Grease ...

bons · June 8, 2009, 10:13am

This year <R7> states:

<R7> Robots are allowed the following additional “non-VEX” components:

* Any material strictly used as a color filter for a VEX Light Sensor.
* Any parts which are identical to legal VEX parts.
* Teams may add non-functional decorations provided that these do not affect the robot performance in any significant way or affect the outcome of the match. These decorations must be in the spirit of the competition. Inspectors will have final say in what is considered "non-functional".
* Any non-aerosol based **grease**, when used in extreme moderation on surfaces and locations that do NOT come into contact with the playing field walls, foam field surface, game objects, or other robots.

This is a change from last year’s <R5> (see: Answered: Graphite, WD40, Grease, etc. - VRC > Previous Games - VEX Forum) where grease was a banned substance.

Because of this change, there’s really not a lot of information out there on grease or other lubricants and what’s best for that axle as it runs through the delrin supports. (Or am I missing something else that’s likely to be lubricated?)

So I’m interested in any thoughts anyone has as to what grease sounds good (lithium, silicone, etc?)
While I believe that powdered graphite is still not legal, I’m also interested in how it compares to various greases from a hobby standpoint. (i.e. if you could use powdered graphite instead of grease, would you?)

corpralchee · June 9, 2009, 3:21pm

Try graphite, I’m not an expert but it is non-aerosol.

JVN · June 9, 2009, 3:48pm

The main place we expect teams to use grease is on the linear slides (this was the “most requested” use). The VEX delrin bearings shouldn’t need grease (look up some information on the material properties of Delrin to understand why).

I think a **very **light coat of white-lithium grease would work very well on the Linear Slide Rails. Nothing else should really need it.

-John

bons · June 9, 2009, 5:29pm

Thanks! I hadn’t thought of the slide rails.

254pride · June 9, 2009, 5:49pm

When it comes to lubrication, there are many different uses. The ability to grease the linear slider is a valuable ability but not the only application. I have found that motors greased with Vaseline have less of a tendency to strip. Also this Vaseline is wonderful when it comes to reducing friction between gears. (i use it on Rubik’s cubes) So if you are having trouble with browning out because of friction between gears this is another great use. A few good things to know when it comes to various types of grease are Vaseline is GREAT for plastic to plastic (just a bit messy). Graphite powder & lithium grease is very good for metal to metal or metal to plastic contact.