Where to find samples of Lubricants?

[jsnysny]

Heya,

This is my first time posting on these forums, so let me know if you think this post would be better placed somewhere else.
I am in the process of replacing a discontinued lubricant with a new product. I have identified two options I'd like to test for our process (Mobilgrind 13 and Velocite 3), but I'm finding it very challenging to get small 1 quart samples of the products. Many industrial lubricants can only be purchased in 55gal drums, and we're a pretty small company. Local distributors aren't willing to provide samples and ExxonMobil (who makes these two products) doesn't provide samples. Does anyone here have advice on where to get small samples of industrial lubricants? The only thing I can think of at this point is calling around to see if any shops use these products and ask nicely if they'll sell me a little, but that sounds very time consuming.

Any help would be appreciated!
James

 

[mfgenggear]

James
Contact the distributer or the manufacture.
Speak to a sales engineer. Ask if they can help you. Unfortunately there are minimum buys. An other suggestion ask your customer if they can supply it.

 

[DAVIDSTECKER]

Keep pulling the string.
If you don't get anywhere going through their web site, talk to the local distributors and get names and number of their contacts and keep climbing up the chain of command.
Ask to speak with application engineers, anyone on the technical side of things.
Pick peoples brains until you find the right person.

 

[jsnysny]

Thanks for the recommendations. I'll keep on trying. For the Velocite 3 I'm going to cut my losses and just purchase a 5 gallon pail. It is wasteful if the product doesn't work for us, but I can't justify wasting more time trying to procure a small sample.

Mobilgrind 13 I'll have to keep asking around. I've resorted to cold contacting grinding shops in my region in the hopes that someone uses the product. No luck there yet... This week I may go back up the chain and try to get a hold of an application engineer.

 

[btrueblood]

You might get better luck asking for competitors to recommend a replacement?

 

[3DDave]

The one thing that may be a problem is that no quantity has been mentioned. For some users a 55 gallon drum is a sample. For others, just a few grams. Being very specific about the need may help.

I think many manufacturers have in-house labs that check the products and chemical engineers who run them. They get samples all the time - perhaps a friendly request to those forgotten workers would see a result. I had a conversation with one a long time ago - that guy was glad to have someone to discuss grease technology in actual usage.