To grease or not to grease

So I got the skateboard now I just need to know how to clean it and stuff, so I asked a BMX friend of mine, who used to skate, how to clean my bearings, he said I don't have to and that all I need to do is lube it up so that it becomes grease, is that true?

Sandblast them - it's the only way to get them nice & clean.

Well you got trips so you have to be right, no seriously though I dont wanna mess these bearings up (even though they're pretty cheap >Pic related)

Clean them if you start to feel drag when skating. I clean mine every couple weeks because where I live I tend to get a lot of dirt and water in my wheels. Rinse them in alcohol or dish soap with water and roll them around in the cup until they look clean. Rinse them again with just water several times to make sure absolutely no soap or alc is left. Lube them up after that. I use Red's speed cream. I use the same bearings as you too.

And as a side note, I've seen a lot of people disassemble their bearings for cleaning. I don't think this is totally necessary for anyone but hardcore skaters but if you really want to be sure you did a good job, go for it. Just carefully pop off the protective cover, pull out the bearing retainer and go to town. I've needed to do this a few times to fix dirt adhered to an individual ball bearing that just wouldn't fuck off. Show us your deck, OP.

I just got back but ill upload the pic

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Aww fuck the one dude that could've helped me and I answered 40 minutes too late

You fucked it up

I can't stop laughing at this for some reason

This is what I used back in the day. They're great and cheap.

I'll try them out when I think I need new ones, I barely got this board 3 days ago

Pisses me off, spend 100 bucks for a fucking full package and I can't even skate down my own street.

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Ok so I clean them out then I lube em up and shit nice thanks

I'm assuming you have the bearings off already
1) remove the shields with a pin, keep separately. If they're cheapass c-clip types you can wipe them off with a rag. contact shields can be washed in soapy water and dried with a clean towel.
2) put the bearings in a mason jar
3) pour in solvent, like naptha or wd40
4) shake a bit
5) pour off the dirty liquid
6) arrange bearings on clean towel for drying
7) wipe them off, and lubricate as soon as possible. light grease is okay, medium weight synthetic lubricant is best, only 2-3 drops per bearing.
8) put shields back on

Profit.

wear gloves, the shit you work with is poisonous you don't want it soaking into your skin, and don't breathe it either, work outside preferably on a non-windy day.

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well yeah, if you are older than 18 and still skateboarding you are pretty much a man-child and are destined to live in a dirty apartment by yourself with an x-box on the floor and no furniture.

Thanks Ill save this into a text document
Im going to bed though so…

WOW, FUCKING FAGGOT

The only real roller hobby that doesn't make you look like an utter faggot is speed skating.

Hi, my name is Jamal Johnson.

I have access to 3 popular VPN services, one of which allows me access to 5 other VPN services. Most of them are popular on here.

I plan to spam Holla Forums by bumping old threads and generally ruining the quality of the board until every single VPN is banned. I won't stop until 8/b/ becomes 4/b/.

Remember to check the timestamps of each thread that you decide to post in. Chances are, it has been dead for days and you don't realize it because my spam was deleted, and the thread is still on page 1.

Have a nice day.

Clint didnt get your memo

no, that still looks pretty gay

use simple green or an all natural citrus solvent so it doesn't fuck you up. also get, or make, pic related. (doesn't have to be a bones one, just a bearing holder in a bottle) it'll help if you need to do multiple rinses.
how you oil it and what you use is your call, do not over oil them though, it'll just attract dirt or leak and you'll have to clean them again.

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a skateboard is just a piece of wood with wheels on it.

if you put wings on a piece of wood, does it become an airboard?

