I just ordered a new old stock Ritchey SuperLogic bottom bracket, its a bit late to think about it now, but do you think the grease inside the sealed bearings will be still alright after all these years? It could be 30 years old at this point
by Boiiiiiiiiiiiiil
2 Comments
The grease may have, depending on its formulation, hardened. It might still be fine. If the grease has gone hard, you can probably pop the seals off the bearings, flush them with a solvent, and inject some fresh grease.
It’s unlikely that the bearings are worn or damaged but there’s a good chance the grease is dried out and no good, depending on how old and how they were stored. That said, if stored correctly grease doesn’t have a notable shelf life.. I’ve seen cans from the 50s opened that would have been judged acceptable for use. In the Navy we would have to have a “lube tech” examine “expired” grease and clear it for another year but that really wasn’t necessary, it was just the way the system is designed. To be clear, we weren’t using 50 year old grease in the Navy, Maybe 5-10 years past expiration in some cases (different equipment used different types of grease, some of it not used as frequently). The 50 year old stuff is what I’ve seen in the garages of relatives after they passed on.