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Ceramic Speed Bearing Maintenance and Regreasing
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I currently own a set of second hand ENVE 4.5s with Ceramic Speed bearings that feel to be getting gritty. Ceramic Speed recommends doing frequent bearing maintenance and regreasing as stated by the guy in video. My question is regarding what grease do slowtwitchers prefer to use? CS offers 3 different greases for their ceramic bearings. All around, TT, and Long lasting. The guy in the video recommended using long lasting grease, their "slowest" grease, at the beginning of every season.. Doesn't seem that long lasting. The TT lasts for a minimum of 600 miles. This doesn't seem worth the maintenance unless there are some numbers to back up the grease difference. The blue all around hybrid grease seems to be a mix between the two. Currently my hubs show white grease under the caps and around the bearings, so the all around grease was not used in the past. What bearing grease do you use? Also, please share some tips for bearing maintenance as these wheels and bearings are too expensive for the trial and error process. I live in a dry area and do not ride these wheels in the rain.
Links to the grease options and video maintence below.


https://www.ceramicspeed.com/en/cycling/shop/grease-and-tools/[/url]

https://youtu.be/m5tQy0776yw[/url]
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Re: Ceramic Speed Bearing Maintenance and Regreasing [Jimbotri] [ In reply to ]
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If they are stiff to rotate, that is grease, if they are rough then the races which are still steel are pitted and you are better off just replacing them with good quality steel bearings from a big name bearing manufacturer.
Ceramic bearings in the bike industry are never full ceramic, they are hybrid with ceramic balls and steel races.
The ceramic is harder than steel and has less ductility so they actually destroy the softer steel race much quicker than standard steel balls.
New bearings for $20 and half an hour of your time and they will be better than new and last longer than the ceramic poser bearings that are simply not suited to bicycle applications.
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Re: Ceramic Speed Bearing Maintenance and Regreasing [Jimbotri] [ In reply to ]
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Do you live in a dusty desert style climate, or just dry? The all around is said to be good for 3,000-5,000 miles between service, but you could probably also have luck just sending an email or message to CeramicSpeed to ask if there are conditions better for one or the other.
The TT is certainly a purpose made product with that short of a service interval, and I believe friction facts did a study on special greases a few years ago with Cycling tips online (maybe it was a different website).

As for the other comment, contamination is completely overlooked in their ‘what causes bearings to not spin nicely’ synopsis. The point of the grease in a ceramic (hybrid or full) bearing is to protect against contamination, thus the need to replace the grease just as you replace worn & dirty oil in a car.
Yes, ceramic balls can be harder than steel, but a smooth round ball can’t dig into another smooth material without an abrasive or additional material in between.
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Re: Ceramic Speed Bearing Maintenance and Regreasing [DrShadows] [ In reply to ]
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DrShadows wrote:
Yes, ceramic balls can be harder than steel, but a smooth round ball can’t dig into another smooth material without an abrasive or additional material in between.


Oh yes it can, and does.
Both the ball and the race change shape at the contact patch due to their ductility.
This spreads the load over a greater area.
The harder ceramic balls do not deform as much so the steel races see a much higher point loading and can suffer galling and pitting.
Once this happens no amount of new grease will ever make it smooth again.

Ceramic Balls are suitable for applications where high loads, high speeds and extreme temperatures are factors. Long life and the need for minimal lubrication make this material appropriate for extreme applications.


This is not the domain of bicycles.
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