Best lubricants for bushings and ball joints?

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ChrisRHC

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I use Lucas Red N' Tacky. Great for wheel bearings, ball joints, and the bushings on my skid steer.

Project farm on youtube did a test a couple of years ago and found that red n tacky was, at the time, hands down the best "overall" grease if you want to only use 1 type.

Although not a "marine" grease, it is also extremely resistant to rinsing away, it takes a direct blast with a pressure washer, and even then there will still be at least a thin layer of grease left.

Good stuff.
 

kenh

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In a perfect world you would use a separate grease for sliding (bushings) and rolling (ball and roller bearings). Most of the common greases are compatible with each other. John Deere is notorious for using a grease that is not compatible. They sell more parts that way! haha For a sliding application a grease with molybdenum is preferred. The moly will coat and adhere to the steel and provide some protection for a limited amount of time when the grease goes away. Below is a chart of grease compatibility.

Ken

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C= compatible I= incompatible B= borderline
 
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Schurkey

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This is the only Project Farm grease video I found that involves Lucas Red 'n' Tacky.

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Compares Lucas Red 'n' Tacky to Wal-Mart SuperTech "general purpose" grease.
The Lucas is LB/GC rated. The "General purpose" grease does not seem to have those ratings. (i.e., cheap crap.)

Not really a fair test. A "decent" grease compared to a bottom-feeder grease. OTOH, an excellent, multi-faceted study of how "grease is not all the same".

There's so many different brands and varieties of "red" grease that I'm wondering who MAKES the grease, and who buys in bulk and then PACKAGES the grease in their own private-label containers.

Let's see Project Farm compare Lucas Red, Valvoline Red as pictured previously, Valvoline "synthetic" red, and seven other "red" greases.
 
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Pinger

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Another rule of thumb (but to be strictly accurate it needs to be calculated using an equation that includes bearing dimensions) for the (ball/roller) bearings we are likely to encounter. NLGI#1 for speed range 3000 - 6000rpm. NLGI#2 for 0 - 3000rpm.

For those who insist (or have no choice) on using different greases in different applications these are a good idea. As a lubricant supplier, one of the things I try to do is simplify customers' inventory. If a product can be found to replace two (or more) existing products then I'll recommend it. The reason is that it reduces the possibility of misapplication. Sounds trivial on the face of it but the repercussions can be serious.

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joeblow867

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I use Lucas Marine grease for everything.



And again, you don't know what shops use which, so just tell shops not to lube any zerks. You almost have to watch and be the enforcer b/co these high school kids will just grease stuff up w/o remembering what you told them.
With most things being non-greaseable these days, I doubt the lube guys are greasing much of anything. Especially the high school kids, Im sure nobody even taught them what a grease gun is.
 
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I have a 1998 Chevrolet Silverado Z71 and I am just curious as to which is the best/preferred lubricant/grease to use on bushings and ball joints...
For me, I've always used MYSTIK Red tacky Grease, and a grease gun... but that's just my personal Preference. The real key to maintaining your front suspension is REGULAR Service intervals. In my opinion, It doesn't hurt to give the whole truck a lube job everytime I change the oil... Yet again, Personal Preference. Has never let me down, Though. My '94 has factory upper and lower ball joints and Idler/ Pitman arms. truck has always been greased every oil change.
 

pressureangle

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I have a 1998 Chevrolet Silverado Z71 and I am just curious as to which is the best/preferred lubricant/grease to use on bushings and ball joints...
With automotive stuff like u-joints and ball joints, it's really more important how often you grease them rather than what you grease them with. Be sure the rubber boots on all your joints are in good condition, they are what keeps the grease where it needs to be during operation. All that said, I use only Mobil Delvac Xtreme grease unless it's boat trailer wheel bearings, splined shafts etc. that specify a particular lubricant because of their specific operating environment.

The brochure is a typical sales-gobbledygook of unclear information, but I did a lot of homework before I settled on it. Hey, gotta pick something, somewhere.

 

kenh

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One tidbit about boat trailer bearings. You are running down the road to your favorite lake. The tires and wheel hubs are hot. You back right into the lake and unload you boat. No problem...right???
Well, those hot hubs, when you back into the water, cool and as they cool they suck water past the seal into the hub. You say "but I have bearing buddies" on the hubs. I hate bearing buddies. They increase the amount of heat in the hub as the hub is packed tight full of grease and that grease is churning and making more heat further compounding the problem. That extra heat also shortens the life of the grease and seals.

When you get to the lake, grab a bucket of water and dump it on each hub to cool it down.

Ken
 

Schurkey

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If the hubs are hot, and you don't have trailer brakes, you need bigger hubs with bigger bearings.

I've got a lightweight boat, (18' Sanger flatbottom V-drive, 454) the trailer has four wheels each with ordinary automotive wheel bearings. I can tow anywhere, and the hubs are about ambient temp when I arrive. They don't feel warm at all.
 
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