Light oil/ mineral oil : starret instrument oil / way oil and hydraulic oil are all mineral oil base with some additives.
Norton brand knife honing oil is a pharmaceutical  grade  mineral oil.
So very available under many labels and cost will vary depending on if you buy a few once container a gallon or a 5 gallon bucket.

Lucas brand white lithium grease a few dollars for 8oz at home  auto parts stores have tiny tubes for almost the same money.

Krytox grease is available if you know where to look but expensive to buy.

as near as I can tell 3in one oil and sewing machine oil are about the same thing light naphtha paraffin oils.

Silicone grease and oil is used for airsoft guns and i imagine a bunch of other things.

so the take away here is if you have other hobbies you likely have some good quality lube on hand.  If not the home depot or local hardware store has an ample supply.
Tin

7
down vote
favorite
3
   

It's kind of tempting to use vegetable oil for lubricating door hinges and other similar basic mechanisms around the house - vegetable oil is readily available in almost any household. However I always hear it's a bad idea, but could never find any details of why exactly it is a bad idea.

What exactly happens if I use vegetable oil for basic mechanisms lubrication?

    Vegetable oil will gum up, attract dirt and dust, and eventually end up a huge mess. DO NOT use it.
    Mineral oil is a food-safe oil not normally used as a cooking lubricant, but it is the go-to for replenishing woods and lubricating mechanical parts of cooking utensils. It won't gum up, and is OK to use in a pinch.
    Most machine oils are a bit thin; they'll get into crevices like in door hinges, but they're lighter-weight and more volatile, and will eventually evaporate or work their way back out.
    Silicone sprays are great for metal-on-metal, but they are incompatible with some plastics, so read the label carefully.
    If you can take the mechanism apart without destroying it, I would recommend a silicone grease out of a tube, such as Dow-33 (available under many different brand names; you'll most likely find it as a pneumatic tool lube because it doesn't hurt o-rings). It is nonreactive with all plastics and metals, and is a thick-ish grease which stays where it's put. A little dab'll do ya. Only trouble is you have to be able to apply it directly to the surface to be lubricated; it doesn't wick into crevices like an oil or spray lube.

there are other answers and i have used corn oil to clean paint brushes and found while it will clean oily substances it will leave solids behind

ghost over time that oil may dry and cause the bearings to seize due to the particles as it hardened and flaked

Highly unlikely I have used everything under the sun and never had that happen.  The key is to use a very thin oil if any at all.

of course, it's hard to justify spending $60 for a 5 gallon jug of something. I would think any light hydraulic oil would work as well. The only thing I worry about lubing is the Z rod, and that's because I had binding issues in the past.

of course, it's hard to justify spending $60 for a 5 gallon jug of something. I would think any light hydraulic oil would work as well. The only thing I worry about lubing is the Z rod, and that's because I had binding issues in the past.

Evinrude Triple Guard grease thickens up and increases friction after using for a month or so.

Militec oil causes printed parts to crack after a week or so.  I've got some new parts I printed, used Militec to keep the screws from binding in the inserts as I installed them, and they cracked just sitting on the shelf awaiting installation.

What does everyone else use?

Thanks!