I took it apart because
that is what I do. (Did the same thing when I bought my brand new ECM Synchronika espresso machine last year, and most everything I buy smaller than a vehicle) IOT understand fully how a machine works, and what "right" looks like during its operation, I need to see the internals. (Had I found a good YT video on disassembly/assembly, I wouldn't have had to take mine apart, but I never found one to my liking.)
No, the grease from the pot NEVER touches the bearings. Impossible, unless you blow out the bottom of the cylinder casing. The grease from the pot is pushed into the gap between the piston and the cylinder wall, and friction from the rubber spreads it all over the cylinder walls. And yes, water (humidity) can exist in there as well, but it doesn't mix with the grease, it gets forced out the exhaust. But if you took your cylinder apart after an hour run, you'd likely see beads of condensation on the metal parts of the piston itself.
If you removed the grease pot and the diaphragm, it would become the air intake; it is plumbed in the same location as the actual air intake.
View attachment 442741 And no, the bearings are NOT brass bushings, they are high-quality needle bearings. Which are lubed at assembly with the same silicone/food grade grease that's in the pot, but the only way to re-lube them is to take the cylinder assembly OFF and lube them by hand. It is impossible for the grease to get from the pot, travel down the cylinder walls, escape the big O-ring between the piston and cylinder wall, and leak into the crankcase housing. The ONLY thing that can get into the crankcase of a properly-functioning unit is ambient air from the vent at the back.
View attachment 442743 View attachment 442744 View attachment 442745 View attachment 442747 Look, if you don't want to trust the manufacturer's guidance to flush the cylinder with water, don't. The worst that will happen is you'll develop a leak that requires disassembly and cleaning (a rather simple task, really). But why would someone who makes such a fine compressor (thus far) and give instructions that would ruin it? That doesn't make any sense at all.
I'm going to make some observations on your pictures.. only thing is I wish there were more.. maybe later?
mine is a Omega trail charger so it could be different, I don't have time to disassemble working machines, seems like I'm always playing catch up on repairs here and for friends and neighbors..
so picture 1.. the blue thing with white ends, is that the intake filter? do you know what they put inside, and is it serviceable or disposable?
have you removed the head and the grease pot or grease pot and air intake? interesting thing,my grease pot doesn't have a diaphragm..and I'm not sure how that would work.. seems like it would seal the grease to one side..the grease pot is pretty much identical to the grease caps on old machinery. reason I am asking is I have been fooled working on something that it appears to go to one place but they have intricate passages that take it elsewhere.. just wondering, possibly if you take it down at a later time you could pm me some more pictures.. yes I love pictures..
picture 2 looks suspicious, because the way the grease is around the rod and crank it really looks like my excavator or tractor when you grease a pin and it squeezes out.. makes me think it is more than just grease from assembly.. is there a hidden plug? ball joints on a F350 have a plug instead of a grease zerk.. I always replace it with a zerk to lubricate, especially loggers work truck because they get so much mud and grime and they are half a day work changing them, so with the grease zerk I can pump extra grease and flush it out and then just wipe up the excess.. my only other thought is that it has a split race, like a crank end rod bearing and they just packed it full before assembly? but since it's got a very good looking piston end rod bearing, looks like very good quality it doesn't seem like it would be any different on the crank bearings..
picture 2 and 4 and 5
you didn't post pictures of the cylinder dissembled.. so I am actually wondering what it looks like inside.. id think at minimum it's got to be a 3 stage or more.. so inside the cylinder housing there has to be more cylinders inside each other.. would be nice to see..
comments.. it's very nice to see the quality bearings, and not bushings.. makes me think that it will have a long life.. I'm not convinced by the picture that the grease actually goes into the intake.. id assume that but like I said, I have been personally fooled looking at a part and then finding out after disassemble that it had passages other places..
yes the water will bead and come out, especially if the cylinder walls have grease rub in.. I'm curious now if you have had the cylinder disassemble? are they using rubber o ring for piston rings? id assume that would be the weak spot if so, but I would expect rings like a hydraulic cylinder instead, longer life for the seals..id also assume that each stage has more than one ring on the piston?
I'm wondering what the inside of the cylinder is like.. I have a couple airbag compressor and they are not standard oil bath.. they are ceramic lined and coated with Teflon.. short duty cycle and they are high speed and get hot.. not so good for long life but they have been around a long time and still going..
makes me wonder how well the crankcase is vented, I wouldn't try it with the high pressure, unless I could verify it was safe but some high temperature high quality bearing grease in those roller bearings would make them last forever.. but if any vapor could get from them it could possibly go into the cylinder and diesel and then the compressor would be done at best.. could be pieces everywhere...
ok nothing getting into the crankcase is not necessarily true.. it's why the high speed oil bath compressor has to get it's oil changed frequently.. some amount of moisture gets past the rings.. this is the best advantage of the slow speed and oil less compressor.. likely it vapor out the vent.. instead of contaminating the oil in the crank case..
does the entire cylinder have a water jacket around it? couldn't tell from the picture.. man that would be the first thing I'd have to disassemble and likely need a seal kit.. there's got to be a water jacket and multiple cylinders inside it.. and depending on how tight the fit it would likely need a ring compressor if it has o rings for piston rings to keep from nicking one..
at the end of the day, I don't think I could bring myself to put water in the grease.. it's just something that doesn't mix.. and ultimately In normal life the water would keep the grease from lubricant properly, so it will be like running without lube for a bit.. and well I have seen a few too many diesel engines that lost a head gasket or EGR cooler and it put coolant into the engine and ejected the rod out the side of the block.. I just couldn't even force myself to try that and not expect disaster.
mark
with the video mess and also unfortunately I don't have any proof of water coming out of the bleeder from putting in water in the grease pot.. because it could have been likely sucked in with the water he spilled on top of the machine.. my Omega trail charger used to do that in logsden Oregon with such high humidity.. id often fill part way, bleed off water and then continue filling.. and that was just a tube gun.. american tactical liberty nova 22..