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Collection, Preservation and Display of Old Lawn Mowers

Bearings

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is it ok to use grease on the clutch bearing and land roll clutch bearing  and oil on the rest? Also could I flush them using sae30 then use ep90 anyone know where the cheapest place to buy a oil gun

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Edda Mon, 17/04/2017

I use a Wanner 31960 on my three  Certes hand push lawnmowers and it works a treat, I bought it from Stephens lubrication. I don't know if it makes a difference but I use Castrol classic EP 90 oil. I can't really comment on grease only that it does harden over time and the Ransomes mowers were suppplied with oil guns not grease guns.

wristpin Mon, 17/04/2017

Ransomes have always recommend oil , not grease .  I don't suppose that EP90 will do any harm but why not stick to the manufacturer's recommendation?

Oil gun. Don't buy cheap, buy quality, this Wanner was less than £10 on eBay and is the best there is.

 

 

 

DanAcre Mon, 17/04/2017

Thanks for your replies I'm very fussy with maintenance I spent 10 yrs with nilfisk as a engineer so grease going hard I doubt will be a issue  I had to flush out and grease the main clutch bearing as this has no nipples and will regularly get flushed and greased  I can see the other advantage of 30 oil would be to flush dirt away...to a point...I've always used wanner guns tho never had a oil gun  there's a couple of 300-3 which are advertised as grease guns  

wristpin Mon, 17/04/2017

By the "main clutch" are you referring to the centrifugal clutch. If so, that is the one bearing that is greased, just a smear. Over grease it and there will be grease thrown around the inside of the clutch drum with predictable consequences. I'm sure that you realise that bearing only turns within itself when the engine is idling and the clutch disengaged , so it is not hard worked or loaded.

Should  you be referring to the traction clutch within the chain case, it has ( or should have ) an oil nipple. What is important is that you line up oil holes in the top hat and plain bushes so that it can get to both the centre bushes and the large ring bush pressed into the drive sprocket / friction plate.

The most critical lubrication points are the two oilers accessed through the holes in the roller section. If they are neglected it may lead to the seizure of the sections to the shaft. Freeing them off can be a major job.

Fom memory I believe that Ransomes recommend fifty hour lubrication intervals. I can't remember whether I've posted a link to a Ransomes operator's manual but I will add it to this post when I'm within reach of the PC - it covers lubrication and other adjustments.

EDIT . Don't know where I got the 50 hour lube intervals from, see the user manual in my later post  - 8 hour or weekly intervals for most.

DanAcre Mon, 17/04/2017

Thank you wristpin that would be great to have rear rollers are free at the moment I think the last owner had the machine 30 to 40 yrs  to mow his lawns  would there be any chance of a photo/pic of this alignment  just so I get it spot on as it will bug me if I don't. I may have to split the rear roller as it sounds like there's grit in the bearings apart from the clutch tool is there ant other special tools I need ...

Thanks Dan 

wristpin Mon, 17/04/2017

Here's a link to the user manual

https://www.dropbox.com/s/xhxq2m3j8z4pbxp/Ransomes%20Marquis%20owner%27…

Hopefully the gritty noise that you are hearing is only the two roller sections rubbing together when moving independently when turning . If the rollers can be moved independently and you can force oil through the two oilers accessed through the holes in the rollers I would leave the assembly alone. The various recent post regarding the removal of a Morrison rear roller will give you an idea of what is involved.

An old trick for sealing the grease or oil gun on partially blocked nipples was to place a bit of clean cotton cloth over the nipple and then applying the gun and leaning on it while pumping. It would often give just that little bit more pressure through the nipple without the grease or oil squirting out side ways.

 

DanAcre Mon, 17/04/2017

Thank you. I hope so too as all the other bearings are ok bar the front roller which has play in 

Where should I post a spare parts inquiry  please?

DanAcre Mon, 17/04/2017

You've got to love those old manuals... even the micro fish were way better than the electronic web based diagrams 

gtc Tue, 18/04/2017

It does look like 300-2 but it difficult to see clearly

I'm not familiar with Wanner guns, and I'm not sure which models are for grease and which are for oil, hence my question. I take it the one that Wristpin has shown is for oil.

wristpin Tue, 18/04/2017

Yes, it is a 300-2 which has the great advantage of being slim enough to pass through the access holes in Ransomes roller sections and has the right profile connector for the standard nipples.

DanAcre Tue, 18/04/2017

Hi wristpin on some of the listings it advertised as a grease gun? Has yours got a optional seal? Or as I suspect there advertised wrongly..

also what spec/size is the nipple so I can get the right size or is it one size fits all?

thanks 

gtc Tue, 18/04/2017

Yes, the ads are misleading.

What is the difference between a 300-2 and 300-4 and a 300-5?

I haven't been able to find a sales or parts catalog online.