Flushing Bearings? 2025

shootermcbob reply :

How do I flush the bearings? do I just soak them in acetone?

I am going to take the plunge today and flush the bearings from a 200E citica.

Any tips, suggestions, etc ?

To be more specific, can someone give me a detailed report, from start to finish, of how you flush bearings?

Smallmouth Hunter reply :

There are lots of threads on this, just do a quick search and you will find great info on it.

Smallmouth Hunter reply :

Here's one from WRB

On 5/21/2013 at 11:34 AM, WRB said:
Put the bearings in a small glass jar of acetone with a lid and let sit over night.
Place the jar filled with acetone and the bearings in a larger cup with water so the jar floats, then use a ultra sonic tooth brush in the cup with water and run for 2 minutes. Empty out the acetone and repeat if needed until the acetone is clear. Place the bearings on a clean coth to dry out.
Next lubricate the bears lightly with a spray of BreakFree or other speed oil.
To check the bearing use a small diameter tapered wood dowel, Testors model paint brush works good, and spin the bearing. Should spin freely, no roughness.
If the bearing still spins roughly change it or try spinning the bearing in the lubricant using a Dremal motor with the wood dowel about 10 to 30 seconds. If that doesn't work it's time for new grade 5 bearings.
Tom

You don't have to do the ultrasonic thing, but I would soak overnight, then in the morning, take the bearing out and let it dry for a minute, then put it on a wood dowel or a pencil tip or even a cue tip, and spin it for 1 minute to stir up any leftover gunk. Then put it back in the acetone for maybe an hour longer.

Then take it out after an hour, spin it for a minute on the same wood dowel or whatever you used, and put it in rubbing alcohol (to remove the film left behind by acetone) for 30 mins or so. Then take it out, and let it dry for 5-10 mins on each side, and lubricate with 1 drop of your preferred oil.

Good luck.

shootermcbob reply :

On 1/12/2014 at 10:39 PM, aprw1 said:

Here's one from WRB

You don't have to do the ultrasonic thing, but I would soak overnight, then in the morning, take the bearing out and let it dry for a minute, then put it on a wood dowel or a pencil tip or even a cue tip, and spin it for 1 minute to stir up any leftover gunk. Then put it back in the acetone for maybe an hour longer.

Then take it out after an hour, spin it for a minute on the same wood dowel or whatever you used, and put it in rubbing alcohol (to remove the film left behind by acetone) for 30 mins or so. Then take it out, and let it dry for 5-10 mins on each side, and lubricate with 1 drop of your preferred oil.

Good luck.

Thanks for the help. I wondered about how long, and how to dry.

Trey Harpel reply :

50/50 simple green and water works just fine..

acetone is pretty harsh, but works along with CRC brake fluid..

Delaware Valley Tackle reply :

Over night soaking is over kill. Your betetr off to soak for 5min swish and swap fluid. Repeat until solvent remains clear. Dry well, lube and reinstall.

baluga reply :

Use a Bearing Blaster. Bearing Blaster is pretty neat tool. It has two parts one to hold the bearing in place and the other one is to cover the bearing edges which has a hole where you you stick in those CRC/Carb Cleaner/ nossle/straw.

Use a CRC brake cleaner w/ bearing blaster to blast out those gunk.

The bearing would be sandwich between the bottom plastic and the top plastic. Use your hand to press down the cover while the other hand sprays in the cleaner. The force of the compress cleaner will blast the cleaner into the bearing.

Should look like this when preparing.

I place the bearing plaster in a bowl catch all the excess cleaner when flushing the bearings.

adam32 reply :

I soak mine in acetone for a few minutes then use my air compressor and blow them out. I keep repeating this until i get all the old dirty grease blown out. Usually takes me five or six times to get it all blown out. I dont see how you can get grease out of a sealed bearing by just soaking it. When i get all the grease out and the bearing spins free and smooth i put one drop of oil on the shields and let it soak through the gaps.

This is just for the spool bearings. The pinion bearing and main shaft support bearing (citica e has a bushing) should be packed with grease. You can buy a small bearing packer to get grease into shielded bearings.

If you use a compressor make sure it has a good filter so your not blowing moisture and contaminates into your bearings. The little cans of compressed air will work also.

shootermcbob reply :

Thanks for all the replys. When you guys say dry them, what does that mean? Let them air dry?

Jaheff reply :

On 1/13/2014 at 7:22 AM, shootermcbob said:
Thanks for all the replys. When you guys say dry them, what does that mean? Let them air dry?

or air compressor.

0119 reply :

On 1/13/2014 at 3:00 AM, baluga said:

Use a Bearing Blaster. Bearing Blaster is pretty neat tool. It has two parts one to hold the bearing in place and the other one is to cover the bearing edges which has a hole where you you stick in those CRC/Carb Cleaner/ nossle/straw.

