WD-40 Silicone Lubricant

[Lchu613]

Interesting idea, I might try it out.

 

[Jorenski]

Let me guess, you study chemistry?

I'm actually a Pharmacist but I'm doing a PhD in chemistry atm

 

[slinky773]

Awesome Jorenski, thanks for the info, will keep in mind for things other than lubing, haha, I'm fine with Lubix, myself.

 

[AlexMaass]

Lubes are all build around the same ingredient being Poly Dimethylsiloxane or a derivative of it. It are the other components of the lube that can in some cases deteriorate plastic or be toxic to some extent.
Lubes in pressurized cans mostly contain petroleum ether which is able to dissolve the poly dimethylsiloxane. It is very cheap and it’s used a lot in the production of for example pharmaceuticals. However there is a catch, petroleum ether can contain a small amount of benzene and other cycloalkanes which are toxic and can indeed dissolve the cube material which is in most cases a Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene copolymer (Dayan cubes).
The universal solution for this problem is to remove the petroleum ether before applying (same is done for pharmaceuticals). Just spray your lube in a container and let it “dry” you’ll be left with pure poly dimethylsiloxane ( a colorless oil). Apply this to your cube to avoid all unpleasant surprises.

I have sprayed some of my WD-40 in a plastic bowl container for about a day and it is still yellow and uncolorless am I doing something wrong or do I have to wait more?

I'm going to try to use a different container instead of the plastic and let it dry in there.

 

[Jorenski]

Well the additives in WD-40 are these: Hydrocarbons, C9-C11, n-alkanes, isoalkanes, cyclics, < 2%
aromatics
The only ones that could be yellowish are the aromatic substances. Their could also be some small inpurities in the n-alkanes.
I know that in our lab we purifie hexane (which is an n-alkane (n =6)) and we seperate the pure hexane from a goldish coloured oil (i have no idea what the inpurity is but I know it's not volatile cause that's how we purifie the hexane.

A plastic container should do, best is to keep in a well ventilated place and you can gently heat it (CAUTION tho cause it's flammable).
You should see a rise in viscosity so it should become from liquid to a more oily substance.
I've done this with the W-5 carcare lube, I will try it with WD-40 as soon as I can get hold of a can.

 

[MorrisKid101]

After many months of abusive testing with the lubricant in many different cubes and many different amounts, I have come to my final conclusion. I have found that this lubricant is actually surprisingly better than expected. But, and there will always be a but, it has to be used correctly. I have found, for example, at using this is a cubic puzzle is fairly good. Just apply a short burst of lubricant to opposite sides of the cube and your done and dandy. But apply this lubricant to a megaminx, then you're... let's say screwed, because swearing is not my thing. This lubricant is good for FAST TURNING puzzles. 3x3 is great, as fingertricks are rife whilst solving the puzzle. Everything is hunky-dory. But when I sprayed my Megaminx, I found myself thanking the lord that I bought a stickerless one. Within minutes the puzzle was in god knows how many pieces in my bathroom sink. After a long and strenuous assembly, the cube was, thank god, back to normal.
In Summary:
Spray it on FAST TURNING PUZZLES.
Only press down gently as loads of the stuff comes out with even the slightest squeeze.
If you hate the smell of oily lemons, this product is not for you.
I find it goes well with a few drops of Maru lube too. It's available cheap on ukcubestore.com. I bought two bottles of the stuff in June, and even with excessive use (many cubes lubed once a fortnight-ish) i still have a third of the first bottle left.
Remember to check the first post in the thread to find out the correct spray, as there are three different types.

I hope this helps you as much as it helps me.
(I cannot be responsible for your cubes spontaneously combusting due to excessive spraying and/or using the wrong type of cube {Megaminx, etc.}. You have been warned.)

 

[ben1996123]

if its only good for puzzles that already turn fast then isnt it kind of useless?

 

[Lchu613]

Well spraying CRC into a cap and letting it evaporate out or whatever then using the oily stuff left over seems to work ok. It doesn't make that disgusting white film either. Still, half a capful (using the spray can cap) of it barely produces any oil so I didn't get to test it that well.

 

[rj]

Well spraying CRC into a cap and letting it evaporate out or whatever then using the oily stuff left over seems to work ok. It doesn't make that disgusting white film either. Still, half a capful (using the spray can cap) of it barely produces any oil so I didn't get to test it that well.

Use a big bowl.

 

[Lchu613]

I didn't feel like it. lol. Didn't want to use up all of my CRC.

 

[rj]

I didn't feel like it. lol. Didn't want to use up all of my CRC.

I'm doing it right now.

 

[Lchu613]

Tell me how it goes. Not too much though and let it evaporate outside so the fumes don't kill you.

 

[rj]

Tell me how it goes. Not too much though and let it evaporate outside so the fumes don't kill you.

It doesn't smell. It finshed, and I got wt 10 or so.

 

[Lchu613]

Oh. Interesting.
Mine fumed to kingdom come. Stuck it on the deck and closed all the windows and that was half a capful.
Was yours all oily?
I'm pretty darn sure it was nowhere near wt 10 viscosity but with that tiny amount you never know.

Have you tried it in any cubes?
Oh and pics please.

/msgTooLong

 

[rj]

Oh. Interesting.
Mine fumed to kingdom come. Stuck it on the deck and closed all the windows and that was half a capful.
Was yours all oily?
I'm pretty darn sure it was nowhere near wt 10 viscosity but with that tiny amount you never know.

Have you tried it in any cubes?
Oh and pics please.

/msgTooLong

Mine is old and only pressure pushes the liquid out. All the propellant is gone.

 

[MorrisKid101]

if its only good for puzzles that already turn fast then isnt it kind of useless?

No, no. Sorry, that's my bad wording. This lubricant is good for cubes that you turn fast. If you own a Zhanchi which just needs a little bit of lube, then this will be OK, as it will (slightly) eat away at the plastic, making your cube better with time. It feels slightly rough at first, but it gets better the more you break it in

 

[Hamdude55]

Hey everyone, I also just got some WD-40 silicone lubricant, I tested it on my old rubik's 3x3 and it helped a lot. I then tried it on my shengshou 4x4x4 but it got super gummy and sticky, I think that I am lubing it wrong, I pulled out two pieces and sprayed a little into it. Is that the correct way to lube it? or is there another, better way? I have just gotten into cubing and am a total noob!

 

[Rocky0701]

Hey everyone, I also just got some WD-40 silicone lubricant, I tested it on my old rubik's 3x3 and it helped a lot. I then tried it on my shengshou 4x4x4 but it got super gummy and sticky, I think that I am lubing it wrong, I pulled out two pieces and sprayed a little into it. Is that the correct way to lube it? or is there another, better way? I have just gotten into cubing and am a total noob!

You probably just used too much, take the cube apart wipe the pieces off a little then try that.

 

[Lchu613]

Yeah, don't use it. Typically it doesn't work all that great. Just get a bottle of Traxxas. (Use the search bar if you don't know what that is), or check the Lubrication Thread)

 

[Hamdude55]

Ok, I will look into traxxas, but as for now, what is the best way to lube my cubes with what I have? is it better to take out a piece and stick the straw inside? or is it better to take it all apart, spray all of it and then let it dry?
thanks