REVIEW - of "The Greaser"

[Finless]

Hey all, time for another little review of a tool that either a lot of people don't know about or gets discussed often as to it's purpose and benefit.

I discussed the possibility of a review with Ron Lund on this product due to a thread recently here on Helifreak in the main forum. This post also has some interesting discussion on types of grease to use.

https://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=281909

Ron thought it would be great timing so I have to thank Ron and Heliproz South for sending me a "Greaser" and some grease to show you all how this thing works.

Personally I think this is a great tool and can save you folks on buying new bearings just because they feel rough due to lack of lubrication.

Anyway on with the video review

VIDEO -> Review of the Greaser (120 Megs)

Enjoy,
Bob

[Jonnyrl1]

Great review as always, can't wait to get mine. Your intro was great too btw!

[ChuckJrster]

Bob,

I thought that thing was some kind of "lip stick" container!

[BountyHunter51]

Great reveiw Bob!!

I picked up a Greaser from Ron not long ago and I'll have to agree with you that it's an excellent tool. Ron and the crew at Helipros South are first rate for service and advice as well.

Cheers! Mike

[Finless]

Originally Posted by ChuckJrster

Bob,

I thought that thing was some kind of "lip stick" container!

I wont say but you should hear what other people thought it was

Bob

[Luvmyhelis]

Excellent vid, wont comment on your last comment. Lol.

[CNCjunkie]

I've had one of these for a couple of years now and it does the job very well.

One word of caution with small bearings:

If you push down on the tip too hard, you can damage very small bearings and make them notchy. What I do is put very little pressure on the tip just to hold the bearing down and push on the inner cone piece with my fingers to squeeze the grease through the bearing. This method doesn’t put much pressure on the delicate balls and races so they won’t be damaged in the greasing process.

[ChuckJrster]

Yes, I can only imagine! LOL

[Finless]

Originally Posted by CNCjunkie

I've had one of these for a couple of years now and it does the job very well.

One word of caution with small bearings:

If you push down on the tip too hard, you can damage very small bearings and make them notchy. What I do is put very little pressure on the tip just to hold the bearing down and push on the inner cone piece with my fingers to squeeze the grease through the bearing. This method doesn’t put much pressure on the delicate balls and races so they won’t be damaged in the greasing process.

Hey! Thanks thats a great tip.....

Bob

[Rollingball]

I did some Scorpion bearings with the Greaser. It was unreal watching the amount of trash that come out of the oiled bearings.

[pinguin]

How often do you have to grease a bearing? 50, 100, 150 flights?

So every certain flights I have to disassembled the heli and put the grease on the bearings? I'm not comfortable doing this. I'm afraid on disassembling a perfect flying heli, because when put it back I might miss something that cause problem to it, such as: vibration, different flying characteristic, etc.

I just replace my main shaft bearing on T500 an notice that the old one is pack with lube. What about a smaller size bearing, does it come prelube from the factory? How do I know that the bearing already lube from the factory.

[Finless]

Sealed or race shielded bearings come from the factory pre-lubed. As to how often you should repack, thats up to the environment and how the bearing is used. I never take apart just to lube (except thrust bearings if it has been a while). If I have something apart I lube the bearings then.

Bob

Bob

[dwoodworker]

I got mine last year and used it when I buit my raptor and love it. I used lucas grease and it says it can be used on hi speed bearings. seems to work well.

[John A]

Your review sold me on this product, I just placed my order for one. Thanks Finless.

[edhall]

Just used mine again last night.

I seem to use it a lot, but I also seem to crash a lot.

[John A]

Well I was rebuilding my head last night and I ran into some bearings 6mm that would go right down the hole while trying to use the greaser on them. So anything 6mm and under you will have to come up with some type of fixture to keep them from doing that if you want to use the greaser on them. Other than that the thing is great at repacking bearings.

[edhall]

Not sure if anyone will actually see this thread here, but


What grease have people been using in the greaser.

I have been using boca lightning lube which is not real thick, and goes in to bearings very easily, but it's pretty expensive! It doesn't seem to stay in thrust bearings very long though, 10 flights and it's gone from at least the thrust bearings. It seems to stay in shielded bearings though.

Even greasing new bearings, I can go through a decent amount of grease, but when greasing used bearings with black junk comming out, I can go through even more, and I also hate trying to save expensive grease by using a screwdriver or hex driver to wipe the bearing off, and put the grease back into the greaser. It's just plain too much hassel trying to be economical with grease, lets face it, it's messy stuff.

I would love to grease them, wipe them off with a paper towel, hit the insides with a q-tip to get most of the grease out of the middle, then clean them with q-tips and 90% rubbing alcohol when using CA if I am glueing in the bearings to blade grips like I do on a pantera.

I originally bought the grease recommended by Petes Hobbies (the maker of the "Greaser", Union 76 Multiplex EP 2 grease.

