ArgoMan

Hey all. I just picked up a Shimano WH-R500 front wheel. It's tights and aligned, but upon spinning it has a slightly "gritty" sound and feel to it. Not huge, but concerning enough for me to want to clean out the hubs and repack the bearings. I've never done this before, but I'm pretty mechanical and have read and watched several sources on how to do this. I have all the tools and am ready to go. Just a few questions that I have:
1. Does anyone know the size of the bearings used in the front Shimano wheel? I'm pretty sure its 3/16. But just want to be sure. I may as well change out the bearings.
2. What hub grease do you like? I see Park Tools grease has a good rep, plus another product called "Finish Line Gease." But, I've found through the years working on machines and tools that just about any modern grease works well with most stuff. I've used Lucas Oil Red & Tacky with lots of stuff. Anyone have an opinion about using the Lucas grease for this project?

Thanks!

dedhed

#5
https://si.shimano.com/ja/pdfs/ev/WH...-F-EU-2652.pdf

I personally use marine wheel bearing grease from Fleet Farm I use for trailers

Kontact 

Thick, sticky grease works well to preserve the bearings, but it isn't exactly the most efficient choice.

Andrew R Stewart 

Talk about efficiency of different lubes is so misplaced when the bearing tracks are pitted and worn out. Fix the base problem before wondering about grease thickness. And refresh/clean and grease those bearings far sooner than has been, likely, done so far to better avoid future grinding. Andy

Kontact 

What do you mean? Buy one grease if the races are pitted and another if they are smooth?

I don't see what would ever make an appropriate bicycle grease stop being an appropriate bicycle grease.

ArgoMan

Thanks dedhed. You nailed it! There's a diagram floating on the web! I even figured out the length the the QR I need. Thanks again!

dedhed

https://si.shimano.com/en/

​​​​​​https://productinfo.shimano.com/#/

​​​​​​https://productinfo.shimano.com/#/archive

Andrew R Stewart 

I don't know how or why you jumped to this conclusion as I wrote much the opposite. The type of grease isn't the issue and it won't hide the pitting/wear. The solution is to fix the grinding, meaning replace the worn parts. Whatever grease is used will become contaminated in time and thus want cleaning and refreshing periodically. The way to avoid bearing wear is to keep them clean lubed and properly adjusted, and not by only choosing a special grease.

BTW what will make a suitable grease not so might be it's contamination with grit/grime before application, as in an open tub sitting on a work bench for days/weeks and "collecting" crap on it. Andy

Kontact 

I guess I don't understand why a discussion of what kind of grease is appropriate for bicycle hubs is ever "misplaced". Even if you decide to keep a pitted hub race in service, the correct answer to the question is "use bicycle grease".

Andrew R Stewart 

Talking about which bearing grease (and that's the best answer, a "bearing" grease) to use in a pitted and worn out bearing is as miss placed as rearranging the deck chairs on the sinking Titanic was. Andy

Kontact 

I guess I missed where the OP is specifically asking for a grease that makes up for pitted races, rather than just asking for general info on rebuilding his hubs.

veganbikes

Kontact I don't think the OP was looking for a specific grease that makes up for pitted races and I think Andrew R Stewart was suggesting for folks to stop worrying about the grease used and focus on the actual issue at hand which is worn out and pitted races. I could be off base but I think from reading what he has written that is the most sensible meaning. It is also a sensible answer. People so often worry about the little things rather than the big issues that are causing problems.

Maybe a different metaphor could be helpful but still in the same vein:
Fix the hole in the leaky boat before worrying about what you should paint your boat. The paint could be quite important for various reasons but in the end it doesn't matter if there is a hole in the boat that could sink it.

Kontact 

I think that this is a public forum, and a question about how to service a hub is an opportunity to put out general information for anyone reading the thread. I have no idea if the OP's races are damaged or if he is just discussing a hub that was just dry, or tight, or had debris in it. So the question about grease seemed entirely relevant, and not dependent on whether an actual examination of the races turns up damage or not.

If this is your hub, what are you going to do? You're going to overhaul it. If it turns out there is damage, you'll probably finish the overhaul and ride it until you can replace the hub. So we're back to "What grease, what size bearings?"

veganbikes

That is correct to a point but again I think you are just missing his point still.

Kontact 

I don't know what his point is. We don't know that the hub is damaged. Do you?

Andrew R Stewart 

Perhaps the OP will follow up with their assessment of the bearing condition after they take it apart. It sure sounds like they will find some rough spots/pitting though. Smooth ball tracks (cones and cups) usually don't have "a slightly "gritty" sound and feel to it" even when dry of lube. Andy

veganbikes

I mean we don't know for sure but from what is being described and being a used wheel a gritty feeling usually means some damage sometimes minor sometimes more major.

Kontact 

I apologize for suggesting bike grease. It was inappropriate.

davidad

The correct answer is use any auto grease you buy at an auto parts store. I would guess most bike grease is simply grease that has been rebranded and packaged as bike grease.

davidad

Once you open it up and clean and inspect the hub cup-and-cones and bearings for pitting you can replace the cones and the balls if the finish is gone grease and assemble. Adjust the bearings with a very small amount of play that goes away when the QR is closed.
I would clean, inspect and grease my hubs every 2500 miles and rarely have to replace the balls or cones.

veganbikes

Oh jeez, grease is fine.

trainman999

AgroMan [I've used Lucas Oil Red & Tacky with lots of stuff. Anyone have an opinion about using the Lucas grease for this project?]

Yes Red and Tacky works fine for any bicycle bearings. Have it in multipal wheels ,bb's, pedals and headsets

Jeff Neese

And by "bicycle grease", you mean high-quality marine grease, right?

Jeff Neese

As you've learned, you need 3/16" ball bearings. It is important to pay attention to the grade. Don't buy them at the hardware store - those are usually Grade 100.. (Lower numbers are better.) Your Shimano hub and most other decent bicycle hubs are built with Grade 25. Campagnolo uses Grade 10.

I use these. You'll see that even the good ones are pretty cheap, which makes it a no-brainer to just toss the old ones and put new ones in, any time you service a hub.

3/16 INCH Chrome Ball, Grade 25, (100 Count) 3/16 in Chrome GR.25 Balls (100)

As for grease, marine grease is perfect. A lot of people also like Lucas Red & Tacky. Actually any high-quality grease made for wheel bearings is fine - there's no difference between the bearings in a bicycle hub than those in any other wheel.

You can also buy similar grease in a smaller tube and a much higher price, if you want. Look for something with the word "Bicycle" on the label.

Kontact 

I'm not a grease expert, so I'm not going to suggest equivalencies that I have no knowledge of. Basic bike grease is cheap, lasts for years and easy to get right.

But the point I was making is that "tacky grease" is not necessarily appropriate. Not sure why that basic message seems to piss so many of you off that I need to be corrected over and over.


I just looked up the cost of tubes of marine grease and Park. Guess which one came up more expensive?