Good lubricant for assembly

On Wednesday, 30 May 2018 00:39:59 UTC+3, jfitch wrote:
On Tuesday, May 29, 2018 at 1:03:41 PM UTC-7, Charlie M. (UH & 002 owner/pilot) wrote:
Agreed.
Vaseline is better than dry or old lube.
Cheap and easy to get.
Easy to use.

If assembling for a season, maybe something better.
Keep in mind, very limited movement so lube quality is less of an issue..
Yes, some may say the "wings will fall off" if you use the wrong lube. In this case, not likely.

I can't agree with the "anything" specification. The main pins do not move, but the lift and drag pins clearly do work in flight, with considerable pressure on them. Any glider a few years old will show signs of wear, galling, or Brinelling on those pins. From this is seems to me that something with some extreme pressure ingredients is desirable.

I bet the wear is mostly due 1) sand and dust getting into lubricant, 2) rigging with force instead of correct technique. Light-coloured lubricant is better in this respect, it turns into black when dirty, telling you that interval between lubrication is too long.

On Tuesday, May 29, 2018 at 11:58:04 PM UTC-7, krasw wrote:
On Wednesday, 30 May 2018 00:39:59 UTC+3, jfitch wrote:
On Tuesday, May 29, 2018 at 1:03:41 PM UTC-7, Charlie M. (UH & 002 owner/pilot) wrote:
Agreed.
Vaseline is better than dry or old lube.
Cheap and easy to get.
Easy to use.

If assembling for a season, maybe something better.
Keep in mind, very limited movement so lube quality is less of an issue.
Yes, some may say the "wings will fall off" if you use the wrong lube.. In this case, not likely.

I can't agree with the "anything" specification. The main pins do not move, but the lift and drag pins clearly do work in flight, with considerable pressure on them. Any glider a few years old will show signs of wear, galling, or Brinelling on those pins. From this is seems to me that something with some extreme pressure ingredients is desirable.

I bet the wear is mostly due 1) sand and dust getting into lubricant, 2) rigging with force instead of correct technique. Light-coloured lubricant is better in this respect, it turns into black when dirty, telling you that interval between lubrication is too long.

My glider pins are cleaned with degreaser and relubed with fresh grease on EVERY assembly, and it is never left assembled for more than a few days. When I rig it, the procedure I follow aligns everything such that little or no force is used to install wings or pins. I NEVER use the "force it together" rigging aids that seem popular, if it does not easily slide together I correct the misalignment before proceeding. The grease I use is near white in color, but is never used for a second assembly - it is cleaned off and replaced with fresh. Nevertheless, there is wear (that looks like galling) on the lift and drag pins.

I have yet to see a glider with more that 500 hours or so that does not exhibit some wear on these pins.

That may suggest that it doesn't matter what you do to them, but I do try anyway.