robertj298 

I have a 34 year old Miyata 912 that I bought in like new condition. I've replaced the
bearings in the bottom bracket and am wondering if I should also do the wheel hubs.
I've had 2 differing opinions. One says yes do them but I've had a couple of mechanics
tell me if there is no play and I put the bike on a stand and the wheel naturally turns
so the tire stem stops at the bottom I'm good to go. So who is right?

2cam16

You mean after 34 years they have never been rebuilt? Then I would definitely clean and regrease. If at least for peace of mind that it will last another 34 or more.

Andrew R Stewart 

Data point- One well recognized bike field grease for decades has claimed their "waterproof" grease has a 5 year shelf life. Even with no use grease will dry out. Of course this in not a black and white situation, more a shade of green. No grease is far worse then 34 year oild stuff. But fresh grease is far better then old gummy stuff. Out of curiosity was the grease in the other bearings soft and creamy? Or more like peanut butter? Andy (Long a fan of Phil's).

robertj298 

I don't think the bike was ridden much at all. It was hanging in a garage and had the original Miyata tires on it in good shape except for the fact the front one had a hole in the sidewall.
I surmised someone bought it rode it a short time , hit a curb or something putting a hole in the sidewall and then hung it up never to be ridden again.

Andrew R Stewart 

to continue this satire- so if you bought a 34 year old car you would be comfy without changing the engine oil, or the radiator fluid, or the brake fluid, or... Andy

tFUnK

Yes, I will only use the original motor oil that the manufacturer originally intended (🤣 for sarcasm)

To OP, it probably doesn't need repacking but I have a feeling it's more of an OCD thing at this point so you might as well do it.

Andrew R Stewart 

Touche! Nicely played. Andy

bikeaddiction1

I have overhauled dozens of 30-40 year old bikes that look in good condition but have never had the bearings cleaned and greased. Even though the bearings don't need to be replaced, after a decade or more the solvents evaporate out of the grease and it stats to look more like wax. and in some cases it gets hard like varnish. It only costs you a bit of new grease, rags, and cleaner to do them and if you have done one before it does not take long. Much better than replacing a hub with grooves from bearings not rolling well. Note that in these cases I usually do the steerer as well as the BB and hubs.

HillRider

I once overhauled a bike that hadn't been ridden for 10 years since it was new. The hub, headset and bottom bracket grease had the consistency of dried rubber cement. If I had assumed the grease was still good because of the very low milage the bearings would have been ruined.

Overhaul those hubs.

robertj298 

I went ahead and cleaned and put new bearings and grease in. The old grease was kind of dry and the color of peanut butter.
The old bearings looked good but I thought I might as well put new ones in while I had it apart.

2cam16

There you go!

veganbikes

I am always of the opinion with an old bike, pull it all apart and overhaul as soon as you get it. I ran into the problem of a seized Dura Ace bottom bracket (French threaded) that I had to cut out and maybe if I hadn't been so hasty with my wanting to ride the thing I would have tried to pull it then instead of giving it time to potentially seize more.

Any mechanic who says leave it alone probably isn't a mechanic I want to see. Cleaning and regreasing can be kind of fun if you have the time and materials. It is also deeply satisfying to have everything nice and clean and fresh.

bitpuddle

If I were doing it, I’d clean, inspect and re-grease every bearing on the bike. I’d pull the derailleurs and overhaul them, pull the seatpost and stem and re-grease. I’d unscrew every bolt, clean, grease and re-torque. If the wheels are clinchers, I’d pull the tires and check the rim tape. While I was taking things apart, if I had the time, I’d also spray some frame saver in there.

it is hard to know how the bike was maintained before you got it.

Moe Zhoost

I would generally recommend that you invest a bit of time overhauling hubs that have not had attention for this long; however I do have mixed feelings about the recommendation. I have a set of Normandy hubs that were silky smooth despite not having been serviced for decades. I was actually afraid that servicing them might jinx me. I eventually did and found, for reasons unknown, that the grease still looked fresh. Go figure.