Derailer small spocket bearings oil or grease?

on my Shimano read derailer what lube should I use on the small
sprocket wheels bearings that actually do the shifting part? Oil or
grease? Mine were dry so I dont know what to use.
Thanks

wrote:
on my Shimano read derailer what lube should I use on the small
sprocket wheels bearings that actually do the shifting part? Oil or
grease? Mine were dry so I dont know what to use.
Thanks

Grease...any grease.

On 23 Nov 2005 06:23:57 -0800, "Qui si parla Campagnolo"
wrote:


wrote:
on my Shimano read derailer what lube should I use on the small
sprocket wheels bearings that actually do the shifting part? Oil or
grease? Mine were dry so I dont know what to use.
Thanks

Grease...any grease.

I know Peter's a professional bike mechanic and I'm just a hobbyist,
but I've had lots of success using just oil. I probably clean and
relube my derailleur wheels more often than most, but after a thorough
scrubbing I just add a drop or two of Mobil-1 before reassembling.

I also discard the rubber seals that sit under the little metal disks,
since I find getting them properly alligned is a bit of a pain. They
also seem to be a source of some drag, minimal but unwanted.

BTW, grease is just oil mixed with a binder.


jeverett3ATearthlinkDOTnet http://home.earthlink.net/~jeverett3

I took them apart and cleaned them and the chain and the sprockets
on the back wheel. My derailer is a low end Shimano so it did not have
any rubber seals under the metal disks..Was wondering what grease to
use and found some folks like the grease from the small grease gun I
use to grease the sprocket end of my chainsaw. Looks
like good stuff, certainly works on my chainsaw. So I cleaned and
reassembled everything so its nice and clean and smooth shifting.
Its actually a bushing inside mine, maybe fancier bikes have real
ball bearings, I dont know. Thanks for all the help.

try castrol marine from walmort.
i worked the maintenance schedule for the derailleur wheel pulleys up
to four greasings a year.
that's every 700 miles or so. the interval appears to match the tooth
wearout and pulley wheel replacement cycle.
listen and you can hear the pulleys scream for grease
and the brake pads for checking for sidewall rub

On Wed, 23 Nov 2005 09:42:11 -0800, robmurr wrote:

I took them apart and cleaned them and the chain and the sprockets
on the back wheel. My derailer is a low end Shimano so it did not have
any rubber seals under the metal disks..Was wondering what grease to
use and found some folks like the grease from the small grease gun I
use to grease the sprocket end of my chainsaw. Looks
like good stuff, certainly works on my chainsaw. So I cleaned and
reassembled everything so its nice and clean and smooth shifting.
Its actually a bushing inside mine, maybe fancier bikes have real
ball bearings, I dont know. Thanks for all the help.

Actually the better Shimano ones have ceramic bushings which are pretty
much self-lubricating. So are the cheaper plastic ones. The main thing
is to keep them clean -- shifting suffers when they get gummed up.

If you want to lubricate yours, grease is better. Oil will run out or
wash out pretty quickly.

FWIW I usually put a little grease in mine.

Matt O.

Matt O'Toole wrote:
On Wed, 23 Nov 2005 09:42:11 -0800, robmurr wrote:

I took them apart and cleaned them and the chain and the sprockets
on the back wheel. My derailer is a low end Shimano so it did not have
any rubber seals under the metal disks..Was wondering what grease to
use and found some folks like the grease from the small grease gun I
use to grease the sprocket end of my chainsaw. Looks
like good stuff, certainly works on my chainsaw. So I cleaned and
reassembled everything so its nice and clean and smooth shifting.
Its actually a bushing inside mine, maybe fancier bikes have real
ball bearings, I dont know. Thanks for all the help.

Actually the better Shimano ones have ceramic bushings which are pretty
much self-lubricating. So are the cheaper plastic ones. The main thing
is to keep them clean -- shifting suffers when they get gummed up.

Well, not really. leave these things dry and the inside ceramic bushing
will dissolve to dust.Same for the plastic/metal ones. None are self
lubing, none are 'impregnated' with anything. Grease is what I use on
all pulleys, even the shimano teeny cart bearing ones, Remove the
little cover, greaee, replace.



If you want to lubricate yours, grease is better. Oil will run out or
wash out pretty quickly.

FWIW I usually put a little grease in mine.

Matt O.

Matt O'Toole wrote:
On Wed, 23 Nov 2005 09:42:11 -0800, robmurr wrote:


I took them apart and cleaned them and the chain and the sprockets
on the back wheel. My derailer is a low end Shimano so it did not have
any rubber seals under the metal disks..Was wondering what grease to
use and found some folks like the grease from the small grease gun I
use to grease the sprocket end of my chainsaw. Looks
like good stuff, certainly works on my chainsaw. So I cleaned and
reassembled everything so its nice and clean and smooth shifting.
Its actually a bushing inside mine, maybe fancier bikes have real
ball bearings, I dont know. Thanks for all the help.


Actually the better Shimano ones have ceramic bushings which are pretty
much self-lubricating. So are the cheaper plastic ones. The main thing
is to keep them clean -- shifting suffers when they get gummed up.

If you want to lubricate yours, grease is better. Oil will run out or
wash out pretty quickly.

On the other hand a little oil can be weeped in from the edge every now
and then without disassembly.

If I must disassemble for cleaning and inspection (periodic) I use
grease. At all times in between I use [insert your convenient chain oil
here].


FWIW I usually put a little grease in mine.

I think that's all you can use (a thin film), since clearance is tight
between pulley and bushing.


Matt O.


Robin Hubert

On 24 Nov 2005 06:32:04 -0800, "Qui si parla Campagnolo"
wrote:


Matt O'Toole wrote:
On Wed, 23 Nov 2005 09:42:11 -0800, robmurr wrote:

I took them apart and cleaned them and the chain and the sprockets
on the back wheel. My derailer is a low end Shimano so it did not have
any rubber seals under the metal disks..Was wondering what grease to
use and found some folks like the grease from the small grease gun I
use to grease the sprocket end of my chainsaw. Looks
like good stuff, certainly works on my chainsaw. So I cleaned and
reassembled everything so its nice and clean and smooth shifting.
Its actually a bushing inside mine, maybe fancier bikes have real
ball bearings, I dont know. Thanks for all the help.

Actually the better Shimano ones have ceramic bushings which are pretty
much self-lubricating. So are the cheaper plastic ones. The main thing
is to keep them clean -- shifting suffers when they get gummed up.

Well, not really. leave these things dry and the inside ceramic bushing
will dissolve to dust.Same for the plastic/metal ones. None are self
lubing, none are 'impregnated' with anything. Grease is what I use on
all pulleys, even the shimano teeny cart bearing ones, Remove the
little cover, greaee, replace.



If you want to lubricate yours, grease is better. Oil will run out or
wash out pretty quickly.

FWIW I usually put a little grease in mine.

Matt O.

The teeth on the pulleys that came with my low end shimano Tourney
TY20 wore out after about 15000 miles but the bushing clearance was
still fine even though I only used oil.

After 30000 miles I am starting to get some play in the upper pivot.

6/7 speed derailleurs don't need the tight tolerances that 9/10 speed
systems require ,but there do not seem to be many good low end
replacement derailleurs.

The stamped sheet metal parallelogram parts on the new low end
derailleurs are made out of a thinner gauge sheet metal that will
likely saw right through the aluminum rivets they use in no time.

Do you need to buy the 105 level of components these days to get
durability?