boogie rail luuuuube

[rockskate4x]

I have just received my boogie rail today and was preparing to install it. On the website they suggested using petroleum jelly as a lubricant between the rail and the baseplate. Would there be anything wrong with using regular vaseline skin ointment? Is there a regular "unmedicinal" petoleum jelly that I should use instead? Other alternatives?

 

[nexrex]

I would say they suggest you use petroleum jelly because it is thick and won't flow out. Any other grease similar to this would do. I'm guessing the (milky looking thin) vaseline skin ointment would be a big no-no.

 

[swarfrat]

Vaseline is a petroleum product - you'll be fine.

Actually people have used vegetable and animal fats for millennia as  lubricants. They too work fine within certain parameters (a room temperature hand operated mechanical device being within  the parameters). They probably wouldn't work well in your motorcycle with an 18k rpm redline or your formula one racer. Their biggest drawback is they go rancid after a while, and stink.

 

[Cagey]

I have just received my boogie rail today and was preparing to install it. On the website they suggested using petroleum jelly as a lubricant between the rail and the baseplate. Would there be anything wrong with using regular vaseline skin ointment? Is there a regular "unmedicinal" petoleum jelly that I should use instead? Other alternatives?

If it was me, I'd use Engine Assembly Lube.

It's super-slick, and designed specifically for high-pressure metal-to-metal contact. It's also very persistent, so you won't have to re-apply it every week. It also won't go rancid on you, attract critters, or stink things up. A tube like the one above will probably last for 24 lifetimes for 18 guitars.

You can buy it at any decent auto parts store, so you don't have to order it.

 

[mayfly]

You know, when I read the label of the assembly lube above, when I got to "Moly-Graphite" my mind said "Moly Hatchet".

The mind is a funny thing.

 

[Cagey]

Yes, it is. It will sometimes try to create information that doesn't exist.

Off-topic, but an interesting example of that... there's a type of contact lens called "monovision" that's designed for people who need bifocals but can't get bifocal contacts to work well. Actually, it's not a lens type at all, it's a setup. You put a distance correction lens in one eye, and a near-vision correction lens in the other, and after a day or two of that your brain can't tell the difference. It automatically compensates.

I had a set like that for a while, but eventually gave up on them. Everything does work as advertised, but if you get into a situation where only one eye can see, it has to be the properly compensated one for the view you're looking at. The trick only works when both eyes see the same thing. So, if you're doing up-close work and trying to peer between two PC boards, for instance, you have to make sure the eye that's corrected for near vision is the one doing the looking. It's not always possible, so you end up in less-than-ideal situations.

But, that's contacts for you anyway. They're a vanity move much more than a practical one.

 

[AutoBat]

I used vaseline with mine, which was okay but not perfect.
On the next string change I wiped it off & put white lithium grease on, which it's still going great. I put a touch on the end of the Floyd whang bar too, as spinning it made a noise.

 

[Cagey]

That's mostly what that assembly lube is - lithium. The stuff I pointed out above also contains some Molly Hatchet, so it's better for guitars <grin>

 

[stubhead]

The mind is a funny thing.

Yes, it is. It will sometimes try to create information that doesn't exist.

Every culture, all throughout history, has had a thorough & comprehensive explanation for the origin of man, why the seasons change, why bad things happen to nice people, etc. There's at least two hundred different "creation myths", and some of them are pretty wild.

One of the steel guitar guys is "in lubrication" so to speak, and he's adamant that dry teflon lubes are an improvement over old-fashioned oil:

Use dry Teflon lube and you'll never have the dirt attraction, gumminess and sticky movement related to old oil. 15 years ago light-viscosity oils were about the only suitable lube - nowadays there are absolutely no reasons at all to use oils of any kind - they cause more harm than good.

Since you do want some stick-to-it-ness, teflon lube come in heavier weights.

 

[pabloman]

You can't trust a real guitar player. He doesn't even know your supposed to pick a guitar up to play it. :icon_biggrin: