I've worked on various pedal steel guitars over the last 7 or 8 years, and one thing continues to bug me about the changers (besides the fact that you have to remove everything to get to them). I'm talking about commercially made units that you see on many guitars. They are made with steel axles and aluminum pieces that ride on the shaft and are riveted to sheet metal fingers that connect to the pull rods. The problem that I have seen is that either the original grease used on the axle dries and hardens or the aluminum galls on the steel (maybe because the grease has dried?) and the result is an axle that gets progressively scored and ultimately things get gummed up so much that when you lower string 4 ( E on E9) it doesn't come back all the way to E no matter how tight you get the return spring.
I've run across at least 3 guitars with this problem. Some folks don't believe me when I talk about it. I have come to the conclusion that it is very important to oil the changer on a regular basis with very light oil like sewing machine or gun oil or a Dupont product called Teflon Silicone lubricant. Just a very tiny drop on the cracks between aluminum pieces so that it soaks down to the axle even once a month seems like enough.
Has anyone got a better solution? If I disassemble a changer, polish up the axle and clean the aluminum that rides on it, is it better to use lithium grease or use only light oil when I reassemble?
lubrication for changers
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richard37066
- Posts: 517
- Joined: Sat Dec 11, 2010 11:44 am
- Location: Gallatin, Tennessee, USA
Re: lubrication for changers
Joe -
Conventional wisdom seems to dictate that we NOT use any kind of oil or grease on a changer - be it a fine machine oil or 3-in-1.
Once-upon-a-time I touted the superiority of molybdenum disulphide as a lubricant. It is, indeed, perhaps the best high-pressure lubricant available. As regards its' use on a PSG changer, however, I've had a change of heart.
Any oil or grease will allow the migration of dirt particles down to the bowels of a mechanism. It is a "carrier" with an undesirable trait - it will not evaporate - at least in the immediate future. It then continues to be the medium by which all manner of crud works its' way between moving parts for a long time after its' application.
A Teflon-based lubricant works in a parallel fashion - but with a difference. The "carrier" of the teflon particles is usually a highly volatile solvent. It will transport the teflon particles into the slimmest of spaces and then quickly evaporate - leaving only the teflon behind. There's no remaining fluid through which any grub and grime will be carried to the innards of the mechanism.
I recently tore down and rebuilt a changer for an instrument that I'm refurbing. Upon reassembly, I thoroughly doused all of the parts in a teflon-based lubricant. Yeh, it got a little messy, but the solvent-carrier evaporated quickly and cleanup was a snap. I won't have to be concerned about that changer for a long, long time. When the time does come, however, a little spritz between the fingers should do the trick.
I have but one reservation concerning the above and must admit that I don't have an answer. Will that solvent-carrier attack or otherwise marr, say, a lacquer or automotive type finish on a wooden guitar? I don't have that problem since the exterior of my instrument is formica. Does anyone have a definitive answer to this?
Hope this all helps,
Richard
Conventional wisdom seems to dictate that we NOT use any kind of oil or grease on a changer - be it a fine machine oil or 3-in-1.
Once-upon-a-time I touted the superiority of molybdenum disulphide as a lubricant. It is, indeed, perhaps the best high-pressure lubricant available. As regards its' use on a PSG changer, however, I've had a change of heart.
Any oil or grease will allow the migration of dirt particles down to the bowels of a mechanism. It is a "carrier" with an undesirable trait - it will not evaporate - at least in the immediate future. It then continues to be the medium by which all manner of crud works its' way between moving parts for a long time after its' application.
A Teflon-based lubricant works in a parallel fashion - but with a difference. The "carrier" of the teflon particles is usually a highly volatile solvent. It will transport the teflon particles into the slimmest of spaces and then quickly evaporate - leaving only the teflon behind. There's no remaining fluid through which any grub and grime will be carried to the innards of the mechanism.
I recently tore down and rebuilt a changer for an instrument that I'm refurbing. Upon reassembly, I thoroughly doused all of the parts in a teflon-based lubricant. Yeh, it got a little messy, but the solvent-carrier evaporated quickly and cleanup was a snap. I won't have to be concerned about that changer for a long, long time. When the time does come, however, a little spritz between the fingers should do the trick.
I have but one reservation concerning the above and must admit that I don't have an answer. Will that solvent-carrier attack or otherwise marr, say, a lacquer or automotive type finish on a wooden guitar? I don't have that problem since the exterior of my instrument is formica. Does anyone have a definitive answer to this?
Hope this all helps,
Richard
Re: lubrication for changers
Hi Richard,
Thanks for the feedback. It gives me more confidence to try the teflon silicone. I'm not sure how long it will last before needing replenishing.
Using a light machine oil was recommended to me by a fellow who said they had similar conditions (aluminum on steel) in part of a landing gear on his airplane and the light machine oil worked well. I have had no problem using sewing machine oil on our changers (both my wife and I play) over several years now. I find that the grease oozes out between the fingers whether a person uses oil or not. I know that conventional wisdom warns against using oil on the changer but I'm not sure the conventional wisdom is absolutely correct. We've had no string problems or tuning problems because of our oiling. We use only a tiny drop in the cracks.
Joe
Thanks for the feedback. It gives me more confidence to try the teflon silicone. I'm not sure how long it will last before needing replenishing.
Using a light machine oil was recommended to me by a fellow who said they had similar conditions (aluminum on steel) in part of a landing gear on his airplane and the light machine oil worked well. I have had no problem using sewing machine oil on our changers (both my wife and I play) over several years now. I find that the grease oozes out between the fingers whether a person uses oil or not. I know that conventional wisdom warns against using oil on the changer but I'm not sure the conventional wisdom is absolutely correct. We've had no string problems or tuning problems because of our oiling. We use only a tiny drop in the cracks.
Joe
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richard37066
- Posts: 517
- Joined: Sat Dec 11, 2010 11:44 am
- Location: Gallatin, Tennessee, USA
Re: lubrication for changers
Joe -
Leaving nothing to chance, I always thoroughly clean and polish my instrument and spritz the changer with each string change. It's a regimen which gives me peace of mind and also a pretty guitar to play!
Richard
Leaving nothing to chance, I always thoroughly clean and polish my instrument and spritz the changer with each string change. It's a regimen which gives me peace of mind and also a pretty guitar to play!
Richard