Sweat in the steerer

After many hours on the rollers, I recently discovered a brownish goop dripping on my tires. After
closer inspection it appeared to come from bottom bearing on the fork. So I decided to learn
something new and took my threadless steerer apart. To my dismay, I discovered that both bearings
had started to rust. After cleaning up the mess, I discovered the following: All the balls in the
bottom bearing, and several in the top bearing, have assumed a blackish stain. The ball cages
themselves have begun to rust. The races themselves do not show much rust. I added generous amounts
of grease to all the bearings and put everything back together.

I suspect that the reason for all this is that sweat has dripped onto the stem and from there made
it down the steerer tube into the bearings. (I have a sweat cover, but it doesn't cover the stem.)

Questions: Are the bearings shot, or will the added grease prevent further damage ? If they are
shot, is there any harm in waiting till the spring until I have them replaced, or can there be
additional damage to other parts of the bike. Is that supposed to happen in the first place, or
are the headsets expected to be tightly sealed ? (The bike is a 6-months old Trek 1200. So worn
out seals shouldn't be an issue.) Any suggestions for how this could have been prevented in the
first place ?

Thanks, Bengt-Olaf.

I always wipe down my bike after a workout on the rollers. I also take a q-tip to the area
around the stem and headset, especially the socket where you tighten the stem. I use the
Kreitler killer head wind and another fan to keep the sweat down, but even then seem to find a
damp floor under my bike.

Tom Carrico http://www.ccdargo.com "B. Schneider" <bos_62@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:40172578$0$11467$61fed72c@news.rcn.com...
> After many hours on the rollers, I recently discovered a brownish goop dripping on my tires. After
> closer inspection it appeared to come from bottom bearing on the
fork.
> So I decided to learn something new and took my threadless steerer apart. To my dismay, I
> discovered that both bearings had started to rust. After cleaning up the mess, I discovered the
> following: All the balls in the bottom bearing, and several in the top bearing, have assumed a
> blackish stain. The ball cages themselves have begun to rust. The races themselves do not show
> much rust. I added generous amounts of grease to all the bearings and put everything back
> together.
>
> I suspect that the reason for all this is that sweat has dripped onto the stem and from there made
> it down the steerer tube into the bearings. (I have a sweat cover,
but
> it doesn't cover the stem.)
>
> Questions: Are the bearings shot, or will the added grease prevent further damage ? If they are
> shot, is there any harm in waiting till the spring until I
have
> them replaced, or can there be additional damage to other parts of the bike. Is that supposed to
> happen in the first place, or are the headsets
expected
> to be tightly sealed ? (The bike is a 6-months old Trek 1200. So worn out seals shouldn't be an
> issue.) Any suggestions for how this could have been prevented in the first place
?
>
> Thanks, Bengt-Olaf.

"B. Schneider" <bos_62@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:40172578$0$11467$61fed72c@news.rcn.com...
> After many hours on the rollers, I recently discovered a brownish goop dripping on my tires. After
> closer inspection it appeared to come from bottom bearing on the fork. So I decided to learn
> something new and took my threadless steerer apart. To my dismay, I discovered that both bearings
> had started to rust. After cleaning up the mess, I discovered the following: All the balls in the
> bottom bearing, and several in the top bearing, have assumed a blackish stain. The ball cages
> themselves have begun to rust. The races themselves do not show much rust. I added generous
> amounts of grease to all the bearings and put everything back together.
>
> I suspect that the reason for all this is that sweat has dripped onto the stem and from there made
> it down the steerer tube into the bearings. (I have a sweat cover, but it doesn't cover the stem.)
>
> Questions: Are the bearings shot, or will the added grease prevent further damage ? If they are
> shot, is there any harm in waiting till the spring until I have them replaced, or can there be
> additional damage to other parts of the bike. Is that supposed to happen in the first place, or
> are the headsets expected to be tightly sealed ? (The bike is a 6-months old Trek 1200. So worn
> out seals shouldn't be an issue.) Any suggestions for how this could have been prevented in the
> first place ?
>
> Thanks, Bengt-Olaf.

