Oil for TT bearing - any advise?


I am trying to figure out which oil to use for my Bix+ TT - it has a thick platter with a simple bearing...the supplied oil is finished...I got the following from the supplier (who doesn't sell the TT anymore)...

something equivalent to a 30 weight (non-multigrade) non-detergent synthetic oil will work fine. The super slippery formulations are beneficial

...which only makes me more confused - can anyone interpret this for me? Does anyone have any advise in this matter?

Thanks and have a GREAT day!
go4vinyl

Showing 1 response by dougdeacon

Go4vinyl,

Markd51 nailed it: your TT manufacturer recommended a specific bearing lubricant. The fact that other lubricants work well in or improve the sound of other turntables is irrelevant, they don't have the same bearing.

VPI and Linn bearings have fairly loose tolerances, so they need something heavy like grease. If I tried that in my Teres or a Galibier bearing I'd never spin a record - the tolerances are so tight the bearing would never settle into place. Likewise, if I put the thin oils recommended by Teres or Galibier in a Linn or VPI bearing, there'd be bearing chatter and probably damage.

Thomas Scheu recommended 30 weight, non-detergent oil. Use that until you meet somebody who knows your bearing better than he did. Any auto parts store should have some, or any shop that supplies machine oil, as Viridian suggested.