Leaking Oil Cutter

by Jack Fagnani
(Bridgeport, CT (US))

Hi,

I'm a brand new novice and I have received an order of various tools and supplies which I am trying out.

One of my tools is a Gryphon Cushion Grip Brass Barrel Cutter; it has a reservoir for cutting oil.

I made a holder for it (simply drilled a hole in a block of soft wood) and stored it vertically, but after the first time that I filled it up, all the fluid dripped out. I filled it a second time (and made sure that the barrel was tightly screwed down) and put it vertically in a wood vise; again all the fluid dripped out.

Is this par for the course with these reservoir type cutters (I haven't tried storing it upside down, and there really is no reason why I could not)?

Thanks again.

Answer
I'm not familiar with the brand of cutter you bought, but I just did a search for it and see that one of it's features is a LEAK RESISTANT oil reservoir. I would contact the place you bought it from and ask them to replace it. It appears that you might have a defective cutter.

However, I have found that many oil cutters leak, no matter what brand they are, so if you decide not to do anything about exchanging it, there is something you can do to eliminate the oil leak.

Many people, myself included, don't bother filling the reservoir with oil. We use a small jar, like a baby food jar, with some cotton or a piece of sponge saturated with oil in the bottom of it. You don't need oil standing in the jar, just very damp cotton or sponge. While you're cutting, dip the cutter in the jar occasionally (often enough to keep the wheel oiled), and store the cutter in the jar when you're not using it.