Grease for Fresnel Worm Gear

[Matthew Rogers]

Hey, does anyone know what kind of grease to use on a Fresnel's worm gear? I have some Desisti's and a Baby that could use a little grease for smoother focusing, but wasn't sure if I can use something like a Lithium grease or what.

 

Thanks,

 

Matthew

[Alan Rencher]

Wheel bearing grease, or some other high temp grease would probably be best. White lithium has flammable chemicals in it, so it's probably not the best option.

[Matthew Parnell]

Another option Ive seen is to keep the gear dry and use a graphite powder. This saves the gears getting clogged when dust gets in with the oil/grease.

[Matthew Rogers]

Another option Ive seen is to keep the gear dry and use a graphite powder. This saves the gears getting clogged when dust gets in with the oil/grease.

 

That's what I would rather do, but I think I would somehow have to clean out all the grease that is left and I am not sure how to do it well without a crap load of tear down of the lights.

[Alan Rencher]

I don't know about the Desistis, but Mole light break apart with 4 screws.

[Alan Rencher]

If my memory serves me correctly, you can also remove the linear gear from a Mole Fresnel without taking it apart. One of the knobs has a set screw: remove it, and slide the shaft from the other side.

[Dino Giammattei]

You might also take some sort of fine grit sand paper and smooth out the rough spots. This worked well on some forty year old Mini-Moles that had become difficult to adjust. I found that over time as the mechanism stuck at certain spots it created little nicks in the threaded rod. Be careful with grease because some stuff may not actually catch fire, but it can create some stinky smoke that will scare the hell out of everyone on the set. Yup, I found this out the hard way. What ever lubricant you use, make sure you remove any excess. I rarely use grease because it just encourages dirt build up in the mechanism.