Oiling Valves



Grandfather used extra clear lamp oil for the valves and pure lanolin for the slides for his cornet and trumpet. These horns came to me after being in storage in my parents’ attic for over 30 years with no stuck valves or slides. Conversely, my dad used and demanded that nothing, but saliva be used on his King Silvertone trumpet. In his later years, for some unknown reason he bought a Conn trumpet which came with an owner’s manual that advised that no oil of any kind ever be used on the valves, only distilled water was to be applied with a dropper. I remember my dad reading this to me in my presence. My fear of using any form of water for valve lubrication is that it evaporates, leaving the valves dry. Any movement while dry will probably result in scored and galled valves, if not seized. Dad saw this as a good thing. It does promote constant daily use. Since I inherited these horns, they all get Hetmans #1 synthetic valve oil, which works very nicely in all of them.



I've just started using lanolin cut with mineral oil for tuning slides, and so far, I like it.



I also started using Hetman classic oil for older horns, and it also seems to work well, so I expect I'll be checking out other Hetman

products.



It seemed like Vaseline didn't have positive long-term effects.



And I think that probably was a long-held value. At least, I've heard that saliva was the lubrication of choice for Civil War horns (when they were new). Water as lubricant works only when 1) the equipment is clean, and 2) they are not set to the narrow tolerances of modern instruments. It is one thing when valves are so sloppy that they leak significant amounts of air, but it is quite another when the valves are so tight that any imperfection whether it is oil or debris will render them disabled.



According to Lyon and Healy in 1894 “Should the valves, in piston action, refuse to work freely, unscrew the cap, take them out, and wipe them carefully with a soft dry cloth. Then moisten them slightly and put them back. Spittle, though seemingly vulgar, is the best antidote for a sticky valve. Sometimes it will be necessary to use a little alcohol or kerosene to cleanse them thoroughly. In rotary action, a little alcohol poured in the bell, and run through the valves, will make them work well. “



I've been experimenting with a set of thickened oils to use for testing compression. They range from just slightly thicker than standard oil to pretty darn thick in 6 steps.



Oils, like plastics, hair, grass, fingernails, etc., are polymers. Polymers are the repeating units of molecules. The length of these chains of molecules is what gives them their properties (molecular weight). Longer chains = more viscous among other characteristics.

There is a distribution curve, in this case of short versus long chains. Synthetic oils are merely the hand selection of a very narrow distribution of chain lengths. Additives are introduced to promote whatever property the manufacturer wants to exploit. Wear, temperature resistance, molecular breakdown etc. The 20W50 you put in your car is synthetic of sorts, since the molecular weight distribution is chosen to allow a viscosity range of no thinner than 20, and no thicker than 50.



The reason they don't want you to mix "natural" and "synthetic" is that the characteristics that the manufacturer wanted to enhance would be lost/diluted.



Paraffin based lamp oil (another polymer with an almost identical chemical make-up as candle wax and polyethylene) on pistons, and anhydrous lanolin with a drop or two of lamp oil for slides.



Longevity of the application of oil would seem to be related to 1) whether the oil broke down and changed its characteristics, 2) washed away, 3) became corrosive when in contact with brass, nickel, etc.



Might as well start with the 'natural' products.

lamp oil

lanolin

mineral oil

Vaseline

come to mind.



As far as use on a brass instrument, the requirements on pistons/rotors are different than on valve slides. On the valves, you want them to move with as little resistance as possible for as long as possible. Stuck valves are not usually an issue of lubrication.

On valve slides, on the other hand, some resistance is a good thing. You don't want them sliding out on their own. You do want them to be airtight, and you do want them to move (i.e. not get stuck).



Oxidation is a problem with petroleum jelly in some applications, and I presume it happens in use on valve slide. The fact that lanolin (wool grease) is insoluble in water would seem like a good characteristic in slide lubrication.

Apart from the standard pre-manufactured valve oils,



I use 3in1 household oil to "build up" the valve to seal better.



Then I use Holton valve oil daily to keep the seal good.



Canola Oil. It was originally formulated as a petroleum oil replacement. Just as other oils, it should be available in various thicknesses.



A concern about using consumable oils would be friction coefficient and too rapid an evaporation and decomposition.

Synthetic oils: Oils produced by synthesis (chemical reaction) rather than by extraction or refinement. Many (but not all) synthetic oils offer immense advantages in terms of high temperature stability and low temperature fluidity but are more costly than mineral oils. A major advantage of all synthetic oils is their chemical uniformity.



Some of the characteristics of lubricants

Viscosity

surface tension / wet ability

coefficient of friction

Static friction (energy required to start motion)

dynamic friction (energy required to keep motion)

contaminate levels and particle size.

oxidation resistance

varnish development



There are at least three brass instruments with different lubricant applications.



The first is the piston/rotor valves. The action or the lubricant in this environment seems to me to be very similar so I don't see any need to separate them.

The second is tuning sides.

And the third is trombone slides. The slide depends more heavily on the lubricant for its action than do the valves. Valve either work or they stick. The degree of slip-on trombone slides really affects their use.



Corrosion referring strictly to lubrication properties, then rotor valve and piston valve applications are similar enough that they can be treated together; however, the differences in the materials used in modern valves (plated monel for pistons, unplated brass for rotors) make for significant differences when corrosion issues are considered.