I'm 13 and plan on using it until I get a job, and get a car (Manual) but even then i'll probably go to the skatepark and attempt to do tricks

^
I
That is me I forgot to rename myself

tricks are what your mom turns to pay for her crack habit

They're for kids

well, as a speedskater i can give you the usual tips to "actually get the bearings working at top notch efficiency"

big no's:
* WD-40 is NOT a lubricant (yes, the label lied), it is actually good to dissolve rust on some cleaning tasks, but it is VERY half assed for almost any application. (its a jack of all trades)

* you shouldn't compare bearing+lube performance with a "hand wheelspin", because the bearing will behave differently with the load (your weight). Overall very thin lubricants WILL look better with the unloaded wheelspin and MAY perform worse under real world usage (very likely)


cleaning:
* if you want to get something really done, always get the bearing with rubber seals, and if possible the bearing with a nylon cage (can be fully disassembled for cleaning)

* use a strong solvent for cleaning, and it is a very good idea to avoid alcohol, likely because you are talking to something like 90% alcohol, 10% water. (water is bad), turpentine is dirt cheap at a paint store and works way better (WAY better). (but its toxic, handle with some gloves, don't inhale a lot of the stuff)

* seriously, clean the dam thing til its a very clear uniform shade of steel color… the "half assed cleaning" sometimes is as bad as "no cleaning at all". (because it relocates the existing dirt to the tracks) - Thats why you need bearings with a detachable rubber seal

* lubrication: less can be better but not "as little as possible too", nearly every possible noise that the bearing can make is a sign of improper lubrication (or too thin lubricant), a small amount of blue grease based on lithium soap (bearing grease often used in industrial stuff) may be among the best choices, but it takes a while for it to spread properly though the internal surfaces of the bearing.


ok, i am not bored anymore, likely that's enough info too.

These are my bearings right now pretty similar all around. do they need to be cleaned?

Mind you I got this entire complete 4 days ago

Don't fucking grease. Get Supersonic Oil.

This shit is perfect, and I've had no problem wiping the bearings clean after use.

Grease dirties up your bearings, Oil is low-resistance.

Are you retarded?

The only one that doesn't make you look like a faggot is Aggressive Rollerblading.

No but seriously are my bearings dirty as fuck

if you can hear any "sand grinding noise" from your bearing, yes

if you can feel any non uniform resistance when spinning slowly your wheels, yes

it aint about "how dirty they look", more like "how dirty they might be on the inside".

Take them apart then brush them with a wire brush and some citric based liquid detergent.
Dry them off as quickly as possible.
You could use some red lithium grease or some lithium oil.
And they should be a ok.

Back in the day we called those faggots "Fruit Booters"

Hey, bones reds! Anyway you don't really clean bearings you just grease them, as your friend said. That said. If they're really muddy or whatever you can just run a cloth or qtip over them.

Nobody likes you homos, destroying public property with your 'grinding' shit. its another one of those activities that if you're over 18 and still doing it you look like a fucking retard.

Don't use WD40. It's too harsh for bearings. Wash them in mineral spirits. I guess taking off the caps will help, but if you're lazy don't do it.

Again, don't use WD40. That can ruin your bearings.

Having clean bearings is like having clean balls. It just feels good.

it won't hurt bearings, the real problem is moisture. its okay to wash your bearings in dish soap and water but you MUST dry them immediately and lubricate, because 95% of all bearings come out of CHINA, and they aren't stainless steel. They will literally rust within hours of getting wet if they're not lubricated.

I have some GMN german bearings that are about 20 years old and they still work fine. I had a set of killer b's from china that rusted about 12 hours after I cleaned them, and I forgot to re-lubricate.

The best bearings come from Germany, Switzerland, Japan. Shit bearings all come from China. China produces such low quality bearings that they had to sell them for kids rollerskates since tolerances for that purpose aren't really all that important.

Reds mah nigguh

Unless your riding through a beach full sand and into the ocean, you'll never need to grease them. My wheels wore out before those fucking bearings did, just wipe the dirt off every once in a while.

Shit that sounds fucking gaaay

So many conflictions

Alright, i guess

cleaning is retarded if you do any type of hard landing. the races/cages arent designed for and cant sustain impact impact oil before you use them and replace every 2 months

unless you go full ceramic there's no point

What are you talking about the bearing races are delrin plastic and are removeable/replaceable, not to mention immune to oil and grease. Only shit chinese bearings still use metal races.

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