3D Printing: Grease for PLA sprocket (3 Solutions!)
Channel: Roel Van de Paar
Date: 2019-06-27

3D Printing: Grease for PLA sprocket


The Question: I am attempting to construct model tank tracks with accompanying wheels and
sprockets. All parts will be printed in PLA. The tracks will be driven by
electric motors.
What would be a suitable grease for this project to minimize friction without
damaging the plastics.

Solutions: Please watch the whole video to see all solutions, in order of how many people found them helpful

== This solution helped 4 people ==
You may find a solution with the common lubricant containing PTFE, often called
Super Lube. It is described in manufacturer's literature as non-reactive with
virtually everything. It is available at a reasonable price as plumber's grease
(look for either Teflon or PTFE in the ingredients) in various quantity
containers. When used on metal, you may get black residue. With plastic, some
color of the plastic will appear as the surfaces wear. It has good sticking
power too.

== This solution helped 4 people ==
I use cosmetic vaseline - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petroleum_jelly.
Usually it is white to transparent and odorless. It's cheap and available in
all drugstores and cosmetics stores.
As suggested by Tom van der Zanden I'm adding additional info about
interactions of vaseline and plastics. I've found many web sites which claim
that vaseline can damage plastics but none of them really proved that
statement. There is nothing about it neither on producers sites nor wikipedia
or any other believable sources I've found. So according to it and my practice
I'm pretty sure that vaseline won't damage popular plastics (including common
filaments).
The only information I've found is that vaseline can damage natural rubber but
I cannot confirm that on my own.
Of course it might not be true for some materials so be careful and check the
interactions first on invisible side or on refuses.

With thanks & praise to God, and with thanks to the many people who have made this project possible! | Content (except music & images) licensed under cc by-sa 3.0 | Music: www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music | Images: stocksnap.io/license & others | With thanks to user Tormod Haugene (askubuntu.com/users/115), user HenrikS (askubuntu.com/users/110), user fred_dot_u (askubuntu.com/users/854), user darth pixel (askubuntu.com/users/1211), and the Stack Exchange Network (3dprinting.stackexchange.com/questions/1234). Trademarks are property of their respective owners. Disclaimer: All information is provided "AS IS" without warranty of any kind. You are responsible for your own actions. Please contact me if anything is amiss at Roel D.OT VandePaar A.T gmail.com.