robert louis Posted December 18, 2022 Share Posted December 18, 2022 Since it's hard to find movie camera oil these days, what's the best alternative? I'm not having that good of success with sewing machine oil. Is clipper oil, you know for electric hair clippers, better? I want to use whatever especially for the shutter rod, the oil port between lens turret. It's screeching especially at the higher fps settings and when it dies down to a halt. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Simon Wyss Posted December 19, 2022 Premium Member Share Posted December 19, 2022 Clipper oil is too thin. A common sewing machine oil is higher viscous. You can also pick a little bottle of bicycle oil somewhere. It should read free from acids and resins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Dunn Posted December 19, 2022 Share Posted December 19, 2022 (edited) Does this mean that "3 in 1" is suitable? It's a common brand in the UK and US, I don't know about Europe, and it's always been used for bicycles. I had assumed it was a bit heavy for cameras. WD40 is a no-no, of course, it's got wax and other undesirable stuff in it. As an aside, I now use leftover fresh lower viscosity 5w30 motor oil for the bicycles. Not for cameras though! The older 20w50 is a bit too heavy. Engines have changed. Edited December 19, 2022 by Mark Dunn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Frank Wylie Posted December 19, 2022 Premium Member Share Posted December 19, 2022 (edited) Straight "3 in 1" oil is not a good choice IMHO; it becomes sticky after a few years. I have always used (very sparingly) a 50/50 mix of clear sewing machine oil and Marvel Mystery Oil on totally mechanical cameras. I am unsure if Marvel is sold outside the USA... According to the company's 2015 safety data sheet Marvel Mystery Oil is composed of: Petroleum distillates (hydrotreated heavy naphthenic) also known as mineral oil, 60–100% Petroleum distillates (Stoddard solvent) also known as white spirit, 10–30% Edited December 19, 2022 by Frank Wylie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Dunn Posted December 19, 2022 Share Posted December 19, 2022 I do use 3 in 1 or similar for the Steenbeck where it says to use "thin non-resinous oil" but it's only for the flange spindles and the like- it's not going to get all sticky and inaccessible. I can't remember what I used for the gearbox but it must be due a change- any thoughts? The manual quotes oils that get no hits on a search, something like Gazolin BG4 or Shell 2w20. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Frank Wylie Posted December 19, 2022 Premium Member Share Posted December 19, 2022 1 hour ago, Mark Dunn said: I do use 3 in 1 or similar for the Steenbeck where it says to use "thin non-resinous oil" but it's only for the flange spindles and the like- it's not going to get all sticky and inaccessible. I can't remember what I used for the gearbox but it must be due a change- any thoughts? The manual quotes oils that get no hits on a search, something like Gazolin BG4 or Shell 2w20. Sorry, I don't really know. You might write Dwight Cody at https://www.cutfilm.com/; he should know. I flipped through our Steeenbeck literature, but found no specific oil mentioned... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Dunn Posted December 19, 2022 Share Posted December 19, 2022 1 minute ago, Frank Wylie said: Sorry, I don't really know. You might write Dwight Cody at https://www.cutfilm.com/; he should know. I flipped through our Steeenbeck literature, but found no specific oil mentioned... Not a problem, just musing. Dwight's my go-to man for tricky stuff, which this isn't (although I did fix something he didn't know about recently?). Better see about that gearbox, though. That's been in for most of a decade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Frank Wylie Posted December 19, 2022 Premium Member Share Posted December 19, 2022 3 hours ago, Mark Dunn said: Not a problem, just musing. Dwight's my go-to man for tricky stuff, which this isn't (although I did fix something he didn't know about recently?). Better see about that gearbox, though. That's been in for most of a decade. Kudos to you! You're the first person I have ever heard of who actually changed that oil! Let me know how it goes... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Dunn Posted December 20, 2022 Share Posted December 20, 2022 15 hours ago, Frank Wylie said: Kudos to you! You're the first person I have ever heard of who actually changed that oil! Let me know how it goes... Actually my memory is wrong, my notes say I didn't- I just topped it up 5 years ago, and that would most likely have been with 3 in 1, ordinary household stuff. The current manuals say to use ATF, and I have a bit of that from my last car. But I have 5w30 motor oil as well. The Steenbeck is 48 years old and doesn't make any funny noises. Hmm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Dunn Posted December 22, 2022 Share Posted December 22, 2022 On 12/19/2022 at 6:41 PM, Frank Wylie said: Kudos to you! You're the first person I have ever heard of who actually changed that oil! Let me know how it goes... My pleasure.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Frank Wylie Posted December 22, 2022 Premium Member Share Posted December 22, 2022 Wow. It really needed a change! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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