# LUBRICATION PROBLEM



## shin (Jul 6, 2009)

HEY, I HAVE A CAN OF GT85 WITH PTFE AND WAS WONDERING IF IT WAS SUITABLE FOR LUBRICATING MY CUBE. DOES ANYONE KNOW IF IT WILL WORK OK OR DAMAGE MY CUBE?


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## brunson (Jul 6, 2009)

Please turn off your caps lock.

Moved to hardware area


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## mcciff2112 (Jul 6, 2009)

^ Yes I am  ^

Was it really necessary for you to use caps? All that does is make it more difficult for us to read, and for most people, less likely to post a response.

As for your question, I have never heard of GT85 WITH PTFE, so I really don't know what it will do. It's probably best if you just used silicone spray. I recommend CRC Heavy Duty or Jig-A-Loo.


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## rjohnson_8ball (Jul 6, 2009)

I just used Google on GT85 WITH PTFE. It is a penetrating fluid for metals, designed to loosen rust. If it loosens rust then it will destroy your plastic cube.


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## JTW2007 (Jul 7, 2009)

YOU SHOULD NOT USE IT. IT COULD RUIN YOUR CUBE.


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## ChaosWZ (Jul 7, 2009)

yeah thatll kill your cube, get silicon or jig-a-loo, if its a store bought you can just use petroleum jelly if you have absolutely nothing else but petroleum jelly doesnt degrade the cube so it wont cut corners well, thats all. personally after using silicon i used petroleum jelly on my brothers storebought. godly.


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## JTW2007 (Jul 7, 2009)

ChaosWZ said:


> but petroleum jelly doesnt degrade the cube



Yeah it does. It's _petroleum_ jelly. Petroleum is what you want to avoid. Nothing with petroleum, acetone, or methylene chloride.


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## royzabeast (Jul 7, 2009)

JTW2007 said:


> ChaosWZ said:
> 
> 
> > but petroleum jelly doesnt degrade the cube
> ...



It seemed like a typo, because the rest of the sentence continued as if he said "does."


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## JTW2007 (Jul 7, 2009)

True. I didn't realize that.


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## ~PromiscuousCuber~ (Jul 7, 2009)

What about Petroleum Distallites (SP?)? I heard those ARE what you want.


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## JTW2007 (Jul 7, 2009)

~PromiscuousCuber~ said:


> What about Petroleum Distallites (SP?)? I heard those ARE what you want.



I don't think. I've always heard pure silicone is the best. Granted petroleum distillates would erode the cube more slowly, but I doubt it would survive.


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## ~PromiscuousCuber~ (Jul 7, 2009)

Hmmmm. I have always used Jigaloo, so... But I had heard that if I couldn't get any, I should get stuff with the distillates or pure silicone.


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## 4Chan (Jul 7, 2009)

~PromiscuousCuber~ said:


> Hmmmm. I have always used Jigaloo, so... But I had heard that if I couldn't get any, I should get stuff with the distillates or pure silicone.



Im not some sort of chemistry master, but i think i understand why you shouldnt have petroleum distillates in your lubricant.

Petroleum distillates are hydrocarbons. Plastic is also a hydrocarbon, if i recall right, the most common plastic is ABS? for acetyl-butyl-styrene? 

The plastic is soluble in the petroleum distillates and over time, the plastic will dissolve and change into a less suitable cube. Thats why cubes that have been lubed with vaseline or petroleum jelly feel odd even after being cleaned off.


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## JTW2007 (Jul 7, 2009)

I think you're right.


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## Musje (Jul 7, 2009)

Cubes=Life said:


> ~PromiscuousCuber~ said:
> 
> 
> > Hmmmm. I have always used Jigaloo, so... But I had heard that if I couldn't get any, I should get stuff with the distillates or pure silicone.
> ...


Sounds about right. Plastic dissolves in petroleum as far as I know. 
(If I get it right, plastic is even made from petroleum or one of the other things in that row.)


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## zosomaniac (Jul 7, 2009)

plastics are polymers . Polymers can be made of Hydrocarbons or non organic stuff. ABS will surely dissolve in any organic solvent which you may think to be a lubricant. Use silicone . it wont damage the plastic.

BTW: Can anyone suggest anyother lubricant other than silicone?


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## JTW2007 (Jul 7, 2009)

I've heard of people using (is it floor polish?). It was something weird like that.


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## 4Chan (Jul 7, 2009)

Yeah, ive heard of people using polish as well.
As i recall, it was silicone based....

And yes, zoso, thanks for repeating what i said. =/


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## brunson (Jul 7, 2009)

I can definitely recommend NOT using graphite.


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## JTW2007 (Jul 7, 2009)

Yeah, I doubt graphite would work.

EDIT: Hey, I'm a genius!


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## rjohnson_8ball (Jul 7, 2009)

brunson said:


> I can definitely recommend NOT using graphite.



I tried powdered graphite back in the mid 1980's. It was disastrous in my cube. Maybe it helps reduce friction between metals, but apparently not plastic cube pieces.

Also, as someone said earlier, petroleum jelly and oils soften cube pieces, and they remain softened even after cleaning.


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## Hadley4000 (Jul 7, 2009)

JTW2007 said:


> ~PromiscuousCuber~ said:
> 
> 
> > What about Petroleum Distallites (SP?)? I heard those ARE what you want.
> ...






Pure silicone is solid.


