The Dickerson Combination Press that I recently purchased has a motor. I don’t think that the oil on the chain or in the gear box had been changed since it was purchased 40+ years ago. One clue I had was that the top oil plug for shipping was still installed. This is a solid plug to prevent oil spillage during shipping, whereas once the press is set up, you replace it with a venting oil plug which has a hole on top to allow heat to escape during use. So, I took it upon myself to clean the chain, external gears, and the oil in the gearbox connected to the electric motor. 

The external gears and chain have a safety cover, but it still allowed years of dust and lint from the press felts to accumulate. I cleaned everything with odorless mineral spirits in a photo tray. I’m glad that I did because the lubrication had dried up and was gummy (not ideal). 

After I cleaned those parts, I removed the small gear which allowed me to remove the motor. I would suggest removing the motor (if possible) whenever you need to completely change out the oil in the gear box which you’ll see later in my video. I’m glad that I did this as I found out the bottom roller bearings (not pictured) were bone dry. I had to add a few drop of oil, daily, for a week and rotate the roller to help move the oil through the bearings to the lift cam.

I read the manual and it says to use SAE 30 oil on the chain, I purchased some SAE 30 oil without detergents so that I could also use it to oil my Pilot and Kelsey presses: which specifies for non-detergent oil for lubrication. The gear box uses SAE 90 oil, which is a gear oil.

According to the press manual you should inspect/oil the chain once a year. Depending on use, I may check more often. You should also check the oil level in the gear box once a year. To do this, you remove the side plug, if no oil is coming out, slowly pour oil into the top hole until oil starts to come out the side. Don’t overfill the oil. If for any reason you need to remove or rotate the motor, replace the top vent plug with the sold plug so you don’t spill any oil. Do not run the motor with the solid plug installed, use the vent plug. 

On a side note, the manual says that you should oil (SAE 30) the top roller bearings every 6 months (or once a month if frequently printing etchings) and the bottom roller bearings once a day. The latter is designed to leak a little to allow the oil to lubricate the lifting cams (the part that lifts the roller to engage the printing pressure). 

A Word of Caution…

• When using oil-soaked rags, make sure they air dry or are stored in a fireproof safety can when done. Dispose of rags according to your local waste requirements for oily rags or hazardous materials.

• Do not place oily or solvent filled rags near a heat source as they can easily catch fire.

• Do not pour oil or oily materials down the drain. You can drop off used motor oil at most auto parts stores or at municipal drop-offs for hazardous waste. 

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