Bearings have me Perplexed

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cadman
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Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by cadman » Mon Jun 25, 2018 10:14 am

So I go to clean a Pflueger spinning reel (1990's) for a friend of mine. I do the regular clean and start to check the two bearings in the reel. One on handle side and one opposite side. They look dirty and do spin some. I go to clean the bearings in my ultrasonic cleaner with naphtha. Take them out they barely spin. Another cleaning take them out and barely spin. Run them on a drill in naphtha and they still barely spin. What's the deal with that. So for the hell of it I put some oil in both bearings. They now spin fine. I have never had this happen before. So I am very confused on what is going on. Are these bearings so precision that they need oil to spin? I 've never experienced anything like this. Any thoughts from all of you gurus?

Schlag
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by Schlag » Tue Jun 26, 2018 7:04 am

Its probably due to several years of neglect. The lubricant (oil / grease) separated and the filler material dried/burned up and also probably got contaminated with dirt. This may have caused abrasion around the raceway (rough polishing effect), which causes the balls to skid and not rotate properly. Most likely there is spalling / false brinelling marks on the ball path races. Moisture in the bearing will attack the bearing especially where the ball contacts the race of the bearing - there may be some corrosion inside the bearing. Also, I have no clue what shape the cage is in, which can also get damaged.

There's more starting torque created when the balls slide (not rotate) against the race & cage/separator. Adding oil would help reduce this friction & starting torque, but not eliminate all of it.

It's just simple commodity bearing that's pumped out in large volumes.....

Hope this helps.

ShimanoFan
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by ShimanoFan » Tue Jun 26, 2018 9:57 am

If the bearings do not clean up replace them.

If the balls and races have rust on them they won't clean up nor go silent once cleaned. Replace, replace, replace and move on!
Why is there a concerted effort of hate? And why is it allowed?

cadman
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by cadman » Tue Jun 26, 2018 6:04 pm

Shimano Fan:
Yes I did replace the bearings.

Schlag:
Thanks for explaining the possibility of what is going on with the bearings

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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by Slazmo » Tue Jun 26, 2018 9:39 pm

Cadman.

The bearings have a plastic or metal ball retainer?

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PaBass75
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by PaBass75 » Thu Jun 28, 2018 10:49 am

I was wondering the same thing..
If they've got a polymer cage, the acetone can react with it, melting the surface making it sticky.
That'd explain what's happening here. Otherwise.. No clue.

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cndbasshunter
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by cndbasshunter » Thu Jun 28, 2018 1:15 pm

Need you some speed spool hi-speed custom spool speed bearings :lol: :oops:

cadman
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by cadman » Thu Jun 28, 2018 8:19 pm

It looks like the cage is metal. I did not use Acetone, I used Naphtha. Acetone is a lot stronger than Naphtha which is lighter fluid. That's all the info I have.

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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by ShimanoFan » Fri Jun 29, 2018 11:24 am

Good old mineral spirits works fine too.
Why is there a concerted effort of hate? And why is it allowed?

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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by Slazmo » Fri Jun 29, 2018 8:55 pm

The bearing cages could've tightened by lateral pressure and if they were plastic they could've deformed.

Running metal caged bearings dry is a no go because of the added friction points - oil being the modifier and why the bearing performs when "wet".

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BARRAMANIAC
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by BARRAMANIAC » Sun Jul 01, 2018 6:11 pm

cndbasshunter wrote:Need you some speed spool hi-speed custom spool speed bearings :lol: :oops:
] And you to can have a reel that casts a whole spool of line, but will be the noisiest reel on the water while doing it. :lol: :lol: :lol:

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LgMouthGambler
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by LgMouthGambler » Mon Jul 02, 2018 10:38 am

BARRAMANIAC wrote:
cndbasshunter wrote:Need you some speed spool hi-speed custom spool speed bearings :lol: :oops:
] And you to can have a reel that casts a whole spool of line, but will be the noisiest reel on the water while doing it. :lol: :lol: :lol:
Apparently its better than a DC reels casting ability. :lol: I always wonder if its like 20ft of 8lb mono, tied to 25lb mono in the middle, then back to the 8lb at the end,. :whistle:
<")))><{

cadman
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by cadman » Tue Jul 03, 2018 5:54 am

cndbasshunter wrote:Need you some speed spool hi-speed custom spool speed bearings :lol: :oops:
I would have put in new bearings once I knew the original bearings didn't spin well, after they were cleaned. However, this was not my reel and my friend didn't want to spend $20-$30 for bearings. I still wonder how the reel would have been with new bearings.
Last edited by cadman on Tue Jul 03, 2018 6:13 am, edited 1 time in total.

cadman
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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by cadman » Tue Jul 03, 2018 6:11 am

Slazmo wrote:The bearing cages could've tightened by lateral pressure and if they were plastic they could've deformed.

Running metal caged bearings dry is a no go because of the added friction points - oil being the modifier and why the bearing performs when "wet".

Don't know what happened after cleaning. Maybe the deep cleaning, loosened up some deposits and the deposits didn't fully flush from the cage. Also maybe the bearings and the cages have some rust on them and by me adding oil it made them spin easier. What I think I will do is get him 2 new bearings, and then take the old bearings apart and look at them thru a magnifying glass just for the hell of it to see what is inside. Curious minds need to know.

I never run bearings dry. Don't know if his reel was even ever serviced.

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Re: Bearings have me Perplexed

Post by nctrucker » Fri Jul 06, 2018 12:08 pm

i managed to change spool bearings on a flea market chronarch 100 i got so cheap i bought another setup from the guy($10 or $15 for the 100a and a shimano crucial rod). i had some abec bearings i put in it. day and night difference! but a year later the performance has lessened. i think another better quality set will return the speed and distance. i THINK i put in abec 5's but honestly don't remember putting any oil on them.

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