"B. Schneider" <bos_62@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:40172578$0$11467$61fed72c@news.rcn.com...
> After many hours on the rollers, I recently discovered a brownish goop dripping on my tires.

> I suspect that the reason for all this is that sweat has dripped onto the stem and from there made
> it down the steerer tube into the bearings. (I have a sweat cover, but it doesn't cover the stem.)
>
> Questions: Are the bearings shot, or will the added grease prevent further damage ? If they are
> shot, is there any harm in waiting till the spring until I have them replaced, or can there be
> additional damage to other parts of the bike. Is that supposed to happen in the first place, or
> are the headsets expected to be tightly sealed ? (The bike is a 6-months old Trek 1200. So worn
> out seals shouldn't be an issue.) Any suggestions for how this could have been prevented in the
> first place ?

Balls are cheap, I'd put in new ones, but there's little harm in waiting if the headset doesn't feel
rough. Grease can get contaminated from sweat or rain. When using a trainer, I also use a fan, it
keeps the sweat down and is much more comfortable. If you sweat that much, tying a rag around the
stem would probably be a good idea, but headset seals should be more effective than that.

Yes, I wipe the equipment down too, although I haven't been as meticuluous as you with the q-tips. I
guess I will start doing that. Maybe I should also invest in the killer head-wind, although I don't
need it for resistance. Thanks for the (q-)tip.

Bengt-Olaf.

"Tom Carrico" <tom@ccdargo.com> wrote in message news:uWGRb.129215$Rc4.998338@attbi_s54...
> I always wipe down my bike after a workout on the rollers. I also take a q-tip to the area around
> the stem and headset, especially the socket where you tighten the stem. I use the Kreitler killer
> head wind and another fan to keep the sweat
down,
> but even then seem to find a damp floor under my bike.
>
> Tom Carrico http://www.ccdargo.com "B. Schneider" <bos_62@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:40172578$0$11467$61fed72c@news.rcn.com...
> > After many hours on the rollers, I recently discovered a brownish goop dripping on my tires.
> > After closer inspection it appeared to come from bottom bearing on the
> fork.
> > So I decided to learn something new and took my threadless steerer
apart.
> > To my dismay, I discovered that both bearings had started to rust. After cleaning up the mess, I
> > discovered the following: All the balls in the bottom bearing, and several in the top bearing,
have
> > assumed a blackish stain. The ball cages themselves have begun to rust. The races themselves do
not
> > show much rust. I added generous amounts of grease to all the bearings and put
everything
> > back together.
> >
> > I suspect that the reason for all this is that sweat has dripped onto
the
> > stem and from there made it down the steerer tube into the bearings. (I have a sweat cover,
> but
> > it doesn't cover the stem.)
> >
> > Questions: Are the bearings shot, or will the added grease prevent further damage ? If they are
> > shot, is there any harm in waiting till the spring until I
> have
> > them replaced, or can there be additional damage to other parts of the bike. Is that supposed to
> > happen in the first place, or are the headsets
> expected
> > to be tightly sealed ? (The bike is a 6-months old Trek 1200. So worn out seals shouldn't be an
> > issue.) Any suggestions for how this could have been prevented in the first
place
> ?
> >
> > Thanks, Bengt-Olaf.
> >
>

I will definitely add better ventilation, but that won't stop me from sweating. I am now thinking
of making a crude stem/headset cover from an old milk bottle to prevent another "sweatset". But
thinking about this a bit more, I will probably replace the headset before I take the bike
outdoors again.

Thanks for the advice.

