# Lathe headstock oil question



## Six O Two (Nov 25, 2022)

I hope this is pretty straightforward but oil discussions can be such a can of worms...

I need to replenish or replace the oil in my lathe's headstock. The user manual calls for iso vg 32 oil in the headstock (iso vg 68 in the apron, which I already have). I'm led to believe that SAE 10w is equivalent to ISO 32.

I've found these two different oils at Canadian tire:
$13.99 MotoMaster Compressor Oil for Industrial Type Air Compressors ISO 32, 946-mL
$6.99 MotoMaster Non-Detergent Motor Oil, 946-mL

Is there any reason I shouldn't just go for the cheaper one?


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## phaxtris (Nov 25, 2022)

what lathe do you have ? 

lots of guys use hydraulic oil in the headstock, myself included, cant remember at the moment but i believe i have aw 32 in myne


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## YotaBota (Nov 25, 2022)

Where's @YYCHM when you need him???? 
I know there's a thread on oils but I haven't found it yet.


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## YYCHM (Nov 25, 2022)

YotaBota said:


> Where's @YYCHM when you need him????
> I know there's a thread on oils but I haven't found it yet.



Here is one.... https://canadianhobbymetalworkers.com/threads/lathe-gearbox-oil.2198/  But I don't think it's the one you are thinking of......


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## TorontoBuilder (Nov 25, 2022)

Six O Two said:


> I hope this is pretty straightforward but oil discussions can be such a can of woms...
> 
> I need to replenish or replace the oil in my lathe's headstock. The user manual calls for iso vg 32 oil in the headstock (iso vg 68 in the apron, which I already have). I'm led to believe that SAE 10w is equivalent to ISO 32.
> 
> ...


according to the resources I've seen yes on a viscosity basis SAE10W is equivalent to ISO VG32.

That said I bought hydraulic oil from canadian tire for my chipmaster gearbox. They have a 32 ISO product too






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					www.canadiantire.ca


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## TorontoBuilder (Nov 25, 2022)

TorontoBuilder said:


> according to the resources I've seen yes on a viscosity basis SAE10W is equivalent to ISO VG32.
> 
> That said I bought hydraulic oil from canadian tire for my chipmaster gearbox. They have a 32 ISO product too
> 
> ...


or this cheaper one






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## YYCHM (Nov 25, 2022)

Lubricant Cross Reference Chart (for ways, spindles, worm gears, etc)
					

We have touched on this subject in various threads in the past.  To date, this is the most comprehensive cross reference chart I have seen. It list 118 manufacturers and their “brand” of lubricants for some generic and machine tool specific applications...




					canadianhobbymetalworkers.com


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## Six O Two (Nov 25, 2022)

YYCHM said:


> Here is one.... https://canadianhobbymetalworkers.com/threads/lathe-gearbox-oil.2198/  But I don't think it's the one you are thinking of......



Yeah, there's also:








						Canadian Sources for Hobbyist Quantities of Oil
					

I've been running around in circles on this and I want to put it to bed so I can get to using my new lathe! I bought a CX706 from Busy Bee and the manual states to use a 20W machine oil for everything except the gearbox, and Mobilgear 627 in the gearboxes (apparently this is now called Mobilgear...




					canadianhobbymetalworkers.com
				



and this one has a lot of oil talk as well...








						Probably pushing the limits
					

I wonder if all my colleagues in the lub lab at my old employer are retired...... I'll make a few calls and see what I find.....   Temperature has a huge impact on corrosion of all types. I think @Brent H might be onto something.   How many of you know that putting a car in the garage during the...




					canadianhobbymetalworkers.com


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## Six O Two (Nov 25, 2022)

phaxtris said:


> what lathe do you have ?
> 
> lots of guys use hydraulic oil in the headstock, myself included, cant remember at the moment but i believe i have aw 32 in myne



Mine's an older Willis (US rebadger of import lathes) 13x40. Essentially a Dashin Prince.


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## Six O Two (Nov 25, 2022)

TorontoBuilder said:


> That said I bought hydraulic oil from canadian tire for my chipmaster gearbox. They have a 32 ISO product too
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Hey, thanks for these recommendations! Not sure I'll ever need 5 gallons of the stuff, but with that lead, I managed to find it in 5L quantities in-stock at my local store. Should be perfect.





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I was worried that the AW designation was like the EP designation and potentially damaging to brass, but from my reading, it seems to be zinc-based and should also be ok to use on yellow metals. You guys probably knew this already.


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## TorontoBuilder (Nov 25, 2022)

Six O Two said:


> Hey, thanks for these recommendations! Not sure I'll ever need 5 gallons of the stuff, but with that lead, I managed to find it in 5L quantities in-stock at my local store. Should be perfect.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Oh great. the ISO 68 is not available in 5L

It's nice when you can get what you need at Canadian tire rather than having to hunt down speciality supplier like I had to for my variator equipped lathe


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## Six O Two (Nov 25, 2022)

TorontoBuilder said:


> Oh great. the ISO 68 is not available in 5L
> 
> It's nice when you can get what you need at Canadian tire rather than having to hunt down speciality supplier like I had to for my variator equipped lathe



Canadian Tire is a 40 minute drive to the next town over for me, but I get what you're sayin' 

About the 5L ISO 68, do you mean in general, or currently at your store? Because clearly they sell it, or sold it at some point.





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## PeterT (Nov 26, 2022)

I bought this from my local CT a while back, been working well


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## TorontoBuilder (Nov 26, 2022)

Six O Two said:


> Canadian Tire is a 40 minute drive to the next town over for me, but I get what you're sayin'
> 
> About the 5L ISO 68, do you mean in general, or currently at your store? Because clearly they sell it, or sold it at some point.
> 
> ...


damn. There was none online when I looked and none at my local store either.... now I'm pissed


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## PeterT (Nov 26, 2022)

I've heard the NAPA type generic auto parts dealers & Princess Auto also carry this kind of oil too, although container size & viscosity always seems to vary. CT happened to work out for my requirements. I hate storing pails of stuff I'd be hard pressed to use in a lifetime, so if you can find a share buddy & just use a nice clean container like windshield washer fluid or whatever. I use the same stuff for the lathe 'drip mat' system feeding by gearbox, occasional wipe for feed/lead screw etc. Its useful to have around the shop.


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## historicalarms (Nov 26, 2022)

TorontoBuilder said:


> according to the resources I've seen yes on a viscosity basis SAE10W is equivalent to ISO VG32.
> 
> That said I bought hydraulic oil from canadian tire for my chipmaster gearbox. They have a 32 ISO product too
> 
> ...


  The viscosity might be the same between the 10W & 32 ISO  but the ISO is probably a non-detergent oil that wont foam up during use, the 10W may foam up enough to hinder/interfere with the small "splash drain-drip holes" use in a lot of off-shore lathes to lube the headstock bearings


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## Proxule (Nov 26, 2022)

ISO 32 46 or 68 hydraulic oil. With or with out AW additives
Your second CT link will work perfectly.


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