Updated May 2017

Hydraulic Oil Recommendations for Morse drum handlers:

• For Morse models with hydraulic hand pump: Mobil ATF D/M


• For Morse models with power hydraulic pump: Noco Premium Plus Automatic Transmission Fluid D/M, or Mobil DTE 24

Using the Correct Hydraulic Oil - Excerpted from "Seven Deadly Hydraulic System Sins" by Brendan Casey

The oil is the most important component of any hydraulic system. Not only is hydraulic oil a lubricant, it's also the means by which power is transferred. This dual role makes viscosity an oil's most important property. It affects both machine performance and service life.

. . .The viscosity of the oil largely determines a hydraulic system's safe maximum and minimum oil temperatures. This is sometimes referred to as the temperature operating window (TOW).

If you use oil with a viscosity that's too high for the climate the machine has to operate in, the oil won't flow properly or lubricate adequately during cold start. If you use oil with a viscosity that's too low for the prevailing climate, it won't maintain the required minimum viscosity, and therefore adequate lubrication, on the hottest days.

That's not the end of it. Within the allowable extremes of viscosity required for adequate lubrication, there's a narrower viscosity band where power losses are minimized. If the oil's operating viscosity is higher than ideal, more power is lost to fluid friction. If operating viscosity is lower than ideal, more power is lost to mechanical friction and internal leakage.

So using oil of the wrong viscosity not only results in lubrication damage and premature failure of major components, it also increases power consumption (diesel or electric) two things you don't want.

You won't always get viscosity right by blindly following the machine manufacturer's oil recommendation. The only way to be certain is to check that your machine's actual temperature operating window lies within the allowable TOW, and, ideally, within the optimum TOW for the oil you're using.

Read the complete article at LiftandAccess.com