Originally Posted by
Kimmo
Yeah? O_o
So would you lube the clamp area on drop bars?
And can someone explain how this might be so?
IMO he's wrong about greasing lowering the clamping force required, (tho opposite is true) but right in that ungreased posts will creak while greased ones won't.
With flex, there's some slight sliding of the post within the tube (same with quill stems) as it flexes, it's kind of like wearing shoes without socks. The movement causes creaking. Grease prevents the creak, but not the movement itself.
Often to get good hold on a slipping post, I'll wipe the post and tube dry, then apply grease to the tube below the clamping zone, and spread it as I push the post down (being careful not to pull it back up). That gives me the higher traction of dry clamping, while preventing corrosion or creaking deeper down. It's a bit of a nuisance so I save it for only when I need to, usually on steel or Ti frames with the ears welded directly to the tube without reinforcement. These can crack fairly easily if torqued down hard, destroying a frame. On frames with replaceable collars, it's less of a worry since all you can lose is a low cost collar.