vega2614

I have a freewheel that I want to lube after accidentally getting PB blaster inside while cleaning the sprockets. It sounds a little rough now as it needs to be properly lubed. I think I read somewhere lawnmower oil (SAE 30) could work for this purpose. Would that work, and if so, would it also work for lubing freehubs? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Torchy McFlux

I use Phil's Tenacious. It's the next best thing to light grease, IMO.
I've had to try and clean drivetrain components which owners have "lubed" with all kinds of stuff. Not a fan of automotive oil.

HillRider

It will work fine. I'd avoid 2-stroke oil (intended to be mixed with gasoline) but plain SAE 30 or anything like it will work fine.

fietsbob

... when did lawnmowers start being an oil source, I thought you had to buy the oil and put it in them?

Bandera

Good choice, although I prefer Phil oil, any non-detergent lightweight machine oil will work fine and you'll need some for the mower anyway.
Remove from the hub, spin and drip the oil in from the top until it purrs ( and the crud washes out) and let the FW drain overnight.

Read the Park bulletin on Freehubs before lubing and don't contaminate the bearing grease w/ oil.

Park Tool Co. » ParkTool Blog » Freehub Service

-Bandera

FBinNY 

Freewheel lubrication needs are very minimal because there are never moving parts under load.

When you pedal the mechanism is locked and moves as a unit, when you coast there's zero load other than the weight of the chain.

So the freewheel oils job isn't lubrication as much as other things like coating the surfaces so water can't enter and cause rust, and as you can hear, dampening the normal noise of the pawls on the ratchet ring so it's nice and quiet when you coast.

As such, ANY oil thick enough not to spin out as you ride will do the job. Some, like Phil's and a certain unnamed chain oil, also have tacking agents to improve adhesion and retention, especially in wet conditions.

vega2614

Thanks for the tips. I just bought lawnmower oil, so I was pleased when I saw I could potentially use that for my bike hubs as well. When you say the top of the hub, do you mean from the wheel side or non-wheel side? I have removed the o-ring on the wheel side. Is this there where I want to dispense the oil?

You have piqued my interest; what is this "certain unnamed chain oil?" Or is this a reference to the fact that chain lubricant is a such a controversial topic.

FBinNY 

I don't think he's referring to the hub, but about how to introduce the oil into the freewheel without making a mess. Ball bearing hubs have oil requirements beyond what most oils offer. You can run them with oil, which would lower the viscous drag that grease causes, but you won't see the same service life.

As a general rule, ball bearings take grease, sleeve bearings take oil, but there are exceptions, and the freewheel is one

As to the unnamed chain oil, It's not exactly a state secret. Look below my signature.

Bandera

Precisely, top side of the FW not the hub.

As part of the Annual Overhaul "back when" FW's were removed from hubs, cleaned & flushed/re-oiled.
With the FW removed it was time to clean & re-grease the hub bearings with one's potion of choice ( Campi grease then/Finish Line now for me).

Quality hubs can have a very long service life and are not "consumables" as are FWs & cassettes. I still stick w/ the tried & true user serviceable cup & cone designs. On my bikes the front hubs date from '74, '77, '84, '92 and '10 and all spin like new.

-Bandera

vega2614

I got my projects confused, sorry about that. I am trying to figure out how to lube a freehub body as well as the FW we've been discussing. I wasn't refering to the wheel hub itself. For the hub I am using Finish Line Teflon grease.

Haha, gotcha. I rarely read signatures. But what's funny is I had just read all your quotes before replying, but skimmed over the link.

FBinNY 

You add the oil through ether gap with the freewheel laying flat. (if one gap is wider than other oil through the wider gap). Let it run in by gravity, or pickup the freewheel and turn it slowly to help pull it in. You'll know the oil is where you need it by the change in the sound. Over oil and leave the freewheel flat to gravity drain the excess through the gap at the bottom.

Crankycrank

I can back up FBinNY's recommendation for his Chain-L lube for FW/FHubs. As he stated you need something that's not overly viscous and stays in place. Since I have the Chain-L already I use it in my freehubs and it works great. 30wt motor oil lubes fine until it dribbles out in short order leaving you with no lube and oil all over your hubs. I used to make my own lube by mixing motor oil with compatible grease until it was just thick enough not to drip which also worked very well but is more of a PITA to mix and apply than the Chain-L or Phil's Tenacious.

FBinNY 

FWIW - I actually didn't recommend my stuff. Not that it's not fine for this job, but as I said, ANY oil thick or sticky enough to stay put is fine for this application.

vega2614

I decided to go with Phil's Tenacious Oil. It seems to be well-recommended and only $11 on Amazon. Waiting for it to come in now. I didn't want to have to deal with lawnmower oil spraying all over my bike and having to keep adding more.

I also have a question about a freehub that's giving me issues. I got a rear wheel at a garage sale. The freehub has a lot of resistance and doesn't spin at all after you stop applying force. The pawls seem to be working though when I try and spin the other way.

I purchased a 12 mm allen wrench to try and remove the freehub body, but it will not budge. It's different that the other Shimano freehubs I've seen because you access it from the opposite side of the wheel. I've tried dousing the freehub while on the wheel with PB Blaster, degreaser, etc., but it has no effect on the ease of spinning.

Anyone have any thoughts about what's going on? Thanks.

rydabent

Or you could use Mobil 1 extended as I do. It is also what I lube my chain with which get exceptional mileage. Your $11 would have bought 2 quarts of Mobil 1 which would have lasted a life time.

I get tickled about the fact that if a specific use is labled for a lube, the mfg can charge 10 times more for it.
Such as a grease that is labled "bicycle" grease. Any tub of auto wheel bearing grease will work just as good if not better than "bicycle wheel bearing grease", and cost tons less.

vega2614

How often do you have to relube with Mobil 1? Do you have issues with it dripping out?

Bandera

If you drip any decent quality non-detergent machine oil in the FW, spin and wash out crud until it purrs and let the FW drain overnight
"dripping out" is a non-issue. There is not enough oil to worry about if you let it drain and an annual service is all that's necessary unless you ride a lot of miles in the rain.

Same for cup/cone bearing service, re-pack annually with any good quality grease.

No special potions or excessive fretting required.

-Bandera

rydabent

vega

After lubing my chain with a small oiler, I run the chain backward many revolutions to work the oil in. Then I wipe down the excess with a shop towel. After most rides, I again wipe down the chain with the shop towel go remove dirt.