lubricating the leaf springs

2

'29wagon

Senior Member
greetings,
i know we've touched on this subject before.
my intentions are to aluminum oxide blast my front and rear springs then lubricate them before reattaching the frame .
my question is. this graphite, does it adhere to the steel enough for assembly, or remain powder that will eventually drop out and be lost ?
i intend to paint these springs gloss black once lubed, then drop the frame back in it's place.
any tips are welcome, thanks.
also the correct vendor ? this auto parts price of 2oz is over the top. i think i'l need a bit more than 2oz.
 
I painted mine and then lubricated them.i used mystic j t 6 high temp grease and powdered graphite mixed together.graphite powder will fall off for sure. Be sure to use spring covers.. Ray
 
If you media blast the springs assembled the grit will get between the leaves, also the wear grooves need to be smoothed out so the leaves can move smoothly ,I usually grind a small radius on the underside of the tip of the leaves so they don't catch in the worn spot of the leaf under it.

it will be hard to get paint to stick to the lube, and you do not want paint between the leaves

If you have operating shocks you want smooth flexible well lubed springs, if you don't have shocks you want dry stiff springs.

A product called "slip plate" (grainagers?)has been mentioned as good spring lube, when I did mine Marks(that will date my work)had some concoction of graphite, oil and probably asbestos, an old time spring lube.
 
A long time ago I used teflon tape . After blasting I primed and painted and applied the tape between each leaf before re-installation of the center bolt. Teflon worked better for me than any graese lubricant and will not leave an oil residue
 
I've done several just as Ray suggests and the ride is very nice. Powdered graphite is best priced at an implement dealer or farm store.
 
The graphite spray adheres very well to the springs and does not fall off. You do need to use multiple coats, as the propellant % is high. It is a quite attractive finish. I have heard it used on exhaust manifolds.
 
My method was to sandblast the leaves with glass, then skurf the leaves lightly. Then de-oxidine 624, then apply molybond 122L, this is a dry bond, molybdenum disulfide lubricant, just that it is Australian made for us Aussies. Other USA brands have been mentioned here as well. I left the paint until after assembly. I wiped the springs down with MEK then painted with PPG7233 primer and finish with PPG Autothane black. I feel the dry lube is better than wet lube as dust and dirt does not stick to it, as well as it will fill small deformations in the mating surfaces with lube.

If you use graphite powder, mix it with a quick dry solvent and paint it on. The solvent will evapourate, leaving the powder where you painted it. This is how we lubricate the flap tracks of kingairs.
 
In the Summer 2005 issue of the Model A Times we covered a product called ez slide. This was sold at Tractor Supply stores and is a paint/lubricant that is used on tractors. It worked very well on the sedan project springs.
 
EZ Slide does work very well. Leaves a nice thick coating, and is relatively inexpensive(~$13/quart).
 
One tube/bottle of graphite speedo lube from Snyders worked for me and the pointed tip made no mess. The springs work great and no sqweaks
 
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