A ready reckoner of THK range of Greases for Linear Motion System

Proper and adequate lubrication is a necessity for any Linear Motion System. Without lubrication, the rolling elements or the raceway may wear out faster and the service life may shorten.

A lubricant :

• Minimises friction in moving elements to prevent seizure and reduce wear
• Forms an oil film on the raceway to decrease stress acting on the surface and extend rolling fatigue life, and
• Covers the metal surface to prevent rust formation.

Effective lubrication is essential for bringing out the best performance of an LM system. Even with an LM system with seals, the internal lubricant gradually seeps out during operation. So the system needs to be lubricated at an appropriate interval according to the running conditions and application.

LM systems mainly use grease or sliding surface oil for their lubricants. Lubricants need to generally satisfy the following conditions

(1) High oil film strength, (2) Low friction, (3) High wear resistance, (4) High thermal stability, (5) Non-corrosive, (6) Highly anti-corrosive, (7) Minimal dust/water content, and (8) Consistency of grease must not be altered to a significant extent even after it is repeatedly stirred.

THK AFB-LF Grease

AFB-LF is THK's general purpose grease developed to provide lubrication for wide spectrum of general applications. Compared to other lithium based greases, AFB-LF has high wear resistance and outstanding resistance to extreme pressure. It has high mechanical stability and can't be easily softened even after a long period of use. It is highly water resistant with minimal softening due to moisture penetration. Compared to other lithium based soap greases, AFB-LF provides many times more service life and effectively offers a lesser maintenance workload and cost effectiveness due to longer interval between greasing.

Use: THK LM Guides and Ballscrews running under normal conditions.

THK AFA Grease

AFA is a high grade long life grease because of its excellent Anti-oxidation stability as compared to ordinary soap based greases. It has a wide temperature range and very high water resistance and minimal moisture penetration. It exhibits strong mechanical stability and is not easily softened even after long periods of use.

Use: THK LM Guides and Ballscrews under high speed conditions.

THK AFC Grease

AFC Grease is designed to be highly effective in preventing fretting corrosion. It exhibits great anti-oxidation stability and can be used for a long period of time. As high-grade synthetic oil is used as the base oil, performance remains high over a wide temperature range of -54 to 177?C.

Use: THK LM Guides and Ballscrews used in low amplitude repeated vibrations conditions where fretting corrosion is likely.

THK AFE-CA Grease

AFE-CA Grease has low dust generative characteristics and is therefore suitable grease for clean room environments. Maintenance work is reduced as it has better anti oxidation stability as compared to soap based greases. It generates less dust as compared to other vacuum greases in conventional use.

Use: THK LM Guides and Ballscrews under clean room conditions.

THK AFF Grease

AFF uses a special additive along with the consistency enhancer. Due to the low viscous resistance, rolling resistance fluctuation is low. It achieves superb conformity at low speeds. Its dust generation is also very low. Fretting resistance is also more as it doesn't wear out easily under micro vibrations. Greasing interval is increased.

Use: THK LM Guides and Ballscrews under clean room conditions and micro vibrations.

THK AFG Grease

AFG Grease is high grade grease for Ballscrews. It has a low heat generation because of low viscous resistance. So level of heat generated is low even under high speed operation. Stable rotational torque is achieved as viscosity is low. It has a wide operating temperature range and long service life. It is highly water resistant.

Use: Ballscrews under high speed operations or low heat generation operations.

THK AFJ Grease AFJ Grease is very good grease for varying speed operations. It provides consistent speeds under high as well as low work speeds. Even at low speeds, oil film formation characteristics are very good. It reduces wear caused by machine vibration during high speed operation. This reduces rolling resistance in LM guides and ballscrews over wide range of speeds.

Use: THK LM Guides and Ballscrews undergoing varying speed changes.

(Contact: Mr Chirag Hemani, Apex Precision. Mobile: 098193-12226. Email : chirag.hemani@gmail.com)