"Peter Cole" <peter_cole_no_spam_at_all@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:lQORb.43852$U%5.235523@attbi_s03...
>
> "B. Schneider" <bos_62@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:40172578$0$11467$61fed72c@news.rcn.com...
> > After many hours on the rollers, I recently discovered a brownish goop dripping on my tires.
>
> > I suspect that the reason for all this is that sweat has dripped onto
the
> > stem and from there made it down the steerer tube into the bearings. (I have a sweat cover,
but
> > it doesn't cover the stem.)
> >
> > Questions: Are the bearings shot, or will the added grease prevent further damage ? If they are
> > shot, is there any harm in waiting till the spring until I
have
> > them replaced, or can there be additional damage to other parts of the bike. Is that supposed to
> > happen in the first place, or are the headsets
expected
> > to be tightly sealed ? (The bike is a 6-months old Trek 1200. So worn out seals shouldn't be an
> > issue.) Any suggestions for how this could have been prevented in the first
place ?
>
> Balls are cheap, I'd put in new ones, but there's little harm in waiting
if
> the headset doesn't feel rough. Grease can get contaminated from sweat or rain. When using a
> trainer, I also use a fan, it keeps the sweat down and
is
> much more comfortable. If you sweat that much, tying a rag around the stem would probably be a
> good idea, but headset seals should be more effective
than
> that.

On Wed, 28 Jan 2004 06:21:34 -0800, "B. Schneider"
<bos_62@hotmail.com> wrote:

>I will definitely add better ventilation, but that won't stop me from sweating.

The fresh grease may be all you need. Just fill up the headset. Grease should keep the sweat out.

On Tue, 27 Jan 2004 18:59:04 -0800, "B. Schneider"
<bos_62@hotmail.com> may have said:

>I suspect that the reason for all this is that sweat has dripped onto the stem and from there made
>it down the steerer tube into the bearings. (I have a sweat cover, but it doesn't cover the stem.)
>
>Questions: Are the bearings shot, or will the added grease prevent further damage ?

The balls are probably worth replacing. Chances are good that the cups and cones will be usable.
Grease is a lubricant; it really doesn't do much to prevent a bearing from corroding in the presence
of moisture. While grease can be used to keep moisture out of many things, a bearing is not one of
them; the normal motion of the components will defeat the grease's ability to protect the metal.

>If they are shot, is there any harm in waiting till the spring until I have them replaced,

No, in my opinion.

>Is that supposed to happen in the first place, or are the headsets expected to be tightly sealed ?

Most headsets are not sealed at all. Few are sealed effectively.

>(The bike is a 6-months old Trek 1200. So worn out seals shouldn't be an issue.) Any suggestions
>for how this could have been prevented in the first place ?

Throw a hand towel over the stem when using the bike on the trainer.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Yes, I have a killfile. If I don't respond to something,
it's also possible that I'm busy.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

"B. Schneider" wrote...[edited]
> After many hours on the rollers...sweat has dripped onto the stem and from
there made it down the steerer tube into the bearings...Any suggestions for how this could have been
prevented ?<

Even with 2 fans, I sweat quite a bit. So, I wrap my stem, top tube, & downtube with plastic food
wrap before my roller workouts. It only takes a minute, it's cheap, & it keeps my stem & cables
clean & dry.

AW wrote:

> "B. Schneider" wrote...[edited]
>
>>After many hours on the rollers...sweat has dripped onto the stem and from
>
> there made it down the steerer tube into the bearings...Any suggestions for how this could have
> been prevented ?<
>
> Even with 2 fans, I sweat quite a bit. So, I wrap my stem, top tube, & downtube with plastic food
> wrap before my roller workouts. It only takes a minute, it's cheap, & it keeps my stem & cables
> clean & dry.
>
I wear a headband, which catches enough sweat for a 40-minute session but I do train in a rather
cold garage. Going out there in an hour or so...it's -2 deg C tonight but I'll be warm after 5 mins.

I jerry-rigged a cover for the stem out of a milk bottle, but I also like the idea of plastic wrap.
I'll try that too. Now that I know the problem, it can't be too hard to keep the bearings dry.

Thanks !

"AW" <aw@none.com> wrote in message news:x9aSb.11200$tw3.8766@newssvr22.news.prodigy.com...
> "B. Schneider" wrote...[edited]
> > After many hours on the rollers...sweat has dripped onto the stem and
from
> there made it down the steerer tube into the bearings...Any suggestions
for
> how this could have been prevented ?<
>
> Even with 2 fans, I sweat quite a bit. So, I wrap my stem, top tube, & downtube with plastic food
> wrap before my roller workouts. It only takes
a
> minute, it's cheap, & it keeps my stem & cables clean & dry.