Originally Posted by
fietsbob
In the case of one piece, 'ashtabula' cranks you cannot put it together without the retainer.. I Tried, just once.
But in most bikes 3 piece cranks , sticking the balls in the grease in the cup race is OK...
....
When I was 13 I re-greased my ashtabula crank with loose balls. At that time I used heavy thick grease, and continue to use for BB and head sets.