Grease your NEW wheel bearings!!!

[number9]

Just put some new All-Balls wheel bearings in the rear wheel tonight - will do the front tomorrow. Anyways, got to wondering and decided to pop the bearing open and see how much grease they came with from production and was shocked to to find so little grease. I expected they'd be shy on grease, but not almost void of it.

You can use a very small paper clip (one of the rounded ends) to insert under the inside diameter lip of the bearing seal to gap it open just enough to slip a very small jewelers screwdriver under the bearing seal and pop it out. Take it slow and be very careful or you CAN damage the bearing seal.

Once the bearing seal is out (as in the pic below) pack the bearing with grease and pop the seal back on and wipe the excess grease off the bearing before driving it into the wheel. Residual grease left on the bearing will only serve to catch dirt/debris/small metal shavings/etc... as you drive the bearing into the wheel.

[Woody_393]

GREAT information. Thank you for sharing!

Oh and welcome to

[Bluerider250]

Wow, thanks for the tip. I will be sure to remember to check that if I ever have to replace the bearings.

Welcome to ATM. Theres lots of good, and very knowledgeable people here.

[Aus_Rider_22]

Good thread!

I noticed my wheel bearings came with little grease which surprised me as these were aftermarket bearings! Just have to do it ourselves

[FFRacing11x]

Absolutely NOT required! Wheel bearings need very little grease to operate smoothly and last. In fact, many think that the factories chince on wheel, steering head, and linkage bearing grease when in fact over greasing serves very little benefit. As long as the bearing have a coating, that is all that is required...JMO

[Woody_393]

Thanks T-Dub!

[Sanchez #22]

Thanks for the info man. Welcome to ATM, this site rocks

Larry

[DaveS]

Originally Posted by FFRacing11x

Absolutely NOT required! Wheel bearings need very little grease to operate smoothly and last. In fact, many think that the factories chince on wheel, steering head, and linkage bearing grease when in fact over greasing serves very little benefit. As long as the bearing have a coating, that is all that is required...JMO

If you MX that may well be the case. For folks that routinely cross streams and see plenty of deep mud I beg to differ.

[RedEyes]

great post....very helpful