Best grease to use for springs?

[nostalgia]

After reading a lot on the forum threads, and also watching some youtube videos, I am still not able to decide what kind of grease I should buy for my first spring works. Graphite grease, lithium grease, or a modern multipurpose synthetic grease....I will start with a HMV 101 and a 102, and later on my salon HMV models etc. I also am not sure if I can use the same grease for small and big springs? Please give me product names that are available in Europe, if you are able to.
Thanks in advance,
-Nostalgia-

[soundgen]

Any grease will be OK , graphited if you can find it , Moly grease, Lithium grease , the only greases to avoid are those made for high temperature uses they are very viscous and will impede the springs unwinding

Graphite was used in greases as it stops the coils touching as they unwind as does Molybdenum disulphide in Moly grease , they act like mini ball bearings , HMV used graphited grease of a type which polymerised and has to be dug out now , you can by graphite flake and add it to your own grease for authenticity , but many motor manufactures such as Garrard used fairly ordinary greases without graphite and they all seem to work well , I have always used Graphited grease but it is difficult to find now , it was always used for lubrication of motorbike chains and can still sometimes be found in motorbike shops , I now use Moly grease from Halfords in the UK

https://www.halfords.com/motoring/engin ... rease-500g

BUT always put a lot of grease in the spring barrel it costs pennies and don't just smear it pack it in

[Marco Gilardetti]

Ditto: molybdenum grease is the way to go. It has residual lubricant properties even when completely dried up, with molybdenum grease your gramophone will work for another 100 years.

If, as I do, you can find graphite paste locally you might add to molybdenum grease in a 30% graphite to 70% moly proportion, but that's just for the sake of authenticity, it's not really necessary.

[audiophile102]

When I rebuilt my Victrola motor, I used Synthetic Grease. I talked to an expert in the machine shop business who told me that mineral grease can't maintain lubrication nearly as long or as well as synthetic grease. The science that went into producing it was extensive and expensive.
https://www.amazon.com/Mobil-Synthetic- ... rch&sr=8-4

[nostalgia]

Thank you to: Soundgen, Marco Gilardetti and audiophile102, for submitting your opinions on this.
I was able to yesterday find a Polish made graphite grease, and think maybe I will try this since it is available in my country. What do you think about this product, is it too soft ? It is actually a spray. I give link both to the product, and a youtube link showing how a similar graphite grease looks in sprayform:
https://sjd.com.pl/en/product/graphite-grease/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1Inrpv5Sfo

....and Soundgen,.,,,I wanted try Halford’s Comma Lith Moly grease, but cant see that they ship to continental Europe, and I also was not able to find the same grease on Ebay.co.uk..
I however was able to find this grease on Ebay.co.uk...same manufacturer (Comma), but the box looks different, and it says the grease has medium consistency, grade 2:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/COMMA-CV-Lit ... Sw9N1Vxf1L

[phonojim]

I am currently reinstalling springs in the second Victor 4 spring motor I have done in the space of two weeks. After reading several threads about lubricants on this forum, I decided to try Mobil 1 synthetic grease this time. The first motor is back in the Credenza it came from. It winds very smoothly and runs very well. I played records on it all evening Saturday and am well pleased with it. The grease does have a slight odor but once everything is closed up and the motor is back in the machine, it is not at all noticable.

Jim

[Marco Gilardetti]

It does look to have the right consistency to me, however although usable you don't really need a spray product, you rather need a jar full of grease that you would apply with a scraper.

It shouldn't be so hard to find, all major producers like Valvoline just to mention one have moly grease in their catalogue, I could easily find it in a shop nearby. Try motorbike shops or automotive parts suppliers.

https://www.valvoline.com/en-europe/our ... thium-moly

[soundgen]

Thank you to: Soundgen, Marco Gilardetti and audiophile102, for submitting your opinions on this.
I was able to yesterday find a Polish made graphite grease, and think maybe I will try this since it is available in my country. What do you think about this product, is it too soft ? It is actually a spray. I give link both to the product, and a youtube link showing how a similar graphite grease looks in sprayform:
https://sjd.com.pl/en/product/graphite-grease/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1Inrpv5Sfo

....and Soundgen,.,,,I wanted try Halford’s Comma Lith Moly grease, but cant see that they ship to continental Europe, and I also was not able to find the same grease on Ebay.co.uk..
I however was able to find this grease on Ebay.co.uk...same manufacturer (Comma), but the box looks different, and it says the grease has medium consistency, grade 2:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/COMMA-CV-Lit ... Sw9N1Vxf1L

Yes the Moly grease is the same as sold in Halfords , I always pack a lot of grease in the spring barrel, this was on the advice of an ex HMV employee who said you cannot have enough in there , the spray may be OK but you would have spry into the barrel or take the spring out and spray the coils , which would be very messy refitting it .I am always amazed by Edison phonographs the springs seldom bump and seem to work and when you look at the lubrication in say a Standard it is very minimal and you can't pack lots in as it ha]has holes her it will squeeze out
a

[nostalgia]

Thanks to audiophile102 and phonojim for also suggesting Mobile1 synthetic grease, however...I have not been able
to find this grease for sale online or offline in my area. The Polish spray was the only graphite grease I could find in my area, but if dropping the graphite grease spray product, and instead going for a Moly Lith grease in jar, I would like to try a product that some board members have tested and find to work for our gramophones/phonograps. I wanted try the grease Soundgen is currently using, but again I could not find that exact grease for sale in continental Europe. Thanks also to Marco Gilardetti from suggesting Valvoline grease, have you used this yourself for springs? I prefer to buy a grease that someone has tested for our use, preferably over time, to avoid redoing the work.

[nostalgia]

To Soundgen: Thanks for confirming this Comma grease, I know you spend much on your time on working with gramophones, so I will buy this grease.
Thank you also to everyone who have contributed in this thread. "All roads lead to Rome" etc..
-Nostalgia-