers,

 

Bob

 

Bob, I was referring to your answer in my post above, thanks. I didn't know oils could expire so fast (how fast exactly?). I will be then searching for the oils you recommend, as per the D5 and the 9010 which seem to be the most used, but what about the others for the barrel and pallets? What should I look for? and also, I need to buy the "blue grease" Mark uses in all his videos, what is the name again?

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Any oil/grease is best kept in a sealed container, in the dark and at cool temp. Kept this way shelf life is normally about 5 years for mineral oils and 7-10 years for synthetics, but the manufacturers will probably err on 2-3 years.  Moebius normaly comes in a small bottle in a metal can with foam liner, which means they can be kept in dark.  If you don't use a lot, then for watches etc I would go for synthetics every time (ie Moebius 9000 series).  More expensive but will keep longer and perform better.

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Just as canthus said, about 5 years of shelf live more or less depending on the oil. A little bit will last you very long and if it is something that is almost never used...it will be in the bin after that period. My rule of thumb for buying oil is according to the movement I work.

 

I check the service data and find out what oils my movements need. If I work on different movements, I research which oil/grease can be equivalent or common to all. Nowadays I'm working mostly on Seikos and Citizen so I got the Seiko lubricants (I keep some of the most popular moebius at hand too from servicing the 2800 family). I still have several project of Japanese watches on the bench so I'm not into the Swiss lubricants for now...that will change when I switch over.

 

In fact, I started servicing Kinetics lately so I bought the moebius quartz oil to use in most everything quartz, electric and of course Kinetic/EcoDrive.

 

I hope this help.

 

Cheers,

 

Bob

 

PS. Check out our section in oils. Many experienced people have shared their system and preferences in this contested topic.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

I's sure this has been covered somewhere. However, I have a couple of automatic wrist watches Eloga movements that need cleaning and lubricating. I have M 8200 for mainsprings do I need/have to purchase the 8201 for these automatic movements?

 

Any thoughts are welcome!

 

Thanks!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well I would definitely start with Moebius 9010 (for train wheels and balance endstones) and 9020 (for train wheels) if you are working on Pocket Watches.

Moebius 9415 is a must for Pallet/Escape wheel teeth.

A quality silicon grease.

Moebius D5 is essential (barrel arbor, motion work).

Molycote DX or Moebius 9501 grease for keyless work.

Moebius 9501 or 9504 for high friction (e.g. Cannon pinion, Setting lever spring and anything at high friction).

Moebius 8200 grease for mainspring.

It's a lot but at a minimum get 9010, 9415, D5 and 8200

I hope this helps.

I've ordered 9010, 9415, D5 and 8200 from cousins, but I'm focussing on pocket watches at the moment - will the above combination still be valid ?

Cheers - Dean

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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  • 5 months later...

Hi dmc,

 

Check out these links:

 

http://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/83-lubricants/?hl=lubrication

http://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/1469-oil-equivalent/?hl=lubrication#entry14332

http://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/83-lubricants/?hl=grease

 

In any case, you should consult the data sheet of the movement you are serviced for proper lubricants and lubrication. Also experience will help determine how accurate the data is and modify accordingly...some oils work and are cheaper and some work better than others. In the end, is the amount and "smart" way of lubricating what really matters.

 

Cheers,

 

Bob

 

PS. Welcome aboard.

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  • 1 month later...

Hi

I've been working or shall we say playing with pocket watches over thee last couple years. Not much choice about oils but it seems as a general oil "Clock oil" for most parts that come into contact and Möbius for pivots. Though always remember No oil is better than too much oil.

Sent from my Lenovo YT3-X90F using Tapatalk

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Hello All;

 

After my last post "DIY of my Rolex Submariner", I have been reading up on watch oils/greases.

With Mark's recommended list of Moebius oils in my hands, I searched the web, and other forums, to see if cheaper alternatives were available.

I have red some very interesting forum threads and one in particular which I like to share. I goes from dry-bearings to Mobile-1 synthetic motor oils. If time, please also read the article-links given by members, on page two: "it's a horror story" and on page 3:  "what can happen to some oils during 5 years".

Before I went on this forum, totally "Ignorant Bliss as for watch oils & grease", I ordered 25gr Synthetic Lithium Grease via eBay (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/262025687985?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT).

Searching for synthetic Lithium grease, this article was informative: http://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/1012/synthetic-greases.

It has some the following properties:

 

NLGI 3

Dropping Point 550°F (288°C)

Penetrating Range 220-250

Viscosity Index 145

Color Dark Blue

 

I try to get the full data-sheet of this grease and was wondering whether it could replace any of the high pressure, heavy duty watch-greases?

Also, are there any forum members who do have experiences with Dr.Tillwich 1-3 & Dr.Tillwich 3-5 oils, and Dr.Tillwich R27 & Dr.Tillwich B52 greases?

Dr.Tillwich datasheets are easy to find, unlike any Novostar watch-oil specifications (unless I'm using totally wrong Novostar search terms?)

There is also Nye Synthetics watch oils, made in the US....... any comments on, or experiences with that?

 

Of course I do appreciate the oil choices by watchmakers who repair watches for a living. They have to justify their choices according to the industry standard and manufacturer recommendation. However, I can't let go of the idea that there must be other oils/greases on the market, maybe used in other applications, which perform just as well as Moebius, but are a whole lot cheaper.

 

After reading the whole day, I'm only more confused and it seems a slippery subject......

 

Looking forwards to your replies.....

 

Roland.

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I have to fess up I only use a generic watch oil, Moebius oils may be the go if you are a watchmaker working on peoples watches for profit, but for a hobbyist like me the prices are a bit over the top, some of the at AU$58.00 for 2cc's Ouch! I could spill that in one hit. 

If my watch oil doesn't last 5 years I will just clean and oil them again, providing I am still capable in 5 years.

 

Max

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Same over here Max. Currently I'm planning on servicing only my own watches, which are two Quartz and my Rolex. Moebius may the best, but to spend well over £100.- for one "pop"........ (By the time they need another service, the oil may be too old)

Like you, I could go for generic (mineral) watch oil, but if I'm in 5 years not able to do servicing myself, I'm facing the same problem as I do now. Hence I'm looking for synthetic watch oils in the hope that they then take longer care of my watch.

I sent a few emails off to Dr.Tillwich (Germany), ABRO (the Synthetic Lithium grease, USA) and Nye Synthetics(USA), asking for datasheets.

As soon as I get any information, I will post it here, for everybody to judge, discuss & decide.

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