Assembly

[seanryan]

Anybody got any recommendations for assembly grease or what is peoples viewpoints on this!
Also chain oil for a DH bike that will be used here and france...
And finally something to put into the hub bearings!

I'd be looking to buy these as It wouldnt hurt to have this stuff at hand...

[Psycholist]

For hubs a medium viscosity lithium grease is good. Shimano make some lovely bright mucous coloured stuff that seems to do the trick ( http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/e ... -prod24446 ). You'll see dollops of it on new Shimano components and given that Shimano formulated their own mineral oil for their brakes, I'm pretty sure they also custom designed their grease for bike use. Get a grease gun to go with it too - it makes a messy job a little easier when you can precisely inject grease where you want it and on the likes of V8 pedals you'll need this to inject the grease into the greaseport anyway.

For assembly grease, the Shimano stuff is fine apart from with carbon fibre parts, where I don't know if it's fine or not - there's lithium in a lot of greases, which attacks many plastics, so getting a teflon based grease for this application might be better. Teflon grease is chemically inert, but it's a complete pain to clean off things because you can't just dissolve it with degreaser. Shimano also make this: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/e ... -prod27624 - and this: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/e ... -prod33666

Another option (With the same keep away from plastics/CF recommendation) is copper grease, which is stable at high temperatures rather than melting and flowing away (Putting a bit of it on the back of brake pads can quiet down squeaky brakes in both cars and bikes). I use this on BB threads and anywhere parts are clamped together as it's slower to wash off too. http://www.micksgarage.com/proddetails.aspx?pid=1167361

If you have carbon fibre parts - especially seatpost/frame interfaces this is recommended: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/e ... -prod30012

For chain oil I've been using carplan spray grease for years and it works very well (Though it's harder to get hold of now, but I got a lead on a possible source for it in Limerick last weekend - the supplier Siopa Rothar was using have shut down...). This isn't quite as good, but still works: http://www.micksgarage.com/proddetails.aspx?pid=1176740

There are loads of options out there, all of which claim to be the best, but in reality 30 minutes of cycling in wet conditions is more than enough to remove all the oil from a bike chain (The water acts as a lubricant anyway, so the chain stays quiet, but this is why oiling the chain after cycling is so important). I don't recommend the heavier wax based chain greases for motorbikes as while they stay put better, they also make the chain links stiffer. There's no distinction between DH and XC chain oil - choice is more about how wet the conditions you use the bike in are. Most of the time dry lubes are better in dry weather and wet ones are better in the wet. Standard 3 in 1 style oil or motor oil is fine on chains too, but the likes of WD-40 won't stay long enough to be any use (It is handy for coating the frame in extremely muddy conditions to stop mud sticking to it though, which can be useful, but in conditions that bad it's probably better to go biking somewhere else as using trails that muddy will ruin them).

I also have suspension for assembly grease (Endurobearings/real world cycling sell it), which is designed to dissolve into the fork oil without ruining its viscosity, so you don't have to be to really careful with how much you put in or where you put it (Within reason obviously)...

[seanryan]

The front hubs bearing seem to be making a slight grating feel when spinning them but there is no play it just seems the grease is all out. its a 20mm maxle there are ports 4 ports on the inside of the hub into the body of it would this be where the grease would go or would i have to disassemble the whole thing.

So your saying the first link you sent should be OK as an assembly grease too? I don't have or plan on having any carbon on the bike so that's not an issue. Also would it have to be specifically a shimano grease gun or would any brand do??

[Psycholist]

Any brand of grease gun is fine, but make sure you get a metal rather than a plastic one - the grease gun will last a long time. Depending on the quality of the hub you start with, having the bearings feel grindy is pretty normal after a few years use. I wait until the bearings develop play before worrying about that though, even if they're a bit grindy.

No bike hubs I know of have grease ports, so the holes aren't likely to be grease ports. Unless it's a shimano hub the bearings are probably cartridges anyway and will have their own seals, so pumping grease into the hub won't necessarily lubricate the bearings.

The shimano grease will work for assembling things too. In properly wet conditions the grease won't necessarily survive, but if things start creaking that's a sign the grease needs replacing.

[Joejoebeans]

[seanryan]

Its a halo sas as far as I know yeah id imagine your right on further inspection!!

Thank you Joe that was A very appropriate addition!

[seanryan]

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... o-sas-9831

I only have the front on my bike btw 20mm..

Do i just take the plastic seal off an put the grease in there or is there a more technical was of doing it!?!?

[Psycholist]

That sounds about right - if you can't see the actual ball bearings you're not dismantling it enough though. There are end caps to space the hub to 110 mm for the fork and these need to come off first, then you'll probably be able to see the cartridge bearings.

Lift the bearing seal carefully off the exposed side of the bearing - a dental pick or the tip of a fresh stanley blade are good for this job - don't damage the outer lip on the seal though. Then clean any dirt you see in the bearings out before packing new grease in. If there's any evidence of swarf or missing balls in the bearing it needs to be replaced. I have a puller that can get these out without marking the rest of the hub.

[seanryan]

Yeah i'm not at home at the moment but I can follow what your saying! when I was taking the wheel out those cones fell out when i removed the axle they wernt very stuck in. The Boxxer maxle actually by the way is ruined i need a new one!! The previous owner had rounded out the female part inside the axle and i had to hammer the axle out. So bike is grounded until I get a new one!