How To Service Shimano Ball Bearing Hubs - Service A Shimano Hub

Ball bearing hubs can benefit from a regular overhaul. All Shimano hubs use ball bearings so we used one for our tutorial.

Regularly servicing ball bearing hubs will help to prolong the life-span of your hubs, especially if you regularly ride in gritty or wet conditions.

All Shimano hubs run on cup and cone bearings, so if you have Shimano wheels, this is a procedure that you should consider performing once or twice a year.

If your hubs feel like they are rough when you spin the wheels, or if there is play in the hubs, you could solve this issue by servicing the bearings.

For this job, you will need:
Cone spanners (we needed 13 and 17mm spanners for our hub)
Degreaser to clean the bearings and races
Grease
A tool to get the bearings out
A container to keep the bearings in whilst you clean the hub

Take care not to use degreaser in the rear hub as you risk degreasing the freehub if you do this. Also avoid overtightening the cones when you rebuild the hub as this will result in increased friction. The new grease may take a couple of days to settle/pack in, so check the cones for tightness a couple of rides after first servicing it.

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[andycharlton]

Took my back wheel off, cassette off, ball bearings out, cleaned, re greased, reassembled, put back wheel back on. Rode 13 miles, AND IT DIDN'T FALL OFF!

This is significant progress for me. :)

Why am I telling you people this? Because I am pathetically proud of myself for having done that, and I think that at least some of you will understand. :)

Couldn't have done it without the help of GCN Videos. Thanks.

[dpanders]

Thanks for doing a rear hub, all the other "tutorials" opted for the easier front one.

[HitmanD]

Not usually one to comment, but your videos (this and others) have been an incredibly helpful and comprehensive collection for someone just starting out with bike maintenance. Thanks very much!

[markwilkinson]

Thank you ! I noticed this morning that there was a bit of play in the back wheel. Thought - No sweat, there'll be a GCN Video with the tips and traps to know on this. And of course there was.

GCN = Invaluable cycling resource. Kudos.

[RadomKidsareme]

UBI graduate, here! The perfect adjustment can be achieved by adjusting your hubs to the point when fully assembled and placed in the drop-outs, the wheel should have the tiniest bit of play when the quick release is only halfway engaged; when the quick release is then fully closed, NO play should be present! This loss of play happens due to the quick release compressing the axle just a fractional amount. Again, slight play when slightly tight; no play when fully secured. Happy wrenching!

[白海塔]

Holy cow, this is one of the best maintenance videos I've seen on Youtube in a long time. The explanation is clear, the video shows clearly what and where to do, and also all the required tools are mentioned. +1 for me, thanks.

[leqin]

Just did this for all my Shimano hubbed bikes this weekend and completely replaced the rear axle on one, so this is one GCN video I didn't need to watch - but it was fun watching non the less :.)

[cameronpierce]

Thanks so much for this high-quality, very informative videos.

I'd like to make just a few points that seem worth adding/augmenting:

First, if you have a disk brake, you may want to remove it and set it aside first to avoid contaminating it with oil and grease (in which case degreaser and/or rubbing alcohol can be used).

Secondly, for first-time DIY'ers (like me), you may not have an adequate impression of how important and fine/tricky the final cone tension/adjustment is. Even if you hold the cone spanner steady while tightening the lock nut, the axle may rotate from the underside--so that you may need some extra help to hold, or better, an axle vise grip to secure the drive-side axle while you tighten the non-drive side. Moreover, if you have a quick release system, this will add more tightness to the system once mounted, so you may want to leave a little play. Better, to simulate the effect of the quick-release, use 10 or 11mm socket wrenches to cover the axles on both sides, insert your quick release and tighten it up--and now finish adjusting your cone tension.

I'd be interested in any comments you have on this too, team GCN.

thanks,

[designthinkeducate]

GCN you are gods! A set of x tools and less than an hour and my back drive train is running like cream! Thanks

[counselorchandru]

I'd say I'm pretty lucky to have found your channel! After about 15 years, I've bought a cycle now (hybrid). 3 days in, rear wheel wobble! This video really helped me understand what the issue is about, so thank you!

[MadJackChurchill]

"Don't remove from the freewheel side". Uh oh.
"Make sure you remember which side the ball bearings came from". UH OH.
"Don't spray degreaser on the rear hub". UHH OHHH!

[ghkghkghk]

The same thing happened to me! changed the cones on my Shimano RS561 rear wheel 4 days ago as they where worn out ( never wash these hubs with a lot of water pressure!). Then today I saw this video from GCN. :D Made things clearer though.
I think the tougher part is finding the balance between an overtightened and a loose lock nut. Nicely explained! thanks

[FoxtrotHostel]

Thus video saved me so much time. I turns out I was overconfident and tried doing it myself. 1st try put a part backwards. 2nd try tightend the axle to much. 3rd ti.e found this video. Turns out third times a charm

[davidshipp]

Absolutely brilliant video saved me a fortune. Thought I was going to need a new set of wheels. Thank you GCN

[brandywell]

To get the dust covers off I used to use a piece of timber against the wheel flange/spokes and a ring spanner small enough to fit inside the dust cover (axle removed) and gently lever out a little at a time using the timber as a fulcrum. My method didnt damage the dust cover at all. Installing was easy by simply tapping them in around their perimeter.
I found that water in the bearing races destroyed cup and cone surfaces by cavitatation.
I found cassette bearings to be a great idea until they needed adjusting. I just lived with the slight slack, as the hassle free benefits outweighed the perfection of cup and cone most of the time on my tourer/commuter
The best innovation came with an outrigger bearing on the rear wheel under the sprocket freewheel,  

[rudyreyesify]

Throwback to when Dan spent more time working on bikes rather than working on his hair.

[petinka]

Thanks again Dan and GCN for a great video and now that will be easier fix the wheels.

[MayorInCheif]

I have a pair of needle-nose pliers which I'm careful not to magnetize. I worry that using a magnet will magnetize the bearings, and the tiny bits of metal that break off through normal wear will stay stuck right onto the ball which will cause wear much more quickly than if the worn-off metal was allowed to just find some quiet corner of the hub just adjacent to where the metal parts contact one-another.

[hoofheartedicemelted]

This was extremely helpful and answered many questions, thank you sir for including the tools necessary. And incidentally I think the telescopic magnet was genius. lol.

[gomitch]

If the bearing surface inside the hub is already pitted, the only option is to completely replace the hub and re-spoke the whole wheel again?