Suitable distributor cam grease?

FordFETruck

FordFETruck

Joined
Nov 27, 2012
Messages
272
Location
USA - WA
I've been searching the web for a tube of distributor cam grease and found very little about it. Either a few old threads that weren't helpful or the products I have found are discontinued. I used to have a tube of Echlin moly distributor cam grease and it has taken a scenic vacation to an unknown black hole in the garage. I also have a lot of individual lube packets left over from when my dad was an auto tech in the 80's (this stuff is clear/light amber and acts and feels like sil glyde, not sure what is really is though) and have been using those up but I need to find a suitable replacement. Obviously, this stuff is going the way of the dinosaur, will super lube or sil glyde suffice for this? I've used sil glide for a lot of different applications over the years and have found it likes to dry up under high heat conditions, so a bit leery of using it in this application. I've used bearing grease in distributors in the past and found it just melts and makes a mess after a while, so that's a no go. That Echlin moly cam grease, to me it just felt and acted like moly EP grease that I have in a big can, is it the same stuff? I will happily use that if it is indeed the same. Also, curious if anyone has used super lube in this application and how they liked it?
 
Chris142 said:
Any wheel bearing grease will work fine. I been using that for 40+ years.
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What brand bearing grease do you typically find yourself using for this? the napa brand #2 wheel bearing grease I used in the past melted and made a mess in a fairly short period of time.
 
I use red and tacky you from my motorcycle distributor cam lones not a problem seems to last longer than the regular cam Lube that you would use on cars but the motorcycle operates in a different environment but I have not had have any problem using the red and tacky for duel Point distributor on a Moto Guzzi motorcycles

TOMB
 
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Off topic but related. I'm at one of my customers warehouses a couple of years back, Motor State Distributing, and I just happen to see a bin of distributor cam lube tubes. I laugh at the dust on the bin. One of the long timers there says to me, if you know what that is you'll have dust on your bin pretty soon too!
 
JeffKeryk said:
Kudos to anyone who drives a points distriburor enough to need a lotta grease!
I pulled all the electronic stuff outta my old Vette distributor and put points back in. Only way to fly.
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I have considered going electronic but given my past experiences with aftermarket electronic ignitions I decided to just stick with what is working. The dwell meter needs to be used once in a while; it takes up space in the toolbox after all. LOL!
 
FordFETruck said:
I've been searching the web for a tube of distributor cam grease and found very little about it. Either a few old threads that weren't helpful or the products I have found are discontinued. I used to have a tube of Echlin moly distributor cam grease and it has taken a scenic vacation to an unknown black hole in the garage. I also have a lot of individual lube packets left over from when my dad was an auto tech in the 80's (this stuff is clear/light amber and acts and feels like sil glyde, not sure what is really is though) and have been using those up but I need to find a suitable replacement. Obviously, this stuff is going the way of the dinosaur, will super lube or sil glyde suffice for this? I've used sil glide for a lot of different applications over the years and have found it likes to dry up under high heat conditions, so a bit leery of using it in this application. I've used bearing grease in distributors in the past and found it just melts and makes a mess after a while, so that's a no go. That Echlin moly cam grease, to me it just felt and acted like moly EP grease that I have in a big can, is it the same stuff? I will happily use that if it is indeed the same. Also, curious if anyone has used super lube in this application and how they liked it?
Click to expand...
'standard motor products' (new york) ; use to make a dist. cam lube..
 
I always heard the Bosch stuff that was about $50/tube was the gold standard, but as best as I can tell it's been discontinued.

I use this https://www.amazon.com/Standard-Mot...x=distributor+cam+grease,automotive,74&sr=1-4

As said, this may be the only tube you ever buy as you really only need a tiny amount of it.

This is definitely an application where you don't want to just toss any grease on there, or for that matter use too much of the right grease, as if it flies off and lands who knows where, you can cause electrical issues and potentially gum up the advance mechanism.

BTW, I use what I like to think is an ideal trade-off. I still have points and a condensor in my distributor, but they trigger a Winterburn capacitive discharge unit. I get a stronger, hotter, and more reliable spark, but the points really only do have a small amount of current and ~12V going through them, not the ferocious high current 300V+ arcing from standard ignition, so the rubbing block wears faster than the contacts on the points. If the system gives me issues or I just want to rule something out, a switch(built into the CDI box) lets me set it to Kettering-type ignition. I can also switch the ignition off completely from under the hood, which is handy both when I'm working on the car and also, even though I don't use it this way, could be an anti-theft device.
 
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