Loose, Caged or Sealed! How do you like your Balls?
NO! This isn't a Commando, Boxer or Brief thread. The balls I'm, referring to are of the BEARING type. I've noticed that manufacturers are trending toward Sealed bearings in all kinds of applications, but frankly I'm an old Cup and cone kinda guy.
PROS:
* Theoretically, a sealed bearing resists moisture/debris entry to keep the inner working, working. In reality, at the same time it seals IN any thing that makes it's way past the seal (Which will inevitably happen.)
* If you relish a throw-away society, you $#!t can the old one and press a new on in place.
* What it reduces, is the total cost of machining on the bike frame or bracket. Since the bearing parts are internal, bike manufacturers don't have to worry as much about tolerances and hardness of cup/cone assemblies. The "hole" just has to fit the bearing
* It caters to MORONS who just don't know how to properly inspect, adjust and maintain a free bearing. No offense to anyone (This is the part where I'm about to offend someone... if not everyone), There are a lot of bike RIDERS, who are NOT the best Bike maintainers.
CONS:
* IMHO sealed bearings are "stiff". I know that they SHOULD loosen up in time, but they still offer more resistance than a "free" set of bearings. AS a kid I remember being proud of Spinning a wheel/pedal/BB (Even a headset) and seeing just how long it could spin. If I'm supplying the effort, shouldn't I get the most bang for the buck?
* No maintenance = No maintenance. Uh, I LIKE to do maintenance on my bike(S). I WANT to know whats going on inside a bearing surface. Wear is usually easy to spot and replacing 1-2 or a few balls is easy. I don't want to get lulled into a false sense of security by believing that "Sealed" is really Sealed.
Give us YOUR $.02
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I'm a renaissance man... Only because I was born during the time period
Last edited by bashermax; 02-07-14 at 06:11 AM.