Finish Line Teflon Synthetic Grease

Product Information

Zero data actually comparing the different greases on any physical measurable level. Be it friction, be it pitting/wear, be it wash out, be it oxidation, be it load capacity, be it literally anything. The only metric you’ve measured them on is price – which is one of the absolute weakest metrics due to how little grease a bicycle uses. A single tire will cost more than you spend on grease during the next 30 years regardless of which type. As for disk brakes transferring heat to hubs, it’s been a big problem in the past, and given the rather solid surface on road disks between the caliper engagement area and the hub, probably still is on road bikes. This seems like a perfect test for https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com to conduct. I idea is to put a disk braked wheel on their drum and brake while using an IR sensor to record temps with the idea to continue until hub temps become a problem – or not. Having said all this – there’s nothing wrong with NLGI 1. Loads that bicycle bearings take do not require NLGI 2 grease. The most important thing is regular service (and dirt intrusion prevention – but that’s down to the bearing / hub manufacturer mostly). In the 1990s, it was found that PTFE could be radiation cross-linked above its melting point in an oxygen-free environment. [13] Electron beam processing is one example of radiation processing. Cross-linked PTFE has improved high-temperature mechanical properties and radiation stability. That was significant because, for many years, irradiation at ambient conditions has been used to break down PTFE for recycling. [14] This radiation-induced chain scission allows it to be more easily reground and reused. There’s absolutely no data (I’ve already provided this but you subsequently deleted the comment) in this entire article about how greases compare to one another in regard to wear and pitting, prevention of oxidation, washout, among any number of other scientific indicators. Just pure conjecture. You ever wonder why your white lithium grease looks a little brown when you pull it out even after short intervals? It’s because of oxidation, it’s not near the top of greases in it’s oxidation prevention properties. But since you never actually look into this data you’ll never understand greases in general.”

Relja – This is the same consistent misunderstanding you gave to ‘Reason’ earlier. You simply don’t understand the topic as well as you believe. Zero data actually showing NLGI 2 will leak out more than NLGI 1 in a sealed system. The “leaking” point is the dropping point you mention but seemingly fail to understand. The only argument here is NLGI 2 is easier to find. Since bikes are ridden outside, bearing lubricant needs to keep dirt and water from entering. It should be resistant to being washed off with water, prevent corrosion, while operating temperature ranges from as cold as-20 °Cfor winter use (though some cyclists are even more extreme), to about 100 °Cfor bearings of bikes left in hot summer sun, then ridden.

Which grease is best?

The original Park grease seemed fair, but definitely would allow and absorb more water into emulsion which could lead to bearing corrosion. My ’06 Specialized Roubaix came with press-in cups, loose balls, and a split-crown race – pretty much the worst piece of crap bearing possible, and despite NEVER riding in the rain, I could have grown potatoes in the lower headset after 3yrs. Rusted, pitted and absolutely filthy. I rode it all yr around too, so it didn’t get FUBAR sitting around in my bedroom, it got FUBAR from dust and the occasional puddle splash from rouge irrigation systems. Special types of “bicycle grease”, sold in many bike shops, or on-line rarely have a label noting standards it satisfies, often even don’t have fully and clearly listed ingredients. It’s up to the buyer to trust the manufacturer that it is the best grease for a bicycle. I’m yet to do lab testing of “special bicycle greases”, but when I do – they’d still have to be really, really exceptional to justify the price difference from a regular car-store sold lithium soap based grease, that fully satisfies all thecriteria. As for water washout of “lithium greases” in general – as I’ve noted, looking at any grease’s technical data is a safe bet – there are DIN and ISO standards that I hope are scientific enough by your (and Reason’s) merits, so one can look up there. Some lithium complex greases are very good at water washout resistance.

Shimano is the primary wheel manufacturer that uses cup and cone. MOST others do not. Please update your own knowledge base. In addition Shimano bearings do not use grease to ‘hold them in place.’ So that argument is worthless again. If riding environment has lots of rains and/or sea water, good choice is calcium (soap based) grease (or “marine” grease). Available, cheap, with good water resistance. The only situations where this grease is not a very good choice are extreme heats (bike left for hoursin over +35 °C summer sun), or riding in very low temperatures (below -15°C). The working temperatures of literally all the greases you listed is perfectly fine for 95% of riders out there. Trying to make recommendations by a maybe 30*F change in ambient is not based on science. These are high quality greases with excellent lubricating, water resistance, extreme pressure bearing and oxidation resistance properties.Yes, the working range of the grease is written on the label of said grease. Duh. However, the working range ISN’T determined by grease type! All lithium grease are NOT ONE RANGE! As far as I know, those are decent-quality calcium-based greases, that are softer than NLGI2 hardness, not aggressive on plastics, rubber or metal. The research paper provided by Reason as evidence that “aluminium is a better grease at typical bicycle temperatures” actually makes no such claim. The research is into how each soap-type is effected by temperature. It does not purport to compare friction between different greases. In its conclusion the paper makes no claim that the aluminium soap formulation has lower friction: only that friction lowered with heat irrespective of the soap used. Additionally the conclusion is very careful to say the results were derived with respect to a particular base oil, using specified RPM, and specified load. Given that base-oil, RPM, and load all contribute significantly to friction it is unfair to draw the conclusion that grease with Aluminium soaps have lower friction generally. Soap greases. Soaps are usually made by saponification of fatty acids with hydroxides of various metals – aluminium, calcium,sodium, barium.

