DIY! How to Grease Up Bearings Taught by Professional Mechanic

Graisse_Blizzard.jpg How to

Bearings are essential for the smooth rolling of the wheel, but the grease affects the performance of the bearings. The bearings embedded in the rolling part are applied with grease for lubrication. As with engine oil, the grease enclosed inside the bearings will deteriorate depending on the period of use and conditions. Practice regular checking and grease up before the bearings lead to major damage.

1. Pay attention to maintain grease-up on the bearings

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▲ The reference motorcycle (ZEPHYR 400) had been adopted a wheel bearing with a contact rubber seal attached only on one side. As shown in the photo, there is a rubber seal on the outer ring where rainwater and dirt tend to adhere when traveling, but the inner ring is open without a rubber seal.

The bearings that support the mission shafts inside the engine are lubricated by engine oil or mission oil. On the other hand, since the oil mobility can not be used to wheel bearings and stem bearings, it should be lubricated with a paste-like grease. Lubrication is an essential reason for using grease because the steel ball sandwiched between the inner ring and the outer ring of the bearing is a metal.

However, it is the reality that we are not conscious of the bearing grease management, unlike engine oil and brake fluid. In the early stage of poor bearing lubrication, there will be no longer smoothness in the rotation causing strangeness like there's something stuck in the bearing. It is difficult to understand if there is an effect of the inertia for the heavy wheel and the effect of dragging the brakes, but the strange response can immediately notice when removing the wheel and rotating the inner ring of the bearing.

As it progresses further, poor lubrication can cause the inner and outer rings with steel balls to seize, lock or break. If that happens, you will be unable to ride, and you will also need to replace the parts for repair, so it is important to check before it leads to major damage.

2. Pay attention to the deformation of the removed bearing seal.

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▲ If insert a precision screwdriver into the contact area between the bearing outer ring and the seal outer periphery and gently pry, the bearing seal comes up. Since there is a thin iron plate on the inner rubber, be careful not to deform when prying it.

The bearings built into the wheel hub in some motorcycles use tapered roller bearings, but use ball bearings the most. There are several types of ball bearings. The sealed type that covers between the inner ring and the outer ring is popular. When cleaning and greasing the sealed type bearing, remove the seal. This seal is made by bonding synthetic rubber to a thin iron plate. It can be easily removed by lightly prying the lip inside the seal with a precision screwdriver with a thin tip and a narrow width.

However, depending on the degree of force applied, the thin iron plate on the back of the rubber may deform, so remove it carefully. The grease deterioration depends on the usage environment and mileage, but the essentials of grease-up at appropriate intervals are specified by the bearing manufacturer in its technical documentation.

In the service manual for each model of the motorcycle manufacturer, I don't remember reading about the description of how to grease up the bearings, but this might be because it is assumed to be replaced when a problem occurs. However, if troubles cause by poor lubrication can be avoided by maintenance, it is best to practice regular cleaning and grease-up.

3. Perform grease-up after cleaning the bearings.

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▲ If there is no feeling of strangeness by turning the inner ring with a finger, wipe off the old grease with a cloth or cotton swab. Since the bearing of this model is a single-sided-seal, even when the parts cleaner is sprayed from the outside in the wheel-set status to the bearing, it flows down to the inside of the wheel hub without accumulating. By using a grease gun with a thin tip when applying grease, and grease can be applied reliably to the contact area between the inner and outer rings and the ball.

As with the general lubrication part, it is important to remove the old grease first when performing grease-up of the bearing. If the bearing is a single piece, it can be cleaned by dipping it in the fuel oil or the washing oil and brushing by an old toothbrush, but grease stuck in the gap between the inner and outer ring is scraped out with a precision screwdriver and wiped with a cotton swab or waste cloth coated with a parts cleaner or anti-rust lubricant.

In this case, be careful not to drop foreign objects such as gravel around the wheel hub into the bearing. When the cleaning is finished, apply lithium or urethane grease with high water resistance and extreme pressure. If preparing a grease thin tip gun to ensure that the grease reaches the gap between the inner ring and the outer ring, making the work goes smoothly. As for the amount of grease to be applied, the bearing manufacturer says that it is good to apply about 30% to 40% of grease with respect to the space volume of the outer ring and the inner ring.

When you focus only on the lubrication performance, you may want to put in grease more, but if there is too much grease, the heat dissipation at the time of rotation will be reduced, and it may cause an outflow of the grease by viscosity decrease and oxidation by heating. So it is important to keep the amount to an appropriate level.

The grease-up of the bearing prevents friction and wear, also effective in reducing friction loss and is effective for all motorcycles from small to big, and if you are interested in maintenance, remove the seal once and check the bearing.

4. Prevent poor lubrication by cleaning and grease-up.

Bearings that always work silently, lubrication is essential with good quality grease. Let's get back to the original condition by maintenance before customizing and dress up your motorcycle.

POINT

・Perform cleaning and greasing up before feeling strangeness like there's something stuck in the bearing.
・Use the lithium or urethane base grease that is high water resistance and extreme pressure.
・The amount to be applied is about 30 to 40% of the space volume.

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