cutting oils

Where do you guys buy ,and who makes there own . Jeez this stuff is expensive . I've been using really light motor oil up to now . Because I don't have any coolant systems on my machinery I haven't bothered with any because of the mess . Maybe a wee spray mist in the near future now that I have a decent compressor . The thing that concerns about the spray mist is when it gets airborne . Anyways ,I'm looking to buy some cutting/coolant oil .

Sean

It depends on what you are making and the size of your set-up.......if you're planning to shift a lot of metal quickly with your Colchester Triumph then it's pumps, pipes, 'pro' quality fluid etc etc.....

......If it's just a small lathe in the shed then get some 'neatcut' from Warco or similar, pour some in a jam jar with small bristle brush pushed thru a hole in the lid and keep it in the lathe tray...'splosh' method of application works well....

Sean,

Look up Smith and Allan in Darlington, their website lists all manner of oils and it includes soluble oil. They also do mail order which should help you living where you do.

Regards Brian

I use neat cutting oil which I know isn't strictly a coolant but check out these folks... **LINK**

5 litres postage free for £20. I use them for my slideway and headstock oil too - similar prices.

Usual caveats - just a satisfied customer.

Jon

Brian thanks for the heads ups. Hadnt heard of them

Just looked them up.......

For the occasions when i need to provide some lubricant while turning in the lathe, i use the spray cans of Trefolex CDT cutting oil for steel (that's a product available in Australia, not sure what the UK equivalent would be), and WD40 for aluminium and associated alloys. Brass and similar soft metals i usually turn dry.

Any old oil will do in a pinch. Gearbox oil has extreme pressure additives that may be helpful for cutting pressures etc. (That's the orrible sulfur smell it has.) Ordinary machine oil can actually work better than conventional cutting oil and water when screwcutting. It lubricates better than coolant.

I personally don't like flood coolant because of the staining it leaves on machinery. That isn't a consideration in a commercial environment where the issue is to get parts made as quickly as possible and to budget, and the work itself can dictate there is no other option.

There may be occasions where coolant is desirable in the home workshop, but I suspect they will be rare.

I also use neatcut, and as per Jon Gibbs's post above, use whoever happens to be cheapest for 5L on eBay.

I use proper cutting oil only when needed, eg. screwcutting. For general turning on steel and ally I use a jar with a mix of old oil and paraffin, diesel, whatever got in the jar. Just an old brush to put it on. For special aluminium turning WD40 is good, buy in big cans not spray tins.

I use carbide so for steel i mostly run dry unless im cutting something nasty then i use neat cutting fluid applied with an acid brush ( shell dromus i think ) but this is mostly used for drilling and tapping .

For alloy i use wd40 to stop it welding to the carbide tip , i have seen a recent video on youtube where denatured alcohol was used and as it flashes off quickly it doesn't leave the oily residue like wd40 does .

I bought 5 litres of Rocol Ultracut 370 about 20 years back. Use it diluted around 40 to 1 when needed. Maybe little over half way through the bottle, including filling the tank on the 1024.

Synthetic means expensive, maybe £100 now £40 then, but it does go a long way and isn't so bad as old style suds for staining et al. Best to wipe when finished tho'. Doesn't go off in the tank either. Worst point is that its so slippy that you need to periodically clean up chuck jaws and collets or things don't hold as well as they should.

Clive.

I bought some Rocol cutting oil years ago; not sure what type;that had to be diluted about 40 or 50:1 with water. The lathe in question was only occasionally used & quickly got coated in rust. Hence, I would now stay away from water soluble solutions

I get good results with a spray can of Drilling and Tapping Spray from Beal (UK) Ltd, Leeds. Not expensive, and I guess not super clever, but it can be a good coolant for a tough job (or an elderly cutter) straight from the tin. Not smelly, not staining. It also blows swarf away, and can reach into holes, better than a brush and less fierce than an air-line.

They also do a wide range of other aerosols, including belt dressing, chain & cable lube, and one called Service Lube described as a clean and stable lubricant, so good for getting horses into loose boxes, I'm sure.

Cheers, Tim

Edited By Tim Stevens on 13/10/2017 15:36:07

I use soluble oil mixed with water in a hand spray. Works well and not too messy. I also use tapping compound when cutting threads or drilling sometimes.

Interesting. I use Rocol at 40 - 50 to 1 (ish) dilution. Sam also used Rocol at similar dilution.

No rusting or staining problems for me. Mega rust problems for Sam.

Pity Sam can't remember what type he used.

But I do wipe off and (usually) lightly oil the lathe bed before shutting down for the day. after using coolant. Tedious on the 1024 because the saddle is so close to the flat parts of the bed that it tends to drag coolant underneath needing few back'n forth to get it all out.

My experience is that the diluted Rocol Utracut 370 is a lot easier to wipe off properly than old style suds. If I'm going to be doing a lot of coolant work I anoint the bed first with my preferred heavy duty & way oil, Castrol Magna BD68 but anything similar from a decent brand name will do fine. Probably helps that the 1024 has a bed lubrication system driven by saddle movement feeding oil from the apron.

Clive.

Castrol Hysol Excel [ now called Alusol A ] No foul odours, no staining/ rusting, leaves a good lubrication film on the machine and Long sump life, works across a wide variety of Ferrous / non ferrous metals.

The fluid turned white when mixed but it was years ago (I still have some in a bottle !!) & to be fair we only used the lathe every few months for turning shims for joinery cutters etc & it was just left in a shed after use.

I made the comment because some forumites have to keep their equipment in sheds that may be subject to some condensation or temperature differences . If rusting is a problem then this stuff would only exacerbate the issue I am sure. For my money, with a nearly new lathe & mill, I would try to avoid water soluble solutions, although things have changed over 25 years & regular maintenance would help. Plus one does get a lot for one's money

Edited By Sam Longley 1 on 13/10/2017 17:32:14

I can vouch for that, and it makes a noticeable difference to the finish on steel. No problems with rust or smells.

I got mine from an ebay supplier in a 1 ltr bottle but the stuff has removed the writing from the label so I can't tell you who supplied it.

Brian

I was recently given some pretty red Rotabroach cutting and tapping fluid. It works very well, especially when tapping ally.
Looking up the ingredients it is fish and water flea oil, so not unlike wd40.
For general cutting I use machine mart neat cutting oil, messy but it works.

Wow. How many water fleas does it take to make a litre of water-flea oil? The mind boggles.