Sometimes, in intense mowing of grass, your trimmer starts making unpleasant, gnashing sounds. It complains about the lack of lubrication gearbox. the most intensely loaded unit device. And soon these “warnings” may be followed by a drive jamming
What type of lubricant should I use for the trimmer?
During operation, the mechanical part of the trimmer is loaded with contact forces on the teeth, resistance reactions from adhering grass (sometimes with dirt), dynamic, shock loads due to constantly changing torque. The lubricant for the trimmer gearbox must fully take into account these features, so the selection of the brand must be strictly individual.
The following factors are taken into account:
- Brand manufacturer. Each trademark is reasonably oriented towards home-made lubricants (you can talk about cheap Chinese products later). It applies to manufacturers such as Husqvarna, Stihl, Huter, Makita and others. Domestic trimmers make the exception: for example, Caliber does not indicate the brand of lubricant in the user manual
- Grease viscosity As is known, all lubricating compositions are divided into three groups. highly viscous (colloidal systems containing various additives), plastic compounds of universal application and solid lubricants that soften during operation.
- Good adhesion to the surface of the gearbox parts, as a result of which the lubricant is not squeezed into the gaps or out of the unit.
- The intensity of the consumption of lubrication gear. Here we have to focus on our own experience and recommendations of specialists, since some manufacturers of trimmers, relying on the presence of their service centers, do not give any clear recommendations as to the period of operation of the gearbox between two lubrications.
The consumption of lubricant also depends on the temperature at which it retains its lubricating ability. When the gearbox is heated to 40 ° C, it is considered that it’s working conditions are satisfactory, and lubrication is sufficient.
It is believed that there is no universal lubricant for the trimmer reducer, but this is not quite the case.
A suitable lubricant will be one in which the following components are present:
- Antiwear additives that contain no toxic lead;
- Solid lubricants with the presence of graphite or molybdenum disulphide (the latter is preferable since the lubricity is fully retained for a large range of shaft revolutions);
- Only mineral (inorganic!) Oils, with a high degree of purification.
These requirements are fully met by Gear Grease OREGON lithium greases or Champion EP-0, domestic compositions Oleo-Mas, Litol.24, or Azmol 158, as well as those recommended by the manufacturer of a specific trimmer model.
How to lubricate the gear trimmer?
In the upper part of the body, where the gear unit is installed, there is a technological hole, which is blocked by a screw during operation of the trimmer. This screw is unscrewed, and 1.5 2 ml of lubricant is injected into the hole with the help of the spout on the tube. If the lubricant was purchased in a different package, then an ordinary disposable medical syringe is suitable for this operation.
After that, the screw is installed in its original place. Irrespective of the user’s recommendations, this procedure should be carried out every 10 15 hours when the trimmer is in operation. Other reasons for updating or replacing the gearbox lubricant are independent minor maintenance work (for example, cleaning and washing the gears of the gearbox before the beginning of the summer season), node repair, trimming conservation for the winter period, etc.
If the gearbox assembly is disassembled, it is recommended to altogether remove the remnants of the previous lubricant from the surface of the parts, even if it does not show signs of oxidation and contamination. And only then apply a new oil. After using the lubricant, it is recommended to turn the shaft manually several times and make sure that the lubricant is evenly distributed over all parts of the gearbox.
When lubricating special attention is paid to the following elements:
- Flywheel: on its surface, as a rule, remains of grass stick intensively, and thickening herbal juice creates additional resistance.
- To the starter coil dog, which is constantly in contact with the grooves on the flywheel in the process of switching on the drive. In this case, not only mechanical wear occurs, but also mechanochemical corrosion of the “flywheel-doggy” compound, since the materials of this pair are different (the flywheel is aluminum, and the doggy is steel).
- Bearings, if their seals are worn, and through them, grease residues are squeezed out. In this case, the unit begins to vibrate intensely during loading. It happens with Chinese-made trimmers, so it’s worthwhile to think about replacing the bearing assembly with a better one, for example, from the Swedish company SKF.