Category: Lubrication Miscellaneous
Jim Fitch authored articles & papers
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The Hidden Dangers of Lubricant Starvation
For those who strive for lubrication-enabled reliability (LER), more than 95 percent of the opportunity comes from paying close attention to the “Big Four.” Read More
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These Additives Don’t Exist
I’m afraid I have some bad news … and no, it’s not about the economy. It’s about what I often call “imaginary additives”. These are the additives that seem to exist in the minds of many lubrication practitioners but don’t exist in the physical world of lubrication reality. Read More
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Add Oil Circulation to Gear and Bearing Sumps for Greater Reliability
The designs of many common machine mechanisms have not changed significantly in decades (centuries in some cases). This is especially true where lubrication is involved. Read More
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Optimizing Lubrication and Lubricant Analysis
Lubrication is an unmistakably integral part of machine reliability. Rotating machines are dependent on lubrication decisions made, such as which lubricant to use, how the lubricant needs to be applied to the tribological zones, and what is done during operations to monitor and control the integrity of these frictional zones. Read More
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Successful Oil Analysis Practices in the Industrial Plant
Every industrial organization has experienced the consequences of shoddy maintenance: contract penalties, junked parts, injuries, catastrophic damage, ballooning costs, missed shipping dates, irate customers, and sickly quarterly financial reports. Gone are the days when a machine had a predictable service life, after which it was replaced, continuing the cycle. Today, machinery and equipment can be… Read More
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The Difference Between Good Lubrication and Good Lubricants
I have learned that excellence in lubrication is just as difficult to realize as it is rare to find. The reasons for this are many. One simple explanation is the field of lubrication is a specialty that takes education and years of experience to master – like most professions. Read More
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12 Lubrication Myths that Need to End
While the lubrication field is rich in folklore, some of these legends are harmful to the progress of lubrication and best practices. These include false claims that lead users down the wrong road to suboptimum or even destructive maintenance practices. Read More