Is petroleum jelly ideal for *MECHANICAL* lubrication?

Coodude26 · Mon Dec 07, 2009 9:11 pm

I only ask because google kept displaying results talking about...it doesn't matter. Basically I've got a piston slightly bigger than 3", made from PVC, inside a 4" PVC tube and I need to know if Vaseline/Petroleum Jelly (they're the same thing) will work for lubricating them.

Thanks.

VH_man · Mon Dec 07, 2009 9:17 pm

go to lowes and get some lithium grease. It will work 500X better and put up with the constantly changing environment surrounding it.

In a pinch, just color really darkly on a peice of paper with a #2 pencil, and then rub the powder all over your piston. It will go away after a while, but it is a great mechanical lubricant.

Coodude26 · Mon Dec 07, 2009 9:26 pm

I know there's some White Lithium Grease at my hardware place, is that the same?

VH_man · Mon Dec 07, 2009 9:35 pm

exact same thing

Ragnarok · Tue Dec 08, 2009 1:23 am

Coodude26 wrote:...and I need to know if Vaseline/Petroleum Jelly (they're the same thing)...

Not in the slightest. Vaseline is a brand name, a trademark of a company that typically sells petroleum jelly. (The company also sells a lot of moisturisation products)

You might as well say that "Ford" and "Car" are the same thing.

This post was brought to you by the Foundation For Understanding Generic Trademarking. (FUGT)

@VH_Man: Graphite is a very respectable lubricant (under the right circumstances), but if you're going to use it, buy it in powder form from a DIY store, don't go about annihilating pencils.

Coodude26 · Tue Dec 08, 2009 5:44 pm

My bad, I'm just happy to see they sell 100% petroleum jelly instead of skimping out on ingredients.