Grease; Please educate me

[DieselPower]

Well to be honest the synthetic blend grease's spec's for extreme preasure properties are worse than the conventional. It only has a Timken OK load rating of 65 pounds. I guess their trade off for a wider operating range is reduced extreme preasure properties.

 

[DayDreamer]

Straight from the Timken website:

"I saw the phrase “60 O.K. Timken Load” on a tube of lubrication. What does that mean?

Between 1935 and 1972, The Timken Company produced and sold a lubricant test machine that was used to determine the EP (extreme pressure) characteristics of grease and oil lubricants. It became an industry-standard test. A bearing race is mounted on a tapered arbor that is rotating at a high speed. A square, steel test block is then loaded against the rotating race, with the contact area flooded with the test lubricant. The load on the block is increased in increments until the oil film is broken and the spinning race produces a score mark on the test block. The load-value that produces the score is then called the Timken “O.K” load rating.

It was generally assumed that the higher the O.K. value, the more load the lube could hold without the film strength being compromised. However, this is not necessarily the case, and the primary purpose of the test is to determine whether or not the lube has an EP additive. Values higher than 35lbs. indicate the presence of an EP additive."

My interpretation: Grease with a Timken Load rating of 35 lbs. or higher has EP additives. That's the only thing the Timken Load rating is giving you.

 

[DieselPower]

It is still a ASTM standard test used today by all grease manufacturers to indicate the load rating of the grease. The higher the load rating the greater the greases ability to withstand higher loads.

The 35 pound is the low limit for a grease to be accepted as a extreme preasure grease by NGLI standards.

 

[Glowplug]

What d'ya think about Amsoil Synthetic HD Grease? I had just bought some of their synthetic multi-purpose grease before I had read this thread. Little did I know that grease could be so complicated. BTW, I'm talking about for use in tractor, loader, rotary cutter.

 

[DieselPower]

Both of these greases are Lithium Complex and have good compatability with the majority of popular greases used. The GHD looks to have a little higher load handling ability then the GHC while the GHC shows less oil seperation than the GHD. Either of them should work fine for you.

One thing to remember about "synthetic" grease is that the only thing that is synthetic is the oil in the grease. The base properties and additives wear out long before the base oil.

 

[Volfandt]

Is the Traveller brand premium truck & tractor grease any good thats sold at TSC? The label says it meets GC-LB specs and that the formula is a "trade secret".
It has no additional info listed on the tube. I'm guessing Traveller is branded on TSC sold oils, hydraulic fluids and grease. Wonder who makes it for TSC?

Thanks

 

[Volfandt]

Well, the Travellers brand grease seems to work fine so even tho I'm VERY curious as to what the "trade secret formula" is, I'll just continue to use it.

Guess no body here knows it either....

 

[DieselPower]

Didn't see your original post about the Traveller grease. I checked online and I can find no spec sheet for it. It's kind of hard to evaluate it without the technical spec's. I emailed them if they could send it to me. I'll see if I get a reply. It's funny that they list "Formula trade secret" on the tube. Of course it is, no lube manufacturer gives out their blending info.

 

[DieselPower]

Update on Traveller grease. I got a email reply from them this morning and they do not have any spec's on their grease that they could give me.

 

[mikeyd]

While I can appreciate that alot of the members have a much greater understanding about the properties of grease than I will ever have, ultimately I don't think the type of grease you use, as long as it is made by a reputable source, is nearly as important as actually keeping the equipment greased on a regular basis. My dad, a farmer, certainly didn't spend alot of time or money deciding what grease to buy; he bought whatever 5 gallon pail was on sale at Agway. But, growing up on the farm my Dad drilled into my head that you never use a piece of equipment without giving it the once over with the grease gun and you never start a tractor, truck or anything with a motor before you pull the dipstick and check the oil. Overkill? Maybe. But I can tell you I don't ever remember a piece of equipment failing at a lube point or an engine siezing for lack of oil. I left the farm almost 30 years ago but to this day I won't use a piece of my equipment w/o a grease and oil check.