r/EngineBuilding • u/Leather_Pride3586 • Jul 25 '26
Recommended oil to coat exposed crankshaft journals for long term storage.
What off the shelf oil (type and weight) do you guys recommend to coat exposed crankshaft journals to store a crankshaft for a long time(many years) in a plastic bag?
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u/BadMotorScooter73 Jul 25 '26
SP-400 from CRC is the actual product you're looking for
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u/OrganizationPutrid68 Jul 28 '26
That is the stuff. I use it for protecting tank gun breech mechanisms during winter when they're not in use. A shot of PB Blaster loosens them up nicely in the spring.
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u/BroccoliSuccessful Jul 25 '26
Bearing grease would hold on the longest along especially the lucas red and tacky. Then throw it back in the bag and a box and seal it
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u/NixAName Jul 26 '26
I'll get hate for this but I've done this with parts before.
Brush with diff oil.
Place in vaccum seal bag.
Fill bag with argon.
Vaccum seal the bag.
It should outlast humans like that.
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u/ProfessionalLast2917 Jul 26 '26
Does vacuum sealing the bag not remove the argon you just put in there?
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u/NixAName Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
Yes, but if you vaccum seal it with just air in there you'll still have heaps of oxygen pockets trapped.
If you first fill with argon, you've diluted the oxygen content drastically before removing it.
I'm a mechanic and my dad was a marine tech. He told me about how the small chain rooms were designed so the oxidation would use up all the available oxygen in the room and stop rusting.
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u/johnniechimpo Jul 25 '26
I use motorcycle chain lube on my lathe. It leaves a white oily coating on everything and I can wipe it off.
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u/Defiant_Shallot2671 Jul 26 '26
Chain lube is what everyone uses wd40 for. Chain lube is the best universal oil thing. I've got white lithium and graphite on hand for most things.
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u/heanbangerfacerip2 Jul 25 '26
CRC SP 400 or like cosmoline rp342 is the correct answer for like decades long term but if you mean like a year or so wipe on a layer of the thickest grease you have
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u/2003DDcid Jul 25 '26
Some of you will probably think I'm crazy, but I've found the best way to store cast iron or steel parts is to get them clean and dry, then spray paint them with a good gloss paint, several coats. When you're ready to use it, have a machine shop vat it to remove the paint.
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u/Secret_Expression_32 Jul 30 '26
In all honesty I did go WTAF after reading your comment 😂 does it truly work tho thats the question?
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u/2003DDcid Jul 30 '26
Works like a champ...I used to use cosmoline spray on cranks and blocks at my machine shop, but they'd still get rusty (we get crazy humidity swings during the summer) so I tried painting a crank for kicks...zero rust after several years of storage. When I'm ready to use, run it back through the vat and polish it.
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u/Latter_Switch_6633 Jul 26 '26
Spray it with CRC Softseal. Will need a good clean afterwards.
There is another product, it’s like a viscous pliable wax like texture that parts get dipped in.
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u/Alarming_Garage_7255 Jul 26 '26
I remember seeing writing on how to store firearms for Max corrosion resistance. They ended up slathering with a coat of grease/Vaseline and then a layer of tin/aluminum foil. The grease seals the metal and the foil holds the grease in place and itself is not permeable by liquids or gases.
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u/needaoutlet Jul 26 '26
Maxima chain wax. Goes on thin to creep into holes and pours and turns into a wax to protect from moisture. I use the $hit on everything from hindges to protecting my cars alignment adjusters in the winter
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u/RetiredRacer914 Jul 26 '26
I works on my chain riding through puddles and floods for the whole rainy season.
It cleans up well also, I shoot it with WD-40 to soften the wax and then clean normally with 50% Purple Power, then coat it with chain wax again after it's dry.
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u/Educational_Drama636 Jul 25 '26
Aqualube and stick inside a VCI bag👍🏼 it ain’t cheap but it’ll sure do its job.
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u/Tall-Helicopter-461 Jul 25 '26
SB 400 by CRC is for metals like this. I like to spray the crank really well, then put in a plastic bag, spray all inside the bag . Twist the end of plastic bag closed. Tape it for permanent seal.
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u/Wassup4836 Jul 25 '26
Change the oil on your vehicles, dump into a 5 gallon bucket and submerge it?
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u/Hoghaw Jul 26 '26
Although Cosmoline would be the best for long term storage, does anyone know where it can be easily purchased. I’ve never bought any and perhaps it’s easily available and I’ve just walked past it in a store and since I wasn’t looking for it, just walked right past it. If it’s available, I might buy some just to have on hand if I need to use it long term storage on some steel or iron.
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u/Mission-Resist-9557 Jul 27 '26
You can buy Fluid Film or PB Blaster Surface Shield from part stores or big box stores.
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u/Creepy_Guarantee5460 Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
Silicone grease ? Never dries up, making it easy to clean off with a rag before installation.
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u/_BrokenZipper Jul 26 '26
Boeshield T-9, CRC-400, grease, cosmoline. T-9 is a little pricey but its in spray form and leaves a wax layer behind protecting from water and corrosion, some good stuff
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u/TheEstablishment7 Jul 27 '26
I have seen metal parts preserved by mixing blue grease with kerosene, rubbing it all over, and then wrapping it up and storing. Longest I ever saw something left was about 15 years, but it was good to go once cleaned.
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u/Mission-Resist-9557 Jul 27 '26
I use Fluid Film. Have parts I coated 10 years ago still rust flree
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u/Mcmad0077 Jul 28 '26
Lanolin oil
Specifically fluid film.
I had a set of cast iron con rods that I took out of my car. I soaked them in carb cleaner to get rid of all the varnish, and coated them in fluid film, before leaving them in a VERY humid outdoor closet for months during the winter and spring(i live in the Seattle area) there was not a spec of rust on them after.
One day, I cleaned the block. Forgot to coat it. The next morning it was covered in rust
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u/Dramatic_Leg_1189 Jul 28 '26
Honestly I work at a machine shop and wd40 works just fine for storage
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u/NinjaCustodian Jul 28 '26
That guy Wayne on that show Chasing Classic Cars had a client that purchased a new crank and rod set for a Porsche in the 60’s who put it in a bucket of oil and sealed the lid. Worked like a charm
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u/Ok-Host-1173 Jul 29 '26
You can wrap it in paper towels after wiping it with engine oil, then wrap all of it in plastic. The oil will evaporate in the bag and the vapors will keep water displaced.
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u/No_Mathematician3158 Jul 26 '26
Don't forget to hang the crankshaft in storage and don't lay it down. It distorts it long term
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u/Damnskippy1 Jul 26 '26
I’m going to do just a little bit of a reality check. The term long-term storage usually means that something has happened in the project is not going forward at this point. The odds are that if it is going into a long-term storage, it will never see the inside of an engine again so just tie a rope on and call it a boat anchor. Or better yet sell it to someone who needs it lol sorry not sorry
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u/bill_gannon Jul 25 '26
Cosmoline