Lubricating your Addi: clearing up the lithium grease issue

Once upon Jack built engines. In those days, he and other engine pros relied on a product that was then state of the art: lithium grease. When I had issues with my Addi, he knew enough about the chemistry of this product to know that it would be safe on my plastic machine so he got out his tube and we tried it. It worked great but we kept silent for over a year to make certain there were no long term ill effects. There were not. It worked beautifully. So we made a video to help other Addi knitters. However in the intervening years, since the engine building part of Jack's career, unbeknownst to us, "lithium grease" products had proliferated and knitters were faced with a menu of them too enormous to sort out. While they do contain lithium grease, many also contain other things not suitable to the job of lubricating Addi Knitting Machines. Having discovered this, we realized the need to clear matters up. Unfortunately, we are now out of the last of the tube we used and the exact product is not available. Others may work but we don't know, cannot test them because I no longer have an Addi. If you decide to use a lubricant, read the MSDS for yourself. The manufacturer is required by law to post it. Make sure the product is safe for plastics and for indoor use and be aware that you may void your warranty. For day to day lubrication, Kathryn uses Bond Easy Knit spray and ONLY that and sparingly. It is a silicone formulated for Bond knitting machines and works well. Kathryn has tried multiple other silicones and hates them all. The lithium grease is not a cleaning product. Kathryn cleaned with a soft paint brush before using it. At times, she has also dismantled the machine and washed the parts in the sink with hand dish washing liquid. PLEASE use this information with careful consideration and only as stated. We want you to have a good experience and for your Addi to last a long time. One additional note: we have many videos on chemicals for knitting machines. Most of these refer to metal flatbed machines. If the video does not reference Addi do not use the info on your Addi.
Click here to see Kathryn's Addi Adventures book