# Auger Gear Oil or Grease?



## GoBlowSnow

Hey folks, another question from me as I continue to learn from you. JD 826, mid-80s vintage. The manual online (from 1981) states to use 5W20 for the gear case. Some Augers use the grease (like the JD TRS27) and some use oil, and I suppose some can use both? I'm guessing for this one I have to use oil, but given that the manual is from 1981, I am sure times have changed. Do I still want to try to find 5W20 oil or can I go with a 70 or 80W90 gear oil? Or should I go ahead and put grease in there? 

I'd do some more searching but I am mobile at the moment and don't have the time while I work on this machine remotely. Thanks!


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## motorhead64

GBS
That is a light weight oil (5w20). The tolerances in the gearbox must have been close. I would go with the recommended lube. MH


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## 43128

try 5w30 if it leaks switch to sae30


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## Kiss4aFrog

If it says to use 5W20 I'd stick with the 5W20. It's easy to find as a lot of Fords specified that weight for their engines.


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## GoBlowSnow

Ok thank you. I can only find manuals online for the 826 that are for the early 80s/late 70s versions of the 826 so thus why I am somewhat concerned if JD changes things around in the Auger gearbox somewhere along the line and switched it over to a true gear lube/grease vs regular motor oil. Do any of you out there own any 1984-1988 826s and still have the manual that came with that machine?


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## Bob Cat

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=68625&d=1450812218

If this makes sense let me know because it doesn't to me. This is from the operators manual for a 1986 JD 1026 .


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## Kiss4aFrog

What doesn't make sense ??


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## Yanmar Ronin

He must mean this:










Says 'Add grease', Note: Use oil...


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## Bob Cat

Bingo Yanmar.


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## GoBlowSnow

EXACTLY. Big difference between oil and grease! Well- In the Auger case of the JD 826 I've put in Valvoline synthetic 80W90 (or something like that) at the recommendation of a trusted repair facility, even though the manual calls for that 5W20 engine oil. And so far it hasn't leaked out. Yet the TRS27 calls for grease. One has to wonder.. was there that big of a difference in the cases between 1984 and 1989? They look the same on the outside.


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## Yanmar Ronin

Well having shed some light on the question, I don't have much to shed on an answer.

Maybe there was some problems with the thin oil eventually finding a way out, and a lack of owner maintenance/not discovering until too late causing failures, leading to a thicker recommendation?

That said... anything is better than nothing, far fewer parts have failed due to the wrong lubricant than to a complete lack thereof... Wouldn't be too afraid of the 5-20 though, know of some manual car gearboxes that run trans fluid. If it has lasted this long with that in it my guess is it's good.


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## Johner

GoBlowSnow said:


> Ok thank you. I can only find manuals online for the 826 that are for the early 80s/late 70s versions of the 826 so thus why I am somewhat concerned if JD changes things around in the Auger gearbox somewhere along the line and switched it over to a true gear lube/grease vs regular motor oil. Do any of you out there own any 1984-1988 826s and still have the manual that came with that machine?



Just reading this now 4-14-21, Am fixing a JD 826 had the same question gear oil, after reading and after I drain the old I will go with the gear oil. This one has set for seven years have most everything fixed I hope, now I have to split the machine and replace the auger bearing. Also replacing springs they get expensive with shipping so in the future repairs I will be making my own springs. Thanks all for the input.


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