speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

I do use a Velbon slider as well, it does not have/feature any lubrication, and I would stay away from using any!

Kgivens

Thanks to all for these very thoughtful suggestions. I have a brother who is a superhuman fix-it guy and who is well-schooled in things like car, gun and binocular repair (just to list a few). He's got a sizable collection of lubricating agents and has agreed to spend some quality time with me this weekend disassembling the slider and doing whatever lubrication seems appropriate.

I'm certainly intrigued by speter's post (just above this one) that his Velbon slider contains no lubrication whatsoever (so speter-- does your slider freeze up in cold weather also?). In certain ways, that makes some sense. I could imagine the mere weight of the camera and lens, especially if angled downward, may cause an overly-greased rail to slowly advance itself, which would mess up focus stacking.

Velbon appears to be based in Japan. I filled out a "contact us" form on their website detailing my little problem and will post whatever reply I receive. Stay tuned!

Harry0 Loc: Gardena, Cal

I do old guns, old cameras, and old PCs, too. Used to do old motorcycles.
WD40 is a mixture of a lot of things. "WD" stands for "Water Displacement". Yes it'll help loosen things- so you can take them apart, fix them, lube and reassemble right. The solvents will evap, leaving a lube that will dry to a gummy smear. It's a good thing to use @ now- a couple coats on your engines electrics- including distributors coils and spark plugs- will help stop shorts and flashovers when they get splashed.
Old fashioned lighter fluid used to be traditionally used to clean and lube tiny parts. Then synth ATF was good. Nowadays many use synth 0-30 motor oil. SOMEbody will say "what do you do with the rest?" Well, I filled up 2 of the large pill bottles, and used the rest in my car.
I like using locking forceps and a pin for the small stuff. Lock the pin in position, dip it in. Drop too big- tap the inside of the container 1 or 2 times. A lot of lubes a a real be-yotch to remove- don't over do it.
Many times a PC will get a power supply problem- overheating and shut down is almost always caused by a bad fan. Take the PSU apart, and unscrew the fan. ALMOST always there is a paper label in the middle- remove it. There may be a rubber plug- remove that also. You'll see one end of a plain bearing- a couple drops of oil will loosen this up for a few months. Plenty of time to procure and install another fan. Many branded PCs- especially Macs- will have a custom sized PSU
that isn't made anymore, and your ebay replacement is probably just as old and decrepit as yours.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Noooooo!

There are so many waxes and "slide enhancers" to pick from.

A regular paste woodworking wax does not have any other chemicals in it.

When in my HS band, the band director used to put pure lanolin on trumpet valves and trombone slides when we used to march in cold weather.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Any thoughs on PB-Blaster?

steve49 Loc: massachusetts

Way back we used to use petroleum jelly as a very light low pressure lubricant.
Easy to get, easy to clean up and non toxic.

Boomer Jim Loc: Newcastle Okla

Not trying to start anything, but did you not see the advice from the Lubrication Engineer?

olsonsview

Consider getting an additional rack and clean-relube it with a much thinner lubricant for winter use. One lube may never really fit all climatic conditions?

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Use a multi-viscosity...

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Right. It's not that the lube in the Velbon is bad. The low temperature is not what Velbon had in mind when they designed it. You'll need something light and thin - like silicone. The device isn't under a lot of stress, so the lube isn't critical.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I bet nothing in your house sticks or squeaks.

sodapop Loc: Bel Air, MD

WD40 does not completely evaporate It contains a component which leaves a rust protecting residue

GENorkus Loc: Washington Twp, Michigan

A couple good choices have been given above. I'm a former senior hydraulicsman, 32 years retited, for the US Govt. ("Big deal" he says since credentials don't seem to matter much any more.)

The use of the fish oil product is a good suggestion as well as some sewing machine oils. Both are very light weight.

Stay away from anything that has a silicone base to it unless you know that is what you really want. Sure it works and works well but that stuff will migrate to places unknown and... it is difficult to properly remove.

You can get that stuff in nearly any thickness from a heavy grease to a zero weight oil. Dow of Midland, Michigan used to have that, I don't know if they still have it. Call them. If they do, ask for a sample pack. I really doubt you'llneed any larger amount for your purpose. If so a larger quantity can be purchased at a machine shop supply store.

Spray oils like WD40 work well for short term use only. After spraying, the carrier quickly evaporates and the base has by now, sort-of blended into the origional lube. (It's made to do that.) In time it will thicken back to whatever lube you had or worse unless the originalhad been totally cleaned off.

Bottom line for your need, I would suggest a high quality clock and watch oil. Something like a synthetic "sperm whale oil".

You can get that at any good clock repairman's supply store and maybe at a local clock shop. If the store still does repair work and not just ship it out, they know what that stuff is. Maybe they can recommend a newer product that is better.

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

How about good old WD-40? Maybe do a test and spray some on two metal bars and put them in the freezer to see what happens.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

To you and Gvarner - it evaporates, leaves residue. Not a good idea. You'll never see a locksmith use WD40 on a lock for the same reason.