Tell Me What Oil and Grease for Standard Gauge

Hi Jeff!

Labelle oil & grease is good to use. They have teflon & seem to work well. I have used them for years with success. You can find them at most any toy & train hobby shop. Take Care.

quote:

Originally posted by 1688torpedo:
Hi Jeff!

Labelle oil & grease is good to use. They have teflon & seem to work well. I have used them for years with success. You can find them at most any toy & train hobby shop. Take Care.

Jeff I happen to agree with Keith here. Many complain about the cost but one thing - very important - IMO, is that these are SYNTHETIC lubricants and will not evaporate like we are used to seeing. They will not dry out. The weight (viscosity) and heat ranges are right for our trains (big like SG, to small like HO) and they will not attack anything that I am aware of.

107 for axles and enclosed spaces like that,108 is fine too but a bit heavier, this is what I use for my SG new and old, and 102 is good for rods and gears where any "slinging" might occur.

For enclosed gear boxes use their teflon grease. great stuff.

I'm going to chime in with a third nomination for Labelle. Regardless of what anyone else may tell you, insist on using the best lubricants for your trains. The peace of mind is well worth any additional costs you may incur over other brands.

I use the high-grade LGB synthetic oil, which is a red-tinted gel, on all my engines. It has good adherance quality, and the red tint makes it easy to see where it is applied.

I also use their fine gear lubricant.

I have been using their fine oil and grease on all locomotives since 1978 with no problems.

Like Art, I use the LGB oil for my tinplate trains (previously Std. Gauge and now O gauge). Labelle products are also excellent in every respect. I never go for cheapest when it comes to maintenance products, and prefer to buy what works best even if it costs more.

I have been using Labelle since the mid-90's with great results. Even stuff that has not run in ten years, I was able to get out, and it was still lubed to my satisfaction (I still relubed, but that's just me).

The only other experience I have is with Lionel oil and grease, and when compared with the Labelle, I tossed the Lionel.

I use Labelle grease and oil.

Yes, I have had luck with Labelle too.

But I like using synthetic bicycle chain grease better. Like Pedro's Syn Lube. A little heavier than the Labelle oils. Stays in place. Great for gears, wheels and axles.

I use any synthetic motor oil and synthetic based lithium grease. No problems for years, and it's a heck of a lot cheaper than Labelle. A quart of synthetic motor oil costs as much as a small bottle of Labelle.

What I do is just funnel the remains of all the bottles from a car oil change into a small bottle, and it lasts a very long time, and free.

I figure if it's good enough to run in a car and keep its engine running for a 100,000 miles, it's easily good enough to run on any train.

I agree with jsrfo. Been using lightweight synthetic motor oil for years. As much as I use I'd go broke using Labelle.

As usual I come to OGR with a question and theres already a post running on it within the top 10 posts. At the suggestion of Ives1122, I went with Labelle. So far, so good! I just started running my new 255E, which I cant wait to share with you all shortly. A few laps in the tinplate cars started squeaking horribly loud. Just 1 drop of oil on each axel at each wheel solved the problem!

quote:

Originally posted by jsrfo:
I use any synthetic motor oil and synthetic based lithium grease. No problems for years, and it's a heck of a lot cheaper than Labelle. A quart of synthetic motor oil costs as much as a small bottle of Labelle.

What I do is just funnel the remains of all the bottles from a car oil change into a small bottle, and it lasts a very long time, and free.

I figure if it's good enough to run in a car and keep its engine running for a 100,000 miles, it's easily good enough to run on any train.

This is a fine idea as well. I might make a switch to this, but would want to ask if there has been any effect on any paints?... staining or anything? Also what grade? 5S-30?

I use a lot too, since I run a lot of different trains. Interestingly I took one out of the box last night that had not seen the light of day for at least 5 years, and it still didn't need any new lube added. LOVE that synthetic!

My favorite all-around lubricant is Break Free CLP, a synthetic lubricant originally formulated for small arms under battlefield conditions. It has Teflon, clings well, doesn't get gummy, and is one of the slickest around. It is designed to work under much more severe conditions than could conceivably be encountered in a model train environment. If it works in a machine gun that gets so hot it will burn your hand, it will work in a toy train. It's not awfully expensive and you can find it at any gun shop or sporting goods store that carries firearms.

Nothing wrong with LaBelle, I use their grease and occasionally their oils. One thing I've noticed with LaBelle, their dispensers are kind of brittle, it's easy to crack one if you're not super careful. I've been using Break Free on guns for 20 years or more and it's just as good for trains. For fine work like getting into driving axle bearings I use a dispenser with a long, thin metal tube; the one I use is actually intended for dispensing solvent-type plastic cement. I got it at Ace.

I am pleased that there seems to have been a consensus fifteen months ago concerning synthetic oil - I'm afraid I have re-asked the question under "synthetic automatic transmission fluid for model train lubrication", prompted by a May 2011 article in Model railroader.

 

But, the general discussion has followed similar lines with similar reports as to what is the best stuff to use in modern times.

 

Nothin' like talking something out, is there?

claughton1345,

There are as many choices as there are opinions. In most cases I prefer Lucas'red n' sticky gear lube. It stays wherever it's applied and never drops on the rails. I also use, Lucas' Gun Oil. It's light weight and doesn't create a mess. It carries a military rating. All that matters is that you run your trains. Find oils and grease that works for you. You're the only one who can determine if it meets your needs.