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Feed Your Skate Bearings
by Cliff Chi of Sonic Sports
Cliff Chi, the owner of
Sonic Sports, talks
about lubricants for skate bearings, including the difference between
grease and oil based lubricants, and the difference between petroleum
based and synthetic lubricants.
Skating with unlubricated bearings is like driving a car
with the parking brake on. You'll be expending a lot of
energy but you won't get very far. Lubricating your
bearings is the easiest thing you can do to boost your
speed and skating fun.
Oil vs. Grease
There are basically two types of bearing lubricants: oil
and grease.
Oil has two components: base oil and additives. The
base oil is either synthetic or petroleum. Additives are
blended with the base oil to give the oil certain
properties such as corrosion resistance or oxidation
inhibition. Bearings lubricated with oil will spin faster
because oil is thinner and has less resistance than
grease. On the downside, oil does not last as long as
grease so your bearings will require more frequent
lubrication.
Grease has three components: base oil, thickener, and additives. Note that oil and
grease both share the components of base oil and additives. The difference
between an oil and grease is that grease has a thickener. The thickener makes
grease easier to retain in the bearing, provides a better barrier to contaminants,
and adheres better to the bearing surfaces. Since grease is thicker than oil, it
as greater resistance, which means slower bearing spin.
Petroleum-Based vs. Synthetic
Petroleum-based lubricants are made from refined crude oil
and contain impurities, which cannot be removed. Synthetic
lubricants are man-made. They are blended from various
chemicals and have molecules that are uniform in weight
and shape. Due to their uniform molecular structure,
synthetic lubricants have the following advantages:
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FASTER - Synthetic lubricants are more slippery than
petroleum-based lubricants. The uniform length of synthetic
lubricant polymers allows them to slide more easily over one
another. The result is reduced friction and a faster spinning
bearing.
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LONGER - Synthetic lubricants have a higher heat of
vaporization (600 degrees F) than petroleum-based
lubricants (350 degrees F). Synthetic lubricants run
smoother and longer at all temperatures whereas
petroleum-based lubricants form deposits at high
temperatures and solidify at low temperatures. If you use
petroleum-based lubricants, your bearings will eventually
"gum up" so you'll have to skate harder and spend more
time degreasing your bearings.
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STRONGER - Synthetic lubricants have greater film strength
(3000 psi) than their petroleum counterparts (500 psi). This
means that synthetic oil is less likely to be pushed out from
between two metal surfaces where there's a lot of pressure.
Greater film strength protects bearing parts better.
Recommendations
Although synthetic lubricants are more
expensive than petroleum-based
varieties, the performance advantages
far exceed their costs.
When you're looking for that competitive edge, a synthetic lubricant can help. The
only time I don't recommend a synthetic lubricant is when you're on the opposite
team.
About the author...
Cliff Chi is the founder and owner of
Sonic Sports,
a Southern California company specializing in
inline skating accessories. Sonic has produced many
innovative products, including the award-winning
Gripz skate tool, which has been displayed
at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City.
Sonic's product line includes lubricants, cleaners, hop-up kits,
hockey supplies, aggressive supplies, and a variety of skate
tools.
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