Use a CRC brake cleaner w/ bearing blaster to blast out those gunk.

The bearing would be sandwich between the bottom plastic and the top plastic. Use your hand to press down the cover while the other hand sprays in the cleaner. The force of the compress cleaner will blast the cleaner into the bearing.

Should look like this when preparing.

I place the bearing plaster in a bowl catch all the excess cleaner when flushing the bearings.

Where did you find this fine contraption? Auto parts store maybe........?

baluga reply :

On 1/13/2014 at 7:39 AM, 119 said:
Where did you find this fine contraption? Auto parts store maybe........?

Got it from online store.. just do a search on bearing blaster..like rpmrcproducts.com

bootytrain reply :

I've done the overnight acetone soak, the bearings do spin a long time but are also louder. Wouldn't it be better to remove the shields before you soak?

Smallmouth Hunter reply :

The solvent will chemically remove it from the metal so it still cleans it out when the shields are on, but it probably would be best to remove the shields.

Goose52 reply :

On 1/13/2014 at 11:07 AM, baluga said:
Got it from online store.. just do a search on bearing blaster..like rpmrcproducts.com

NIFTY tool. Looks like I have an order to place today...

EDIT: Order placed !

.ghoti. reply :

Acetone and lighter fluid both work very well, but both are toxic, highly flammable, and they stink. Simple green works nicely, is biodegradable and smells pleasant. Get the shields off, if you can. A 50% solution is good enough. Soak and swish for about 5 minutes. Repeat with fresh simple green. Rinse with boiling water, and air dry before applying the lube of your choice.

Many people make way too much of this. I've read too may comments about this solvent or that solvent or the other solvent being the best because they leave no residue. Well, there ain't no such thing as a solvent which leaves no residue behind. Whatever you use will leave some residue behind. Don't worry about it. Just get your bearings as clean as you can, lube them properly, and go fishing.

I used the bearing blaster with both carb cleaner and brake cleaner; and it does a good job. But, you'll be using toxic, flammable chemicals, and you'll have to use it outdoors, with rubber gloves and eye protection, if you're smart about it. The stuff flies everywhere.

0119 reply :

On 1/13/2014 at 9:24 PM, Goose52 said:

NIFTY tool. Looks like I have an order to place today...

EDIT: Order placed !

Ditto

shootermcbob reply :

On 1/14/2014 at 12:39 AM, .ghoti. said:

Acetone and lighter fluid both work very well, but both are toxic, highly flammable, and they stink. Simple green works nicely, is biodegradable and smells pleasant. Get the shields off, if you can. A 50% solution is good enough. Soak and swish for about 5 minutes. Repeat with fresh simple green. Rinse with boiling water, and air dry before applying the lube of your choice.

Many people make way too much of this. I've read too may comments about this solvent or that solvent or the other solvent being the best because they leave no residue. Well, there ain't no such thing as a solvent which leaves no residue behind. Whatever you use will leave some residue behind. Don't worry about it. Just get your bearings as clean as you can, lube them properly, and go fishing.

I used the bearing blaster with both carb cleaner and brake cleaner; and it does a good job. But, you'll be using toxic, flammable chemicals, and you'll have to use it outdoors, with rubber gloves and eye protection, if you're smart about it. The stuff flies everywhere.

Thanks for the input.

Regarding the simple green, I have some, but it comes in a spray bottle similar to windex, 409, Fantastic and those types of cleaners. Is that what you and several others are referring to when you say a 50/50 mix with water???

J Francho reply :

Since I just got off the phone with Gary, and recommended the stuff...

Try this, for just about everything. I presoak greased bearings in this, and finish with acetone. I've found it is non corrosive to just about every plastic I've come across. It's great on those nasty, gunked up parts. Use straight from the bottle, but WEAR GLOVES! It's rough on the skin.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_166923-24296-PS48532_0__?productId=3377990

.ghoti. reply :

On 1/14/2014 at 2:25 AM, shootermcbob said:

Thanks for the input.

Regarding the simple green, I have some, but it comes in a spray bottle similar to windex, 409, Fantastic and those types of cleaners. Is that what you and several others are referring to when you say a 50/50 mix with water???

That's the stuff shooter. You can also use it full strength, but wear gloves. Prolonged exposure will make your hands peel; just like you get a sunburn. 50% doesn't seem to bother my skin.

I'm gonna try what John recommended as well.

shootermcbob reply :

On 1/14/2014 at 3:09 AM, .ghoti. said:

That's the stuff shooter. You can also use it full strength, but wear gloves. Prolonged exposure will make your hands peel; just like you get a sunburn. 50% doesn't seem to bother my skin.

