Servicing Campy Record High Flange Hubs?
 

This is probably a stupid question, but my new bike has the beautiful 1970s Campy Record high flange hubs, with the oil cap. I know I read about this somewhere, but I have searched here and Sheldon Brown's website without luck. I am assuming that I should grease these hubs like any other hub and that the oil holes were only for racers who wanted less friction and didn't mind working on their bikes all the time. Am I right?

Pull the axles and bearings. Do NOT remove the seals. Clean thouroghly. Re-pack with good quality grease (Park etc.). Don't worry about the oil clip, it's not for nothing but might as well be.

They really should have grease on the hub bearings. The oil hole changes neither the laws of thermodynamics, nor others of the laws of physics that pertain to friction. :D

Do a conventional clean-and-pack. You can either follow Otis' advice about not removing the seals or my advice to do so, gently using a cone wrench to pry them out.

Just one thing to add: Plan on doing the clean & lube yearly. I think of myself as a conservator of my vintage parts but that doesn't keep me from riding them. Don

I have never had a problem removing or replacing the seals on my NR hubs.

+1, the dust caps on the NR hubs are pretty thick/sturdy relative to some of the less expensive and later offerings. Still, you wouldn't want to accidnetly mangle one of them. I always take off the dust caps to ensure that I remove all of the old, contaminated grease. My prefered removal tool is a sealed bearing puller, as I find it it spreads the force more evenly and over a wider area, lessening the chance of damage to the dust cap.

It's a job I do not have a problem with either, but I would not recommend it to a newbie. And it's easy to get the shells clean using a q-tip or similar device to get behind the seals when left in place.

The problem I see aside from people bending up the seals, is not getting them seated correctly. I've seen many that wobble like a Chevy hubcab trim ring as they roll down the road. When they are in a little crooked they will actually pull grease out like a scoop as the hub turns.

I rebuild a lot of Campy hubs and I never take the seals out unless I'm replacing a bearing race. If you can get it clean I see no point in removing them.

I never remove the dust caps on Record hubs when servicing. a rag soaked in mineral spirits will get all the old grease out.

Don

Seals on Nuovo Record? Not that I've ever seen! I don't take off the dust caps myself, never had a reason. Pull the axle, clean inside with some thinner and a toothbrush, wipe out with a clean rag, pack surface with grease using your finger, insert balls, reassemble and adjust. I always use probably too much grease, but it comes out the first few times you ride. I don't think the oil holes were really ever used, except to free up some stuck hub in an emergency.

Some of the old track guys would pull the dust covers and re-oil the bearings before each sprint, but those were short rides in controlled circumstances.