Is moly grease always black?

[Orange 08]

From reading here it seems like I should be using a moly grease. I noticed Kobota or, more likely, the dealer serviced my BX 24 with a grease that was almost clear when I took delivery. Seemed less messy than the black stuff but is it as good?

Any idea what kind or brand it might have been?

The dealer is quite a ways away or I would stop by and ask the shop.

Thanks Mike.

 

[WantedWolf]

I have been called color blind but my molys always been more silver then black

 

[ampsucker]

i have to use moly on the drivetrain of my truck. it's always been a dark, charcoal grey. some might call it silver or black. it has a little sheen to it.

moly is for high pressure applications (such as the u-joints in a driveshaft on a truck) and has high washout resistance but not so good for high speed items like wheel bearings and doesn't really flow into spaces well due to it's pasty nature. a lot depends on the carrier base which is usually lithium "soap" base.

it's a little more exensive and a little harder to find, but would probably be good on the pivot points of a tractor. our local john deere dealer carrys the larger tubes for about 5 bucks apiece.

but i think any decent general purpose grease would work well, too. if in doubt, go with the owner's manual.

amp

 

[Sully2]

I use Moly EP grease for everything that a grease gun lubes. I get mine from TSC and it always looks black to me..???

 

[EddieWalker]

I buy Moly grease too, and it's always been black looking to me. I've seen the lighter colored grease, but never seen it with Moly in it. I would love to find it if it was a lighter color just because it would look nicer and be less obvious of a mess. But then again, it might just create another set of issues that I don't know about.

Eddie

 

[Orange 08]

I buy Moly grease too, and it's always been black looking to me. I've seen the lighter colored grease, but never seen it with Moly in it. I would love to find it if it was a lighter color just because it would look nicer and be less obvious of a mess. But then again, it might just create another set of issues that I don't know about.

Eddie

Thats about where I am also. The clear stuff looks good but I am not sure if it is any good. I have a feeling it might be but I can't find any to get specs on.

 

[Rob_Roy]

Mystik JT6 multi-purpose is a popular grease that looks like vasoline. You could always give the dealer a call and ask what they use; if they confirm that it is JT6 you can find the spec sheet here: http://docs.mystiklubes.com/msds_pi/20027.pdf In my opinion, there are much better greases available.

As for the question about the color of moly grease, most are dark gray or black in color. Schaeffer #229 Ultra Red Supreme is the only exception I can think of, it is an extreme pressure grease with synthetic moly; as the name implies it is red in color.

Greases with moly generally excel in high pressure, slow moving applications; especially if the equipment may not get greased as often as it should. In this situation the moly film will continue to prevent wear even though the grease has been exhausted. The bucket pins on a front end loader or excavator are a good example.

In my opinion, if you are using a high quality grease (adhesive, cohesive, high Timken Load Rating, good water resistance) and your equipment is greased on a regular basis, you would probably see little to no improvement by switching to a moly grease. I would much rather use a non-moly grease that stays in the pins all day rather than a cheap grease with moly that gets knocked out by lunchtime.

 

[AndyMA]

"Molybdenum disulfide is the inorganic compound with the formula MoS2. This black crystalline sulfide of molybdenum occurs as the mineral molybdenite. Natural amorphous form is known as more rare mineral jordisite. More so than other transition metal chalcogenides, MoS2 is unreactive, being unaffected by dilute acids. In its appearance and feel, molybdenum disulfide is similar to graphite and indeed it is widely used as a solid lubricant[1][2] because of its low friction properties, sometimes to relatively high temperatures."

Since Molybdenum disulfide is black, and it is typically used at 3% concentration in the final product I guess it would depend on the color of the base grease

Andy

 

[AndyMA]

I buy Moly grease too, and it's always been black looking to me. I've seen the lighter colored grease, but never seen it with Moly in it. I would love to find it if it was a lighter color just because it would look nicer and be less obvious of a mess. But then again, it might just create another set of issues that I don't know about.

Eddie

Take a look at this one. Lithium with Molly.. Color Gray

http://www.pzlqs.com/Tech/Pdsheet/D...rial/Pdf/PremiumLithiumComplexGreasewMoly.pdf

Andy

 

[DieselPower]

Simple answer to your question is yes, it's all black/gray/silver in color. This is the natural color of the processed Moly.

Unless you have some type of equipment that spec's a Moly grease like a BH or FEL a regular grease will be fine. The Moly grease is a must on BH/FEL type applications due to the design of the lubricated part. In these applications there are extreme loads places over rather small areas on the pins and bushings. Even the best grease can be pressed/squeezed out under extreme loads. The Moly actually forms a solid film lubrication on the pins and bushings and provides a last barier of protection against wear if the base grease is squeezed out. Personally if a Moly grease is required I alway's suggest a grease with 5% Moly by volume.