For what it’s worth, based on my practical and theoretical experience and knowledge, for bike use, if servicing bearings annually, practically any grease is OK. If one is riding in extremely wet/muddy/sandy conditions, a 6-month service makes some sense – if one wants to be on the safe side. So the weight and the speed with which bicycle bearings are loaded are quite modest. While frequent re-lubrication is not practical. Corona discharge treatment of the surface to increase the energy and improve adhesion has been reported. [15] Production [ edit ]The thing with data and science is that it actually needs to be relevant to the conversation and support what you’re arguing. You can’t just grab the first thing that pops up in a google search and say “SEE!!” that doesn’t make you scientific, data-based, or objective. I suspect Mr. Reason is just obsessed with buying grease with “bicycle” written on the label and feels the need to defend themselves. Who argues for polyurea? Only someone with limited experience with it… the Park Poly formula is good, highly compatible, but it’s the exception not the rule. It’s usually a grease used in high speed bearings that are sealed and never serviced. Why do they choose it for a bicycle? I have no clue, but the fact that they use it for their general purpose grease doesn’t make it better than a lithium complex. For as much as Mr. Reason demands evidence, they certainly didn’t make much of an argument besides “but that’s what this company does although I have no idea why!!!” (how informative, not).

A man cycling in Siberia will look for a grease with better low temperature working range, while a man riding in Africa will not bother with water washout resistance. PTFE is a thermoplastic polymer, which is a white solid at room temperature, with a density of about 2200kg/m 3 and a melting point of 600K (327°C; 620°F). [20] It maintains high strength, toughness and self-lubrication at low temperatures down to 5K (−268.15°C; −450.67°F), and good flexibility at temperatures above 194K (−79°C; −110°F). [21] PTFE gains its properties from the aggregate effect of carbon-fluorine bonds, as do all fluorocarbons. The only chemicals known to affect these carbon-fluorine bonds are highly reactive metals like the alkali metals, and at higher temperatures also such metals as aluminium and magnesium, and fluorinating agents such as xenon difluoride and cobalt(III) fluoride. [22] At temperatures above 650–700°C (1,200–1,290°F) PTFE undergoes depolymerization. [23] Property This is not true. Bicycle bearings are not open with water flowing over them – not even the cup and cone. Not even in pouring rain. They all have at least some kind of dust seal. So they don’t get that much water and don’t need to be 100% waterproof. Choose water washout resistance level of your liking. ISO E is good enough though. I’d also give myself the liberty to recommend annual cleaning and re-greasing of bearings as a better choice for longetivity, than using super-greases. Because of dirt and dust contamination. Cheapest grease changed annually will outperform the best grease changed once in a 2-5 years. Not because of grease degradation, but because of dirt contamination.I would also add that I haven’t noticed discs transfering a lot of heat to the hub itself. There’s a lot of aluminium and steel there, and when braking is hard, there’s usually a lot of wind and rotation to cool it all down. Would expect the discs to warp from overheating long before hub grease gets hot. Might put this to the test in the summer. 🙂 Minimal 4 ball weld test of 1000 N or better was a safe margin recommended by the post’s co-author, an expert on the subject, Stevan Dimitrijević. If you have relevant data that proves otherwise, please share it, I’d be more than happy to link it and correct the data in the post.” Bicycle hubs are not sealed. They are “sealed”. It is a valid argument. If they were really sealed, water washout attributes would be irrelevant. Bike bearings have covers that both leak and allow dirt and water intrusion. So it’s more of a “dust protection” that doesn’t seal, advertised as a seal. NLGI1 does not leak out of bearings faster especially with many of these are sealed bearings with covers. Please support WITH DATA.” There are thousands of different products – article was aimed at providing some guidelines, with “rule of thumb” properties. Motul and Mobile, to name a few, make some exceptional quality greases (and sell them at premium/higher prices).