Bearing Test, Grease vs High Performance Oil

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[canegrimey]

I Generally mix mobil 1 synthetic Bearing grease with WPL Fork boost lube(lube for mountain bike suspension forks). I started doing this a few years ago after going to Ocean City, MD for vacation. I was only there for a few days and I assume a combination of the salty/sandy environment and heat wreaked havoc on my longboard bearings. Since doing this my bearings last much longer, they roll somewhat smoother, and are a bit quieter. Now I can ride my board for a month straight then let it sit for the winter, and pull it out as soon as it hits 60 degrees outside. Without doing any maintenance to it and it'll ride just as smooth as it did before it was put away. The main perk to using grease is the fact that theres virtually no run off. Grease isn't effected by gravity like oil is. Even when you riding your board the oil is still going to settle in the lowest point of the bearing at that particular time. When you do ride the oil gets flung to the outter races. During all this movement some of the oil actually gets thrown out of the bearings at the edges of the seals. Grease doesn't do this nearly as easy or as fast. Once grease gets on something it has a tendency to stay there until wiped away. Even then it still leaves a nice layer behind.

[rcbearings]

Finally someone does a real world test rather than just spinning a skateboard wheel with a dry bearing! Most people don't know this but grease is nothing more than oil in a thickening agent. When you see things like lithium complex grease, the oil is usually a 50-80 wt oil in a lithium thickener. You hit it on the head that there is virtually no discernible difference between bearings. They will all roll just about the same distance.

 What needs to be done is tests in a controlled environment using SAE or ANTM testing standards.

[andreiierdna]

Great experiment, thanks for sharing. Although I've found a noticeable difference in maintaining speed and rolling longer with oil as opposed to grease on the same bearings/wheels setup and same trail.

[jakedineen]

It's interesting that you use greases for more protection I have been experimenting with different oils and I ended up with a hybrid of grease and oil to great success if it continues to be a good solution I will gladly share the recipe for anyone to try for them selves if the rest of you guys would like

[DivineMisterAdVentures]

Better - stack the bearings, run them at speed, like 50MPH equivalent. Measure the temperature very very accurately. You're done. Cooler wins.
Part 2 - same as part 1 except - run 8 bearings independently. Run all bearing to destruction. Give us all the data.

[RaspyOB]

Fine oil alone will evaporate with heat and surely damage the bearings sooner. Unless you're cleaning your bearings weekly I agree with grease. If you want to add fine oil as well it may give a happy medium

[Z-Ack]

So greased bearings will ultimately last longer and hold up better than any oiled bearing, . Water definitely plays a big role in the equation as well where greased bearings are water resistant and oiled bearings will wash out the oil film and rust or let in dirt which will eat up the balls or races and lock up or just put more friction on the situation... if you use a good marine grease and mix a little of your flavor oil with the grease than in my opinion is the best way to go...

[bzmudaifyd]

Cool test, but increase your sample size using single bearings and a motor to spin them individually UNTIL they fail(a higher sample size, or N, is better). Also, use the same type. Metal against metal or ceramic against ceramic. This test doesn’t show anything because it’s metal vs ceramic. Excited to see what you’ll do in the future for this! I love zealous!

[TravisHerben]

You are awesome! That was great. Greasing my bearings now.

[wiradharma]

Umm, from bearing specs there is limiting rpm rating on bearings on grease and oil. That is why you put uncovered bearing on engine, no grease on an auto engine.

[Eduardo_Espinoza]

How where you able to get the single ball out of the bearing?

[alanwright]

Grease is nice but holds more contamination’s. Great video!

[Bawkr]

Wow, I think I will grease my bearings. Always assumed the spin test was a accurate assumption of the speed increase you would see, clearly grease may actually be superior. Maybe even a heavy oil like motor oil or grease oil mix might give a little of both especially if you maintain your bearings every couple of uses & aren't a frequent user.

[adfasfuiuiui]

But you do have a treadmill. Testing it indoors will keep wind and road temperatures out of the equation. Or does the longboard not work on a treadmill?

[vitorstreetboys]

eu gosto como voce faz uso da sua liberdade

[anashamed]

Thanks for the video. What type of grease should I use? There is like 1000 types and thickness. Advice please.

[mgamga]

From fixing machinery I am a printing press mechanic. I always found it better to grease a bearing and not oil a bearing you are supposed to grease bearings not oil them. People talk about .... grease slows the bearing down when you spin the wheel freely but when you are riding on a board you are never going to know the difference between a thin oil thicker oil grease actually grease is going to protect your bearing oil is not. This is just my personal opinion

[ccfmfg]

You should build a precise Skate Board Dynamometer for this experiment.

[ghmdv]

Maybe shimano premium grease will be good for it

[yxngkxng]

You should have switched the oils on the bearings bad oil on good bearings and good oil on bad bearings to see if it changes