Do they just assemble everything dry when new?

[The motor guy]

Do manufacturers always assemble everything dry when new? No oil on oil filter gaskets, so they are a bear to come off. Lawn mower pulleys never get any anti seize before sliding them onto the shaft etc, so then you're taking a torch to it to try and get it off. On my mowers, one of them has a pulley/hub setup that slides onto the spindle. Well, good luck pulling that off after 8 years without any type of grease or anti seize or something to keep it from rusting together solid. So a $50 pair of bearings turns into an entire $350 assembly

 

[GR_CoB]

Cost Reduction is the name of that corporate game.

 

[supton]

Haven’t they always done that? Skimp on antiseize, undercoating, you name it.

 

[Escape08]

Basically, lawn mowers are mass produced. When you buy one the engine is dry empty of oil but came with a bottle of oil with it that you have to pour it yourself. You have to check the bolts are all tightened, since there are no final inspectors from the factory before it's boxed in.

 

[97prizm]

And apparently if theres a problem with your new mower and you bring it back to Home Depot they'll tell you they can't take it back due to it having oil and gasoline in it. Hence why I'd try to buy from a local ope place.

 

[cptbarkey]

Angry man shouting at the clouds, news at 4am? Just kidding.

When I bought my 13 (at the time) year old Lexus, every grease fitting was dry as a bone.

When I bought 5 Icon ratchets all at once, only 1 of them didn't have lubrication, superlube won the day.

 

[daves87rs]

Saves them money , of course.

 

[oldcodger]

Lack of anti-seize is my major gripe. Parts on a lawn mower are guaranteed to rust weld together. If you think mowers are bad try operating a combine. The bearings on those things have a limited service life and lack of anti-seize becomes a great big pain. You will have to resort to a cutting torch to remove the old bearings.
Many lawn mowers are final assembled at the point of sale. No inspection at all to verify proper operation.

 

[The motor guy]

I always have to use grease because I can never find the container of anti seize at the time that I need it. I'd imagine grease would work better anyways.

 

[KrisZ]

Yes everything is assembled dry and has always been assembled dry, unless it was a special application. The torque specs for pretty much all threads is clean and dry.