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  • Blakeslee F-20 mixer restore… sort of…

    Posted by TorontoJoe on April 30, 2021 at 3:01 pm

    Hello. This my first post here. I was quite excited to find a forum that houses some knowledge on food processing equipment. I have several beautiful older machines that I inherited. I plan to care for them as best I can.

    I recently uncovered an old Blakeslee model F-20 mixer that I plan to bring back into service. The unit has been in the family for a very long time but it has sat idle for at least 20 years. I recall years ago it always ran perfectly. Upon picking it up a few days ago I ran the power very briefly in first gear and it sounded as smooth as ever.

    I was lucky enough to find this old manual which details the maintenance and parts quite well. The first thing I plan to do is to replace the gear oil…. run it for a few minutes and then replace the oil again. I imagine after all these years sitting idle it must be pretty gunked up in there.

    https://filebin.net/1rak5ygla7cx6w22/b12.pdf?t=7iypx4cc

    If you look at page 3 it recommends using the following oil:

    “When adding or changing transmission oil use #50 heavy duty oil (Hydrol Master 500 or equivalent) “

    3 pints — M-5-3330 Trans.

    4 pints — M-5-1505 Trans.

    I’m a bit confused by this. I’m hoping someone can clarify:

    Why would it recommend 3 pints of one type of oil vs 4 pints of another? Would the capacities not be the same regardless?

    Is it possible there is a second location where oil needs to be replaced in addition to the one illustrated on page 14?

    I’m also not familiar with these types of oil. M-5-3330 and M-5-1505. I’ve worked with other types of gear boxes. Do these recommended oils have equivalents or can I simply use a standard EP 80w90 such as this?

    https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/castrol-axle-limited-slip-80w-90-gear-oil-946-ml-0281808p.html

    I’m also curious… I imagine that parts for a machine like this are long gone out of circulation. In the event I ever require something like a seal (or something)… Is anyone here aware of a source for such parts?

    Thanks all!

    Joe

    fixbear replied 4 months, 1 week ago 3 Members · 8 Replies
  • 8 Replies
  • fixbear

    Member
    May 1, 2021 at 2:47 pm

    High Joe, Welcome to TechTown. They are referring to the two different modal transmissions with the oil. The 1505 was the early one with the accessory hub kind of blocky and square shaped. The 3330 had a cone shaped hub. The lube is kind of straight forward as long as it is a EP additive for the worm gear. The weight is also lighter than 80. As for parts, bearing and seals are standard and can be crossed by a bearing house. Now with other gear parts, not sure about them. As for electrical, most can be found off shelf at a electrical supply house. Now the big problem is the accessories like whisk, beater, bowl, and dough hook. never easy to find for old machines. And whisk wear out if used a lot.

    I would think that with the age of it, you may need to replace seals. Hopefully there are no grooves worn into the shafts. There is little room to shim a seal if there is.

    How much service is it going to see?

  • fixbear

    Member
    May 1, 2021 at 2:54 pm

    Not certain if this helps, but this is the current manual for the F20.

    PartsTown does have some part for it.

  • TorontoJoe

    Member
    May 1, 2021 at 6:29 pm

    @fixbear – Thank you for the warm welcome.

    Indeed, that manual is for the newer F-20. It’s a slick machine… and looks like it would be less back-injury-inducing than the old one I have.

    Thanks for the advice on the gear oil. I guess its 4 pints for me then…. Could you please clarify… you said less than 90…. How much less? The lightest oil I’ve used is 75w90….

    Thankfully when my pop bought this way back he got loads of attachments. I have the whisk, beater, hook, slicers, shreddersb and even the full met grinder with loads of knives and blades 🙂 It’ll never be used commercially again in my lifetime so I’m hoping I’m good.

    I’m cleaning it up now. When its prepped I’m taking it to a friend who does powder coating to soda blast the housing so I can re-coat the housing.

    For now I want to be sure on the oil. It wasn’t used a lot in its first life so I want to really baby the gears.

    Thanks again!

  • fixbear

    Member
    May 2, 2021 at 1:46 pm

    Blakeslee’s original spec was a straight SAE 50 weight mineral oil. With extreme pressure, anti foaming, and water additives. Oh, and a seal protectant to prevent swelling. The closest thing you can find easily would be a SF50 automotive. Otherwise the precise oil is only supplied in 5 gallon pails or drums. Like DELO SYN TRANS HD. The most common use of gear oils of 50 weight is in heavy truck transmissions. This link will take you to weight information. There is a lot more to lubricants than I can explain here. But you need a oil that is thick enough to not leak excessively, have a H2 or H1 food rating, Non corrosive, rust preventing, non-foaming, and extreme pressure additives. Something close is what is used in the lower cases of outboard motors. But they don’t guarantee the food rating.

  • TorontoJoe

    Member
    May 2, 2021 at 4:58 pm

    @fixbear

    Thanks… Your right about there being a lot to lubricants. I never considered all the factors. Looking at the criteria you’ve noted… What do you think of this stuff?

    https://www.aircraftspruce.ca/catalog/pnpages/08-05400.php?gclid=CjwKCAjwm7mEBhBsEiwA_of-TC3Y3LHt4hFiUkdMe6UdvYNSuElndHmZxxKjQr7-OMQmkFxkTXojghoC6OcQAvD_BwE

    There’s nothing about food grade as it’s for aviation however it does indicate that it’s straight mineral oil.

    Would this be safe on the gears?

    I’m curious… just in the interest of learning. Why would some gear boxes require SAE 90 oils? What’s the difference in the gears?

  • fixbear

    Member
    May 3, 2021 at 9:05 am

    That particular oil is for engines. It lacks the extreme pressure additive that protects the worm gear. If you have access to the trucking industry, Spicer sells the oil you need for there transmissions. Fuller and Eaton just issue a spec.

    I have used this oil.

    Background here; Mobile, Shell, and Chevron are the principle full spectrum oil makers. Textron and Whitco make all the additives. There are hundreds of lubricant manufacturer’s, But they produce mainly for the Automotive industry. Todays engine oils start with a oil slightly thinner than the viscosity wanted. Then they add polymers that look like plastic rods under magnification. They create a rolling protection for the Babbitt style bearings under load. Thus imitating a heaver oil at higher temperatures. ie; multiweight oils. But each pass thru the oil system, some of the rods break down. The reason timely oil changes of you car are important to engine life. With a primary gear application, they get destroyed rapidly. Thereby not providing optimum wear protection. The most common extreme pressure additive is Moylidium disufide.

  • cobyharasyn

    Member
    November 9, 2023 at 1:47 pm

    Not sure if anybody is going to see this…

    TorontoJoe – the manual link doesn’t work. Can you send it to me? I have a vintage F20 – serial # C-99078.

    If anybody has an idea of age that would help too.

    Parts source? This thread is about the only success on finding any info.

  • fixbear

    Member
    November 9, 2023 at 8:09 pm

    The manuals still the same, it just has the safety cage and switch yours probably doesn’t.

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