I decided to service the wheel bearings on my Specialized Fatboy and my Schwinn 5th Avenue 700C hybrid. To do this I bought Crystal grease specially formulated for bikes.
The fat bike was easy. Remove the wheels and axles, pop the seals and use a magnet to collect the ball bearings. Dropped those in a tray of citrus cleaner while I cleaned the hubs and cones of old grease. Glad I decided to service the bearings because there wasn't enough grease to keep them in place, especially in the Schwinn.
I was going to tackle one bike each day but because the fatty went so well, I decided to do both bikes. What a nightmare that was!
I know the Schwinn is an el cheapo and we get what we pay for. I expected to do work on it, so I'm not complaining about it. However, I don't think I've ever seen such a cheap and nasty bearing set up. First, the balls just fell out because they were dry. The cones have an aluminum dirt protector pressed onto the cone nut. No sealing at all, and would allow for water to enter if ridden or just left out in the rain. While tightening the cone, the protector moved up so I couldn't get the wrench on it. So off it came, pressed the protector back into place, and finally got the front wheel done after a lot of sweat and struggle. It was so bad that I decided to give the rear wheel a miss.
Then thinking about it, I realized it really needed some grease if it was anything like the front wheel. So off came the freewheel and then removed the axle. Different sized ball bearings on each wheel. 4mm on the front, and 6.3mm (1/4") on the rear.
I know well how to tighten cones so the axle turns freely, and doesn't have any up and down movement. So I adjusted the cones, and tightened the lock nuts as usual. Put the wheel back in the bike and found I couldn't turn the pedals. Completely jammed. So out came the wheel, slackened the cones and put the wheel back in. Still jammed. Now I'm puzzled. So out it came again and found the axle turned freely, but I loosened the cones some more. By time I got this so the wheel could turn, the cones were adjusted so loosely that it made me wince. Plenty of up and down movement, but after tightening the wheel nuts on the dropouts, there was no play in the axle.
I could understand this if it was the first time I've serviced wheel bearings, but it's not, and the fat bike went together without a hitch.
The Schwinn is two years old, now, and I've given such bikes a new name: "Disposable Bikes." Ride 'em until something goes seriously wrong, then dump them. It's as though the makers never intended them to be serviced. Every corner that could be cut, they cut. Perhaps this ought to be a warning to anyone who buys a bike from the big box stores.
The fat bike was easy. Remove the wheels and axles, pop the seals and use a magnet to collect the ball bearings. Dropped those in a tray of citrus cleaner while I cleaned the hubs and cones of old grease. Glad I decided to service the bearings because there wasn't enough grease to keep them in place, especially in the Schwinn.
I was going to tackle one bike each day but because the fatty went so well, I decided to do both bikes. What a nightmare that was!
I know the Schwinn is an el cheapo and we get what we pay for. I expected to do work on it, so I'm not complaining about it. However, I don't think I've ever seen such a cheap and nasty bearing set up. First, the balls just fell out because they were dry. The cones have an aluminum dirt protector pressed onto the cone nut. No sealing at all, and would allow for water to enter if ridden or just left out in the rain. While tightening the cone, the protector moved up so I couldn't get the wrench on it. So off it came, pressed the protector back into place, and finally got the front wheel done after a lot of sweat and struggle. It was so bad that I decided to give the rear wheel a miss.
Then thinking about it, I realized it really needed some grease if it was anything like the front wheel. So off came the freewheel and then removed the axle. Different sized ball bearings on each wheel. 4mm on the front, and 6.3mm (1/4") on the rear.
I know well how to tighten cones so the axle turns freely, and doesn't have any up and down movement. So I adjusted the cones, and tightened the lock nuts as usual. Put the wheel back in the bike and found I couldn't turn the pedals. Completely jammed. So out came the wheel, slackened the cones and put the wheel back in. Still jammed. Now I'm puzzled. So out it came again and found the axle turned freely, but I loosened the cones some more. By time I got this so the wheel could turn, the cones were adjusted so loosely that it made me wince. Plenty of up and down movement, but after tightening the wheel nuts on the dropouts, there was no play in the axle.
I could understand this if it was the first time I've serviced wheel bearings, but it's not, and the fat bike went together without a hitch.
The Schwinn is two years old, now, and I've given such bikes a new name: "Disposable Bikes." Ride 'em until something goes seriously wrong, then dump them. It's as though the makers never intended them to be serviced. Every corner that could be cut, they cut. Perhaps this ought to be a warning to anyone who buys a bike from the big box stores.