U76 at least when it wasn't summer and sitting out in the sun in a pre warmed greaser, would pop the end shields off my bearings in any kind of below 70 degree temp, although the grease did stay put just like Pete said it would.



There has to be a happy medium of price vs staying power on a grease.

What is everyone using out there?

It's time for me to switch.

Not sure if I should move this to a new thread so that it's seen more.

[PcChip]

necro-bump because I'd like to know everyone's answer to this last question as well!

[WI_Hedgehog]

The Greaser is a great idea, and spinning extra grease out with a drill is a requirement, but that's still a lot of grease in the bearings. You might be better off getting bearings with removable shields, pulling the shields, cleaning with acetone in a shaker, and using a syringe to apply a reasonable amount of grease. It may not earn you bragging rights for the most expensive setup, but it works, is fast, and is portable.

-----
EDIT: The following is correct, but not the best lubricant for heli bearings. Frequent cleaning and lubricating with sewing machine oil is significantly better. (See later post.)
-----

Grease choices in descending order:

Timkin Ultra high speed grease

Bosch Purple (the new formula is Beige, actually translucent yellowish) part number is 1615430001 for 225ml ~$45 or 1615430005 for a 45ml small tube $6-$14. Designed for high-speed, high-temp, high-impact bearings).

https://www.mystiklubes.com/Search.do
Mystik®JT-6® Hi-Temp Grease with Moly EP NLGI No. 2
Mystik®JT-6® Hi-Temp Grease NLGI No. 1
Mystik®JT-6® Lo-Temp Extreme Grease NLGI No. 2 (good flow at extremely low to medium temperatures)

"Union 76 Multiplex EP Grease 2" automotive NLGI 2 grease (inexpensive).

Gear lube: Slick 50 One Grease. Actually stays in the gears after many hours of flying. All of the other stuff, including the Bosch would be covering the sides of the tail box with very little remaining on the gears after about 50 flights.

--=Brad


http://www.plantservices.com/articles/2002/187.html
If the bearing has been used, clean it thoroughly before applying new grease. When the bearing is installed, grease should not occupy more than one-half to three-quarters of the total available free space within the housing. When the bearing or housing is overfilled, the resultant friction and heat limits bearing life severely.

http://www.machinerylubrication.com/...ng-lubrication
Typical causes of failure include the following:

Loss of Lubricant. If the bearing is not regreased at the appropriate interval with the proper amount of grease, or if the oil separates from the base thickener of the grease by overheating, loss of lubricant and lubrication can occur and contribute to equipment failure.

Grease Incompatibility. Not all greases are compatible with each other. It is important to stay with the same grease or a compatible substitute for the life of a bearing.

Incorrect Grease. Be sure to use the correct grease for your application. Some bearing designs and applications need only non-EP or general purpose (GP) grease while others require extreme pressure (EP) grease.

Grease Degradation. Grease hardening, chemical breakdown caused by excessive heat, and oil separation from grease base are common types of grease degradation.

Excess Lubrication. This occurs mainly with open face bearings, when excess grease can cause an excessive temperature increase in the bearings due to churning and also be pushed back into the windings of the motor and can also cause overheating and deterioration of the electrical insulation on the windings.

http://www.machinerylubrication.com/...arings-rolling
Greases are classified by their stiffness or consistency according to the U.S. National Lubricating Grease Institute (NLGI) and are graded from NLGI Class 000 (very soft) to 6 (very stiff).

Grease composition is roughly 85 percent base oil (mineral or synthetic) and 15 percent soap or thickener and will vary in different greases.

The base oil is the oil inside the grease that separates and protects surfaces under operating conditions. Thickeners stiffen the mixture to enable it to remain stationary around the moving components.

Where bearings are subject to heavy vibrations if grease with low mechanical stability were to be applied, the grease matrix may be destroyed by the vibrations and cause premature bearing failure.

Based on SKF’s years of experience performing root cause analysis of failed bearings, it can be said that half of all bearing failures in industrial applications can be attributed to poor or inadequate lubrication conditions caused by the improper selection of the basic grease type for the operating conditions, improper relubrication intervals, mixing incompatible greases, liquid or solid contamination, or overgreasing.

As an overall checklist to help guide users, the following factors are among the most significant in selecting the proper grease for bearing lubrication:

machine type
bearing type and size
operating temperature
operational load conditions
speed range
operating conditions (such as vibration and horizontal/vertical orientation of the shaft)
cooling conditions
sealing efficiency
external environment

[RyanW]

"When the bearing is installed, grease should not occupy more than one-half to three-quarters of the total available free space within the housing. When the bearing or housing is overfilled, the resultant friction and heat limits bearing life severely."

Hmm... so this is impossible to accomplish with The Greaser, as it fills the bearing 100% as a function of pushing the old grease out.