Oil for rear hub - Page 2

Just so you know, the last time I checked, 3 in 1 oil was vegetable based and not to be used for gears.

The gear teeth have a shearing or rubbing action as they mesh. The planet gears spin on plain bearings. These parts need a good medium weight oil like engine oil. 3-in-1 is a bit light but will do, gear oil is a bit heavy but will do. The main ball bearings don't need much oil and they get theirs from the overflow which inevitably runs down the spokes and onto the floor. This is a good sign that your hub has sufficient oil.

A squirt per month will keep it topped up and lack of overflow for many months means you are in the dark as to how much oil is in the hub. Wiping oil off the spokes, tyre and floor is a ritual unique to SA hubs.

As previously said the SA hub is tough but it has it's quirks. As long as some oil is seeping out the dirt is being flushed out!

In my opinion oil viscosity is a trade off based on how often you want to check your oil, and how cold it can get. I use 80/90W motor gear oil in my Rolhoff and am happy, but I live in Aus and I dont ride in freezing conditions.

I always used motor oil in my hubs (Shimano 333s, for the benefit of mr. Akadat,) but on another forum quite a few people stated that 3-in-1 vegetable-based household oil, when used for extended periods, tended to gum up the hub. I seem to recall one of them got his information from S/A.

there is a five speed SA hub manual (i imagine lubrication is the same for all hubs) which specifically says to use "sae 30" oil:

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~hadland/s52.pdf

luckily this stuff's pretty common, it's the standard oil for 4 stroke lawnmowers.

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