It was actually originally a repeller, mostly made of Stoddard solvent. The original idea was to use WD-40 to clean out surfaces of machining oils, water, general crud, etc. so a lubricant can be introduced to fresh metal. In fact, one of the things it is good for is getting rid of lubrication! Somehow, probably with the help of marketing people, WD-40 could "do" both jobs. William Donzelli aw288(a)osfn.org

On Fri, 9 Jun 2000, William Donzelli wrote: And don't forget the urban legends crowd, who insist that WD-40 can treat arthritis (!)

I think it is just the old lubricant residue. When I rebuild radio dynamotors, I always repack the bearings with synthetic lubricants. The time consuming job of the operation is getting the old crap out of the bearings. WD-40 works like a charm, but yes, I run into the residue, and I would rather not use a whole can of the stuff for each bearing! Acetone works well to get the rest of the stuff out. I put a little acetone in small cup and dip the bearings. The gunk comes right out and floats on the surface. It is indeed waxy. Be careful around plastics, of course. And for those that think this is Off Topic, remember that those of us with card readers and punches will have to go thru the motor rebuild process sooner or later (preferrably sooner). William Donzelli aw288(a)osfn.org

ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk (Tony Duell) wrote: Hi For us yanks, paraffin is what we call kerosene, not the stuff we make candles from. Dwight

The main ingredient of WD-40, Stoddard solvent, is a form of paraffin (kerosene). The grease and oil on some of these punches/readers is creeping up on 40 years old. It just isn't any good anymore, even if it "looks OK". Most fans, too. William Donzelli aw288(a)osfn.org

Tony Duell <ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk> wrote: Part of it is probably that people who would *like* to be clueful about such things don't know what is should actually be used for (if anything).

On Fri, Jun 09, 2000 at 11:19:16PM -0000, Eric Smith wrote: WD40 seems to work OK for lube while honing cylinders in car engines. But it doesn't have to hang around long for that... Can anyone suggest a spray lube that *is* a good permanent lube? The one riveted hinge on the back door to my house squeaks a lot, and of course there's no hole to dribble real live oil in (if I had designed it, there'd be a grease nipple, but no one ever asks me!). WD40 fixes it for a few months at a stretch, but the NON-riveted hinges have been totally silent ever since I packed them with wheel bearing grease, years ago. John Wilson D Bit

You can use WD40. However, you need to add some Molybdenum Disulfide, which is one of those compounds they put in grease in order to make it slippery. The WD40 will evaporate, or whatever it does, leaving the moly-disulfide behind to do the job. You'll have to buy about a pound at some industrial supply house, and it will cost about the 5% if what a 1-ounce bottle at one of the rare suppliers (I couldn't find one when I last bought a pound) that do have it would cost. Moly-disulfide is a dry powder, and a 1-pound quantity would be a hundred lifetime supplies. Once you have it, you'll find that it works for LOTS of lube applications. Dick ----- Original Message ----- From: John Wilson <wilson(a)dbit.dbit.com> To: <classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org> Sent: Saturday, June 10, 2000 9:40 AM Subject: Re: OT Ranting (blather blather blather) Re: In defense of NASA: was Re: Wirin' up blinkenlights

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