Graphogen paste for engine rebuilds

[Alty Ian]

I have been recommended Graphogen engine assembly compound for when I reassemble the engine, has anyone used this or something similar?

Is it any good?

[paulsco]

I have used it on many engine rebuilds with good effect and am currently using it on my E-Type rebuild.

It doesn't run away like oil and protects the surfaces on initial start up.

Paul

[christopher storey]

Great stuff . Smear all the bearing surfaces with it, rubbing it well in , and you could run the engine without oil !! The one area I would be careful about using it on is the cylinder walls , however, as it might inhibit the bedding in process - worth asking Barry John about his view on that

[andrewh]

I have used it, pale yellow tube here in the UK. also used red line engine lube. Both have worked fine and given me a comforting feeling that mains and big ends will remain lubricated until I fire the engine up and oil under pressure makes it way there. If you use just oil and then store the engine for a while, it may run away to some extent over a period of time.

[rfs1957]

Just remember not to get freaked out by black oil on the dipstick within 100 yards.

[Gfhug]

Is Graphogen used in any other areas than the engine.
EG in a diff or on bearings in the hub carrier?
Just something been said to me and wanted to see if they were talking with forked-tongue.

(Or maybe they meant another grease/lube in those areas?)

Thanks
Geoff

[christopher storey]

My personal view is that I think it might be a bit chancy . It is not strictly a lubricant of the conventional sort, but is colloidal graphite in suspension ,and was described on the tube/box as "assembly paste" or compound, I can't remember which , and I am pretty sure it is meant to become absorbed into liquid lubricant as soon as the liquid reaches all areas . On something like a hub bearing where there is no liquid lubricant it might not work in the long term , and I would be rather hesitant to recommend it for EP use such as in gearsets because I have not heard of its being used for that . That having been said, some engine builders swear by it for cam lobe use , which of course with new cams/tappets is very definitely an EP use, and the manufacturers say " for assembly of all types of precision machinery "

[paydase]

Graphite itself is some sort of lubricant, maybe depending of temperature, load, etc. but still it would lubricate somehow even in the absence of a liquid to disperse the particles.
As Christopher says, the liquid may help graphogen reaching all areas.
Not sure however if the intrinsic lubricating capacity of graphite would be enough for some uses.
In doubt, I would only use graphogen in the cases prescribed by the producer.

[paulsco]

I don't see the need to use it in the diff; it is intended as an assembly lubricant, which protects the parts until the oil reaches them and then disburses.

The diff is filled with oil to a level that lubricates the bearings before it is used; it does not require the turning of the engine (pump) to put the oil where it needs to be to protect the surfaces.

Paul

[PeterCrespin]

I don't see the need to use it in the diff; it is intended as an assembly lubricant, which protects the parts until the oil reaches them and then disburses.

The diff is filled with oil to a level that lubricates the bearings before it is used; it does not require the turning of the engine (pump) to put the oil where it needs to be to protect the surfaces.

Paul

Correct. Assembly lube is pointless in oil-filled machinery like diffs and gearboxes. It is also pointless in grease-filled assemblies like hub or fulcrum bearings, which should be packed with clean grease during build-up.

Its only use is for new assemblies that will run dry momentarily on initial startup. IMO even there it is moot in a car engine, if you spin the motor a few seconds with the plugs out until pressure registers. I.e. there is never any running load applied to an oil-starved bearing surface. I am still on a tube of red stuff Carillo sent me with a set of rods but thick gear oil is fine.

[Gfhug]

Thanks for the responses. It was someone I was thinking of using to help do the work on my hub carriers when the IRS is out. He said about making sure you have graphogen for the hub bearings. Hence my question. Maybe he meant some other grease and I misheard?

(And it was my question, not his suggestion, about the diff, so that one is my fault)

But he also asked if the engine had been modified for lead-free fuel....
Kind of strange from someone who has an XK150 and an S1 OTS in the workshop being rebuilt and previously an Aston Martin DB2/4. So some people obviously trust his work, despite the spit and sawdust appearance.