Bearings

[angus3287]

Hi all, just wondering what the best way to keep your bearings on the m board lubricated is? I tried grease and 3 in 1oil but both act as sand magnets and make the problem worse. Any advice would be good, cheers, gus

[Jolba]

I've pumped mine full of axel grease and that seems to do the job .

[kitesurfa]

Tip - When you need to replace them. Get some shielded ones (sealed) I think they have a 'ZZ' code in the bearing part number.

 

so would be something like 6002-ZZ (example) check which you have fitted before ordering.

 

Don't get open bearings.

[JoeSchmoe]

My advice would be to get rubber shielded bearings (RS code). For a good bearing care guide, I'd suggest a visit to lushlongboards.com.

[gingerob19]

was having a bearing dilema today actually! notices that two of my wheels don't freely spin anymore after a rather wet and sandy run on the beach yesterday. seems to have come on suddenly. Is it worth taking them apart and and cleaning them or maybe just pump a load of wd40 into them. They sound very grindy so assuming sand has worked its way in...

 

 

oh yeah and where would u get these shielded bearings? had a look on a few sites 'cckites etc' and it looks like they just sell the regular ones.

 

cheers all

 

Rob

[mkratty]

LOOK IN YOUR LOCAL TELEPHONE BOOK FOR A LOCAL BEARING SUPPIER SOMEONE LIKE SWAN OR SOMTHING LIKE THAT .THEY ARE FAR CHEAPER THAN SKATE SHOP SUPPLIERS. JUST TAKE IN A PATTERN!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Man_in_UK]

If your bearings have got rubber seals they can be cleaned out. Ease a thin flat blade driver under the inside of the seal and prise it off, do this very carefull as bending it will make it harder if not impossible to replace. Wash the bearing out in petrol/parafin/white spirit, anything that will evaporate and then fill ONE SIDE ONLY with a good grease, boat grease would be best. Then press your seals back on.

 

 

Only ever pack one side of a bearing. This is plenty of grease to protect and lubricate. Overpacking a bearing can cause the balls to become unable to move freely, skidding in the races and not running in them.

[AndyUK]

I am not sure that I agree with putting a GREASE lubricant into your bearnings.

 

IMHO it will slow them down too much as the weight of a board + Boarder isn't that much when you consider the weight of a car for example which have their bearings "Greased".

 

I would be more inclined, with the type of bearings that Man_In_Uk is talking about, to spray them with a chain oil, the sort of thing you get for motorbike chains, or WD40 if you want something cheaper to use.

Either will provide good lubrication and anti corrosion properties without slowing down the bearings as grease would do.

 

Andy

[JoeSchmoe]

Right...how to clean and lube bearings.

 

Ingredients:

1 : Cotton wool buds on sticks

2 : An old cup

3 : A can of WD40

4 : Some paper towels

5 : Bearing Lubricant (I would personally recommend Bones Speed Cream).

 

1. Remove the rubber shields from the bearings using a small flathead screwdriver.

2. Fill old cup with WD40

3. Place the (now unshielded bearings) in the cup

4. Go and watch a film (Pirates of the Carribean is good)

5. Empty out the WD40 and place the bearings on a paper towel.

6. Use the cotton wool buds on sticks to clean off all the gunk

7. Fill the old cup with more WD40

8. The bearings now go back in the cup

9. Wait half an hour.

10. Take the bearings out and leave them to dry resting on paper towels

11. Leave overnight

12. Add a few drops of bearing lube to each ball bearing in turn, then replace the shields.

 

There you go. Your bearings will run faster, and will last a lot longer if you do this every now and again.

 

I'd also like to dispel some myths:

WD40 is a cleaner. It will remove the gunk from your bearings. It'll also remove any lubricant, and leave you with a set of bearings that'll run fast for a week or so and then start to seize.

Lithium grease (and other types of grease) are not really suitable for atb bearing use, they will protect your bearings, but can slow you down and can attract dirt like a magnet.

 

You can get bearing lube from most skate shops, or some kind of chain lube from most bike shops...this is the kind of stuff you want. It's not expensive, and you'd be surprised how much difference it makes.

 

Hope that all helps.

[gingerob19]

cheers dude very impressed with your bearing knowledge and how your managed to type all that this early in the morning!

 

I pumped mine full of WD40 yesterday cos they were nrly seeeeezed up and now they run really freely but as you said, i dont think there really lubricated, just very clean!

 

Cheers

 

Rob

[dave1986]

I rekon WD40 is one of the worst things you can use on bearings!!

It will clean them out well, remove all the grit, and dirt, but in the long term it wont do them any good

 

In the past ive found that with my skateboard bearings WD-40 makes them spin real fast for a day or 2, but the WD-40 soon works its way out cos its so thin.

 

I rekon its best to use parafin, or WD-40 to clean them out, but then put grease in them to protect them. They may not spin as fast with grease in them cos its thicker, but you cant notice the differece when rolling along because of the weight of you and the board, and it should make your bearings last quite a bit longer

 

Dave

[Man_in_UK]

Yes and no.

 

Unless I am mistaken most if not all sealed bearings come greased.

 

 

OK if you want to break the land speed record for the fastest fag box rolling down a hill record then I would not use grease. I doubt very much that if a 10+ stone person standing on an ATB, on sand or grass, hanging onto a 4+ meter kite will go ANY slower because there is grease in his bearings.

 

During my MTB days we all used boat grease. Its one of the thickest greases I have found. We found the thickness would prevent the dirt getting to the bearings, a thin grease would quickly mix up and turn into a dirty paste.

[sonicseal]

Silicone based lubricant is much better to use instead of WD40 for the daily maintenance.

I used WD40 and got nothing but sludge build-up and crunchy bearings that eventually seized.

Replaced bearings and now spray to protect with a silicon-based lube and my bearings have lasted 4 times longer, get no sludge build up, don't crunch and still run sweet.

Nothing sticks !!

Be careful when replacing bearings that you are paying for quality. FAG or SKF are the mutt's nutts.

 

Keep rolling

[peteb303]

Sonicseal you beat me to it. Yep silicone spray is much better than wd40. Wd40 is seeking and will find its way into the bearings and break the grease down. I just got a new set of bearings (FAG), when I got them I asked what is the best stuff to use on them for cleaning down board. They phoned the manufacturers and they said use silicone spay.

[Neil B]

Used one of my boards for 2 years on beaches without any replacement bearings and found if you hose the board, wheels and trucks immediately after use (not the next day), let it dry off and then give the bearings and exposed metal work a good spary of WD40 or GT85 it works wonders.

 

After aprox 4 - 5 hard rides then wheels off and thoroughly clean and lube all moving parts, there is no reason the bearings should not last.

 

If you are buying replacement bearings do not buy cheap ones as they really do not seem to last, don't know why, maybe just the old saying you get what you pay for.

[cacmo1]

WD40 is a good cleaning agent but it don't last long because it evaporates, unlike oil. I have not tried this on my board yet but I would think a good oil to use would be Rocket Fuel bearing oil. This oil is used for fishing reel bearings probably not cheap to buy though.

[Neil B]

WD40 is a good cleaning agent but it don't last long because it evaporates, unlike oil. I have not tried this on my board yet but I would think a good oil to use would be Rocket Fuel bearing oil. This oil is used for fishing reel bearings probably not cheap to buy though.

I think any light oil would be OK as long not too much is applied otherwise your bearings will become sand magnets. I experienced a similar thing with very light grease

'what a mess after' so I just stick with the light spray stuff now.