I'm gonna try what John recommended as well.

Thank you.

J Francho reply :

The stuff I linked to works great on rubber floor mats and gets white letters on tires looking new, too.

shootermcbob reply :

On 1/14/2014 at 3:21 AM, J Francho said:
The stuff I linked to works great on rubber floor mats and gets white letters on tires looking new, too.

Good to know! Multi-purpose is good.

J Francho reply :

I discovered the stuff when my dad used it to clean the scum off the hull of my aluminum boat. It was literally a spray on, wipe off ordeal.

21farms reply :

i killed two birds with one stone. bought my wife an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner under the pretense of "i want your diamond ring to really sparkle". then, when she's not looking, i steal it way, fill it with 100% simple green and, voila! wife is happy, i'm happy.

QUAKEnSHAKE reply :

On 1/13/2014 at 3:00 AM, baluga said:

Use a Bearing Blaster. Bearing Blaster is pretty neat tool. It has two parts one to hold the bearing in place and the other one is to cover the bearing edges which has a hole where you you stick in those CRC/Carb Cleaner/ nossle/straw.

Use a CRC brake cleaner w/ bearing blaster to blast out those gunk.

The bearing would be sandwich between the bottom plastic and the top plastic. Use your hand to press down the cover while the other hand sprays in the cleaner. The force of the compress cleaner will blast the cleaner into the bearing.

Should look like this when preparing.

I place the bearing plaster in a bowl catch all the excess cleaner when flushing the bearings.

We must shop at the same store spray, bowl, blaster this brake clearner is acetone

Loop_Dad reply :

Reading this thread made me wonder if I did correctly when I did my reels. Is the grease in bearing dark colored usually? Will acetone clearly get dirty when you flush out factory grease? I wasn't paying attention how dirty it was, but didn't notice the color...

Jaheff reply :

On 1/14/2014 at 11:58 AM, Loop_Dad said:
Reading this thread made me wonder if I did correctly when I did my reels. Is the grease in bearing dark colored usually? Will acetone clearly get dirty when you flush out factory grease? I wasn't paying attention how dirty it was, but didn't notice the color...

The acetone will get kinda milky/cloudy like, and you'll notice grease floaties. I've never had the acetone turn colors before.

Delaware Valley Tackle reply :

Colored lubes like Hot Sauce etc will dye the solvent but it's those white flakes that are the emulsifying grease and oil. I'm also using Perfect Solution upon JF's recommendation. Good stuff.

Goose52 reply :

On 1/13/2014 at 9:24 PM, Goose52 said:

NIFTY tool. Looks like I have an order to place today...

EDIT: Order placed !

Got my Bearing Blaster in and used it for the first time today. I have to give it a pretty solid thumbs up. Perhaps it won't get a bearing any cleaner than soaking them...but the pressurized brake cleaner going through the bearing seems to flush them out faster. I had been soaking a pretty small bearing (3x7x3) for a while and couldn't get it to spin. Put it in the bearing blaster - gave it a couple shots of brake cleaner, and then spiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnn it went...

As baluga mentioned, I put the blaster in a small bowl to catch the run-off and didn't have any escape. You DO want to give short blasts with the brake cleaner or you potentially can have solvent come back up the port for the application straw.

baluga reply :

I'm glad it worked pretty well for you Goose!

s freud reply :

Is it a problem if you have two bearings of the same looking size and mix them up when putting them back after cleaning? If so, how do you keep them straight when putting them in the solvent.?

J Francho reply :

They either fit or they don't. If they are the same size, then there is no issue.

Delaware Valley Tackle reply :

I've seen guys spin test a bearing to see which direction it spins best in and install them that way. Myself, if a bearing is "directional" it gets tossed.

J Francho reply :

I made a left turn once, when I should have made a right turn. It took me a few minutes to get my bearings straight.

Delaware Valley Tackle reply :

Think NASCAR: Drive Fast Turn Left. You'll get there eventually

.RM. reply :

On 1/22/2014 at 4:00 AM, Delaware Valley Tackle said:
Think NASCAR: Drive Fast Turn Left. You'll get there eventually

Varoom, varoom, varoom....

s freud reply :

After watching tacklejunkie's video on cleaning (which was great btw) , he uses ardent reel cleaner for his entire side plate for cleaning his one way bearing. Is that what you all use? Acetone would damage the plastic cover right?

J Francho reply :

I remove the one way bearing and use Perfect Solution to degrease.

Delaware Valley Tackle reply :

On 1/31/2014 at 11:17 PM, J Francho said:
I remove the one way bearing and use Perfect Solution to degrease.

Yup & I do the same for the press fit ones that don't come out.

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