Gearbox grease

Rivets said:
You don’t tell us the manufacturer, so how are we to know exactly what type of lube you need. If you look up the specs for Ronex ED #1, you will see that this is way over kill for a snowblower gearbox. Second, you stated;
From the manufacturer's manual:
AUGER GEAR CASE•The gear case was filled with lubricant to the proper level at the factory. The only time the lubricant needs attention is if service has been performed on the gearcase.
If you are not going to open the gearbox, why throw out the manufactures recommendation?
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I updated my post. It's a Husqvarna 924HV
MODEL 961930070 00. DOM 091911(2011)

Thanks for pointing that out.

I contacted Husqvarna to ask where to get Ronex ED 1. They are looking that up for me
 
sounds like keep an eye on it after every use. regular maintenance and in your case, a watchful eye. simple as probably a 3/8 square bolt to remove and inspect/fill. less than 5 minutes after 1st time.
 
jviews12 said:
sounds like keep an eye on it after every use. regular maintenance and in your case, a watchful eye. simple as probably a 3/8 square bolt to remove and inspect/fill. less than 5 minutes after 1st time.
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In my case it's two plastic plugs.
 
I've been dealing with this over the past couple of weeks.

20 year old Craftsman 28" blower seized an snapped both auger and drive belts. My initial diagnosis was the auger transmission imploding due to lack of maintenance.

I had been trying to get some (recommended) 00 Spindle Grease after looking through some snowblower maintenance videos etc. Unable to get locally, I sprung to get a quart out of the Midwest at a higher price than Tractor Supply and also pay shipping.

Grease was on order, snowblower blew up. Crap.

Have a new low hours Ariens Deluxe24 in the garage, I've never used it. Was gifted to me by a friend that decided he was never going to snowplow his 400' driveway again after the first time.

Found this:

Craftsman, MTD, etc, all the name clones have a thicker grease that is factory installed in the auger transmissions. That grease tends to get pushed to the side with little remaining to lubricate the steel and brass gearing interface. For these transmissions it's recommended that you pop the (usually) plastic plug on the top of the transmission and add some of the 00 grease.

Ariens has their own specialty synthetic lubrication. For the new machine I ordered what looks to be about 16 ounces after checking the transmission and seeing that it was about 1/2" under the factory manual recommendations. Filled to the specs, lots left over.

Ariens has been Fluid Filmed, oil change (twice, will have another end of winter), wheels pulled and anti seized, other pre heavy use maintenance.

Craftsman it turns out may have had an ice jam in the impeller. But during the belt replacements I found a multitude of issues to address. Bearing sleeves on auger and drive axle, some minor rodent debris removal, shear bolt replacements (just out of caution). Possibly a couple of control cable replacements. Need to try to pull the wheels on this one to anti seize the axles.

February has been fun in Central MA this year. I've found that two snowblowers are better than one.
 
most greases are a combination of soaps and gear oil. Over time they separate. If you grew up on a farm, you know what churning milk / butter is. Churn raw milk long enough and the thicker fats separate out as butter. The same is true of gear oils. Anyone who has pulled an old differential with original gear oil in it knows that the paraffin churns out of the gear oil in time. Same in a crude oil well - the biggest maintenance is melting out the paraffin that builds up on the inside of the wells, closing down the pipe. If one looks at the back label of most greases, they will see that it is lithium soap based. All that said, we have an issue with our collector VW buses where the constant velocity joints need to remain greased to prevent wear. About a year ago I had a lengthy discussion with someone in that industry who had done tests on different greases as to lubrication properties, life expectancy before separation etc.. The grease they found that worked the best is Redline CV-2. It is a synthetic high-performance grease good from -100F to 500F. I am using it now on the CV joints, but it is also designed for wheel bearings, and any other high speed bearings. NLGI is a lithium soap based grease.

I also looked up Ronex. They make several greases. The PDF for them is at https://www.lookpolymers.com/pdf/ExxonMobil-1-Ronex-Extra-Duty.pdf

are available in three grades: RONEX Extra Duty 1, an orange colour NLGI 1 grease; RONEX Extra Duty 2, an orange colour NLGI 2grease; and RONEX Extra Duty Moly 2, a grey/black NLGI 2 grease containing 3% molybdenum disulphide. RONEX Extra Duty Moly 2 greases are particularly recommended for applications such as vibrating or oscillating movement, which tends to squeeze out the grease. In these cases, the 3% molybdenum disulphide affords an important measure of residual lubrication when the grease has been displaced. With its high, ISO VG 460, base oil viscosity, RONEX Extra Duty is recommended for high load applications at slow-to-moderate speeds, including most bearing applications in the paper, construction, and mining industries, as well as off-highway vehicles. Specific applications: RONEX Extra Duty has been shown to provide excellent lubrication of felt roll bearings, wet end bearings, and press section bearings; It is also an outstanding multi-purpose grease for general mill applications; RONEX Extra Duty 1 is a completely satisfactory grease for flexible gear type couplings; RONEX Extra Duty 2 Moly grease is particularly recommended for applications such as bucket pins and fifth wheels, where vibrating or oscillating movement tends to squeeze out the grease
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here is the pdf on redline CV2. It is a NLGI2 grease with moly that is made in Benecia, California which is where the Valero plant just closed, so it may become hard to get if they have a part in making it. https://www.redlineoil.com/Content/files/tech/cv-2_grease_prod_info.pdf

Red Line CV-2 Grease is designed to withstand the extreme temperatures and pressures which occur in high-performance wheel bearings and CV-joints. The excellent high temperature stability, extreme-pressure protection and water resistance enables it to out-perform even the best conventional or synthetic greases. Red Line CV-2 Grease can be used in a wide range of applications at temperatures ranging between -100°F to 500°F and provides good oxidation and corrosion resistance, low evaporation, oil separation and has a minimum effect on rubber seals. The exceptional extreme-pressure performance and the fluidity of the synthetic oil allows increases in bearing life of 200% to 800%. Red Line CV-2 Grease contains a red moly compound which is a superior lubricant to black moly disulfide lubricants. Red Line CV-2 Grease may also be used in industrial applications such as high-temperature alternator bearings, high-speed ball bearings, conveyor bearings, worm gear drives, servo mechanisms and applications where vibrations can cause fretting wear and corrosion to take place. Red Line CV-2 Grease will retain its consistency and extreme-pressure performance under high-temperature and high-shear conditions for extended periods, which extends the performance ranges of the lubricated components. Red Line CV-2 will slightly darken after high temperature use; this darkening will not detrimentally affect the performance of the grease. Although Red Line CV-2 is compatible with small amounts of many petroleum-based greases, it is always good lubrication practice to thoroughly clean out the old grease to eliminate abrasive particles and to minimize the possibility of grease incompatibility.
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