Correct Flexshaft lubrication

[eknight]

We have seen some spindle bearing failures in the last month due to
incorrect or over-lubrication of the flexshaft. The issue stems from excess
grease making its way into the spindle bearings and causing them to degrade.
As the grease is introduced into the high speed bearings they will
immediately start to heat up and eventually the grease will destroy the
bearing cage. There are two signs that this is happening: 1) the vertically
translating cutting head heats up significantly, 2) there is considerable
amount of hardened dark material around the top bearing. If you discover
either of these to be the case call us immediately.

Lubrication on the flexshaft core should be minimal. We recommend white
lithium grease as the lubricant. It can be found at any hardware or
automotive store. The grease should be applied to the shaft along the
entire length. The grease should be thoroughly worked into the exterior of
the shaft and then all excess grease should be removed. Do not use any
materials such as rags or paper towels to remove the excess grease. These
materials can leave contaminants in the grease that can lead to other
issues. We have found
that applying the grease with bare fingers yields the best results.

Please see the below pictures for examples of correct and incorrectly
applied flexshaft grease.

Best Regards,
Your Carvewright Team.

[7661brian]

The core fell out of my flexshaft and got pretty dirty mostly dust. What is the safest way to clean out the debris? Compressed air? Wipe? I want to do this right.

Thanks, Brian

[geddins]

We have seen some spindle bearing failures in the last month due to
incorrect or over-lubrication of the flexshaft. The issue stems from excess
grease making its way into the spindle bearings and causing them to degrade.
As the grease is introduced into the high speed bearings they will
immediately start to heat up and eventually the grease will destroy the
bearing cage. There are two signs that this is happening: 1) the vertically
translating cutting head heats up significantly, 2) there is considerable
amount of hardened dark material around the top bearing. If you discover
either of these to be the case call us immediately.

Lubrication on the flexshaft core should be minimal. We recommend white
lithium grease as the lubricant. It can be found at any hardware or
automotive store. The grease should be applied to the shaft along the
entire length. The grease should be thoroughly worked into the exterior of
the shaft and then all excess grease should be removed. Do not use any
materials such as rags or paper towels to remove the excess grease. These
materials can leave contaminants in the grease that can lead to other
issues. We have found
that applying the grease with bare fingers yields the best results.

Please see the below pictures for examples of correct and incorrectly
applied flexshaft grease.

Best Regards,
Your Carvewright Team.

Is the top bearing you speak of the point where the flexshaft plugs into the truck?

Thanks

[Kenm810]

Guys that post is nearly 2 years old and out dated,
you would be much better off posting in a more currant up to date thread,
in CW Machine or Toubleshooting.

[CABINET MAN]

My Head Is Spining. I Just Had An Over Heated Flex Shaft And Had To Buy A New Unit, I Was Told By Tech. Support I Needed To Use Liquid Wrench Industial Chain Lub W/ Moly , Which I Did And My Mech. Is Running Right Now. Please,please Let Us Know Which To Use !!!!!

The Flex Line Is Running @ 97 - 98 F

Thx.

[ncamp]

From the manual:

Inspect the core for debris and clean with a lint free
cloth if necessary. The recommended lubricant is a commercially
available chain lube with Moly. Spray the lubricant onto the core
and let sit for an hour. After applying the specified lubricant slide the
core back into its sheath. When near full insertion, the core may
need to be carefully rotated with the fingers to ensure that its square
end engages correctly with the cutting motor. Once the core is fully
inserted in the sheath, it can once again be snapped into the cutting
head...

The recommened lube was changed quite a while back.

[sbyrd82]

Just for my piece of mind and for future reference, what is the nomal temp range on the flexshaft? What temp should I be concerned?

[Kenm810]

The flex-shaft should feel warm to the touch but not uncomfortably hot, most run around 85 degrees, give or that 10 to 15 degrees.
Watch for hot spots, they're the first sign that you my have a problem.
Several folks including myself use hand held inferred thermometers it check the flex-shaft for over heating
along with the rest of the machines moving pasts.

[sbyrd82]

I am sure that someone else has thought of this but just for the sake of arguement, why can't you ty-wrap a sensor to the flex and get a constant reading? I have digital themometer from Radio Shack that has a small bulb about 1 inch long and and 1/4 inch in diameter. Costs maybe 20 bucks. Could set high level alarm. Just a thought.

[Steven Alford]

The flex-shaft should feel warm to the touch but not uncomfortably hot, most run around 85 degrees, give or that 10 to 15 degrees.
Watch for hot spots, they're the first sign that you my have a problem.
Several folks including myself use hand held inferred thermometers it check the flex-shaft for over heating
along with the rest of the machines moving pasts.

So you are saying that the temperature could be anywhere from 70 to 100 degrees??