Welding and cutting oil
David Todtman
for cutting fluid. Prior to welding (especially tig) near the hole, I clean
the metal with lacquer thinner.
Is this the right solvent. Can I use paint thinner for a solvent? What
would be ideal?
What about cutting fluid; should I be using something specially formulated
in my drill press for cutting fluid instead of automotive oil? Automotive
oil can be got cheep for this purpose in yard sales from time to time.
TIA,
David Todtman
Ernie Leimkuhler
Todtman <dtodtmanR...@shaw.ca> wrote:
> This has come up for me several times: I drill a hole in steel using oil
> for cutting fluid. Prior to welding (especially tig) near the hole, I clean
> the metal with lacquer thinner.
>
> Is this the right solvent. Can I use paint thinner for a solvent? What
> would be ideal?
>
Simple green or concentrated 409 is a lot simpler and less toxic.
> What about cutting fluid; should I be using something specially formulated
> in my drill press for cutting fluid instead of automotive oil? Automotive
> oil can be got cheep for this purpose in yard sales from time to time.
>
> TIA,
> David Todtman
>
>
I use soluble oils for all steel work.
1 part oil to 6 - 9 parts water, depending on what I am using it for.
I have used lots of different brands.
David Todtman
Less toxic for me and the enviornment and way cheaper too. I feel like
saying "Duh!." Thanks.
Soluble oil: Where is this type of product usually sold? Industrial supply
outlet? (e.g., Granger). Got any name brands?
Ciao,
David Todtman
Ernie Leimkuhler
Todtman <dtodtmanR...@shaw.ca> wrote:
> Yeah, 409 or a similar cleaner makes so much more sense than a solvent.
> Less toxic for me and the enviornment and way cheaper too. I feel like
> saying "Duh!." Thanks.
>
Any commercially available Simple Green clone will work fine.
Zep sells one called Z Green.
> Soluble oil: Where is this type of product usually sold? Industrial supply
> outlet? (e.g., Granger). Got any name brands?
>
Industrial suppliers, commercial hardware dealers, machine tool dealers.
When you mix in the water they form an emulsion so it looks like pastel
colored milk.
Many brands, I have no particular preference.
I usually just load it into spray bottles and spritz it as I need it.
> Ciao,
> David Todtman
>
>
Gary Coffman
>What about cutting fluid; should I be using something specially formulated
>in my drill press for cutting fluid instead of automotive oil? Automotive
>oil can be got cheep for this purpose in yard sales from time to time.
Automotive oil is about the worst thing you can use as cutting fluid.
It is designed to prevent metal to metal contact. Drilling requires
metal to metal contact.
The primary purposes of cutting fluids are to carry away heat and
chips to avoid destroying the temper of the bit, and to prevent buildup
of a false edge. For steel, water works best for this. To avoid rust,
a soluble oil, which is not a high pressure lubricant, is added to
the solution. Suitable soluble oils are available from any machinist
supply store (ie MSC, McMaster Carr, etc). It doesn't take much,
dilutions vary between 10:1 and 50:1 depending on the soluble
oil chosen.
Note that aluminum is drilled and cut using plain kerosene instead
of water as the cutting fluid because the hot metal has undesirable
reactions with water.
There are all sorts of proprietary solutions sold for cutting metal,
but water based and kerosene based solutions will do 99.9% of
the drilling and cutting jobs you'll ever face.
Tapping is another matter. You need a high sulfur oil designed
for the purpose on steel, and a proprietary solution like TapMagic
for aluminum.
For cleanup, Simple Green works fine for removing the soluble
oils. A stronger polar solvent like Fantastic or a TSP solution is
needed to remove kerosene or the tapping fluids. A 50/50 mix
of acetone and xylene works too, particularly if you need a water
break free surface for painting, though the fumes are a bit toxic.
Gary
David Todtman
Sometimes something is so obvious that one is astonished when one 'sees the
point.' Thanks for the point about automotive oil. Yes, it is designed to
prevent metal to metal contact.
On the info from you and Ernie re soluble cutting oil: I got some and used
it today. Works like a hot darn. It keeps the process noticeably cooler.
It is not as messy as motor oil nor does it smoke when used.
Thanks again.
On another topic, I tried tig brazing a few days ago. That too worked like
a hot darn. Nice process.
Ciao,
David Todtman
"Gary Coffman" <ke...@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
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