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## brunson (Jul 7, 2009)

No, pure silicon is solid. Silicone is not a single substance, it is a class of polymers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicone


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## howtocube (JB) (Jul 9, 2009)

I can suggest other lubricants, but the fact is that almost anything alternatvie that one comes up with is going to have silicone in it one way or another. I've heard skateboard wheel bearing oil works well, and I'm sure there are so food industry silicone products that would also work well. To me rubiks.com injectable lube and Jig a Loo are the best


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## Deleted member 2864 (Jul 9, 2009)

JTW2007 said:


> I've heard of people using (is it floor polish?). It was something weird like that.



Yes. The lube puzzleproz and rubiks sells on ebay and the rubiks website is supposedly a floor polish. It's my favorite lube for my type a.


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## howtocube (JB) (Jul 10, 2009)

quick caution on Jig A Loo, in searching the forums I see there is much dissension on it. While it can make a cube turn extremely well, It doesn't contain silicone and it will erode and/or down right melt a cube if applied incorrectly. 

Also even when applied correctly it has some worrisome effects on store-bought cubes and JSK's. Notice the dried mud like cracks in these cubies? The edge pieces are from a store bought and the corners are from a JSK, while neither of these cubes seems to be effected adversely by jig a loo application it still makes me raise questions about its long term effects. 








After all that though, it's still one of my favorite lubes. I thing the method of poping 4 edges and working in is the best for Jig A Loo. I would never completely disassemble and lube with it, unless you are experienced with it as it can easily pool and eat huge pits in your cube.


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## WakDooD (Jul 10, 2009)

Although the choice of lubricant is important, I think that the method of application correlates with the kind of damage you'd might expect. 

Here are my thoughts about different forms of application:

1. Popping an edge (or edges) and spraying in:
Works in an pinch. Very easy to apply, but may not cover completely (depending on how much you spray) or evenly. May cause lube leakage (dripping from the bottom face after spraying too much). Leakage with jig-a-loo leads plastic deformation. 

2. While cutting a corner, spray lubricant in:
While I see this being used for big cubes (no idea how the lubricant spreads evenly, or at all), using this on 3x3x3 leads to the mud-cracked edge and corner pieces. (perhaps this is just my experience)

3. Full dissassembly:
Very good for covering each piece completely. Use maybe 2 sweeps or 3 (if you like a lot of lube). When doing this, if jig-a-loo is allowed to pool, the edges of the pieces will be affected. To minimize this, try grouping corners and edges together and spray, then after spraying separate each piece from each other and the surface.

4. Dipping:
I prefer this method for periodic re-lubrication. This puts lube only on the internal pieces of the cube. To do this, spray jig-a-loo into a metal tart tray (or some other container...there is a reason i use a tart tray. if you spread out one side of the tray so that it is flat, you can use it to closely lube the edges). When spraying, ensure proper ventilation so that you don't breathe in any propellant. Dip the 2 sides of the internal corner piece (not the side with the hole) and place with the hole facing up to allow lube to dry. Dip the edge by slipping the tray into the gap between the edge and the internal piece and tilting so that the lubricant flows to touch the internal piece without being poured into the edge. Also dip the front side of the internal piece. Then place it with the hole on the internal piece facing forward. This allows any excess jig-a-loo to not flow on to the sides of the edge/corner and cause damage. This sounds like a lot of work, but it is faster than a complete disassembly and covers more evenly and completely than just spraying in. It also, if done carefully, prevents jig-a-loo from damaging pieces.

This is just some of the ways I used up my can of jig-a-loo and "destroyed" my first storebought. (I cut the centers off the core and used a new core + screws + springs = new cube)

P.S. Admittedly, this is kinda straying from the OP's topic. =p


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## 4Chan (Jul 10, 2009)

howtocube (JB) said:


> quick caution on Jig A Loo, in searching the forums I see there is much dissension on it. While it can make a cube turn extremely well, *It doesn't contain silicone* and it will erode and/or down right melt a cube if applied incorrectly.
> 
> Also even when applied correctly it has some worrisome effects on store-bought cubes and JSK's. Notice the dried mud like cracks in these cubies? The edge pieces are from a store bought and the corners are from a JSK, while neither of these cubes seems to be effected adversely by jig a loo application it still makes me raise questions about its long term effects.
> 
> ...



There have been multiple posts on jigaloo, and threads as well.

It's a fact that jigaloo *IS* silicone based, unlike what you say.

The only problem ive had with jigaloo is in storebought cubies. My jsk clones dont have those cracks that you describe, and neither do any of my other cubes which i have used it on.


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## howtocube (JB) (Jul 10, 2009)

Cubes=Life said:


> howtocube (JB) said:
> 
> 
> > quick caution on Jig A Loo, in searching the forums I see there is much dissension on it. While it can make a cube turn extremely well, *It doesn't contain silicone* and it will erode and/or down right melt a cube if applied incorrectly.
> ...




The JSK pictured is not a clone, it's an actual JSK maybe that's the reason for the difference. And as far as it being silicone based, Jig A Loo's website does claim that it is silicone-based, still the MSDS available on their website shows the following ingredients:

Methylene Chloride
Perchloroethylene (tetrachlorethylene)
Propane
Isobutane


I'm sure one of those solvents has some root chemistry in silicone for them to claim "silicone based" but their website doesn't include plastic under it's "ideal for" list.


But despite all of that It's still one of my favorite lubes, I'm not here to diss it just to provide words of caution


but as WakDoode says I think I got this thread a bit off topic...

sorry guys


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## endless_akatsuki (Jul 10, 2009)

I don't really like silicone that much. It is okay. It kills some of my cubes....


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