Pulse XE maintenace



  • The maintenance video is good overall but didnt give any details on lube types for hte Pulse XE

    But what type of oil for the bars? 3M or synthetic?
    What type of grease for the worm gear shafts? White litium?


  • Global Moderator

    @mavin I use TinkSeal, it is the best lubricant for 3D printers I have found. Use it very lightly, except for inside the slide bearings, pack as much in them as possible. TinkSeal is not a grease, its all nano particles, so once its on, you can wipe off with a cloth and there will still be a coating on the surfaces. It is also great for plastic parts you print, very slippery. You can google it or I think tinkseal.com works.



  • Tried to find tinkseal, only available from a part supplier on ebay. Any other suggestions?


  • Global Moderator

    @mavin There are several places that sell TinkSeal. Where are you located?


  • MatterHackers

    You should not need to lubricate your Z axis screws/nuts. The nuts are made of Delrin and really shouldn't require any additional lubrication. If you are having issues with your Z axis movement, you can remove the Z motors and clean the lead screws with alcohol. Then you can use light machine oil or mineral oil to give it some protection. Wipe off any excess oil before reinstalling.


  • Global Moderator

    Hello Taylor. Delrin is acetal or polyacetal plastic. It does not contain any lubricants other than itself being a hard, organic polymer. TinkSeal contains nano lubricants, it is worked into the lead screw metal surface and inside the T-nuts. Then it is removed with a soft terry cloth. It will make the z-axis glide better and last longer. Machine lubricant is not recommended as it will collect dust emitted from the hot end during use. Your leadscrews will turn black. TinkSeal is effective for all bearings used in the Pulse printer.

    I have had my Pulse XE just over 1 year now. I have worn out Nema motor bearings and z-axis T8 leadscrew nuts. I have replaced most of the nema 17 motor bearings with RS rubber seals and repacked the bearings with TinkSeal. I am in the process of removing all of the LMUU bearings and replacing them with linear bearings. I have put the Pulse XE through hell and back. Still running today.


  • MatterHackers

    @tinken correct, Delrin/POM is not impregnated with lubricant, but it really shouldn't require lubrication in this application. And, using the incorrect lubricant can cause issues. Our Pulse print farm that runs 24 hours/day, 5+ days/week for the better part of 4 years hasn't required Z-nut lubrication.
    I'm not familiar with TinkSeal, so I can't recommend it, but it would be very rare for an issue to be related to Z-nuts not being lubricated.


  • Global Moderator

    I think that this is a subject that we can agree to disagree. A dry lubricant will only aid to the z-axis screws. If not only in lubrication, but will also aid to keeping them clean. Prior to lubricating mine, they would become black with carbon fiber dust. I also have a much larger printer which I lubricate thoroughly.


  • MatterHackers

    @tinken no disagreement overall, just making sure that issues are addressed in the most logical order. I'm hesitant to recommend things that aren't regularly necessary because I've seen some absurd things over the years - including people loading up with lithium or moly grease to the point where it gums up the lead screws/nuts and requires full replacement of the nuts and printed parts. A dry lube or a penetrating film type lube like you've described TinkSeal being would be much better options than a grease or oil.


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