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Lubricating rear shock linkage??

andirsv1

andirsv1

Joined Jul 2007
3K Posts | 0+
West Lothian, Scotland
Alright guys......:thumbup

I'll be removing the shock bolt sometime this week to get into a hugger screw that i snapped the head off (need to drill the b*stard out!) and wondered if, while i'm there i can lubricate the shock linkage? Is it easy, what's involved and what grease/lubrication should be used? I've read all about keeping it lubed but haven't done it and wouldn't know exactly where to start!!!

Merci guys!!!:thumbup
 
Andi,

I'd recommend you strip out the whole linkage and repack the bearings with grease and replace the seals.

You don't want this to happen to yours - Click Me
 
I agree, strip it out and lube the whole lot, if you need to replace the bearings and seals etc.
It will save you alot of future aggravation plus once it's done you will notice you get alot of more feel from the back end.
Personally I do the job once a year, it's well worth the time and effort
 
amb67 said:
Andi,

I'd recommend you strip out the whole linkage and repack the bearings with grease and replace the seals.

You don't want this to happen to yours - Click Me
Click to expand...

OOOHHHH.......that sounds technical buddy!! Ok.......when you say strip out the whole thing, what's entailed in that??? Also where can i get seals?? and lastly bud, what type of grease is best???
 
Whatever anyone says, don't use KY.

Apparently an old mucker called Rex, who had sod all techno knowledge, just took the lot apart, cleaned it with parrafin, then dried it, greased it with Castrol HT Grease, then re assembled the lot.

Honestly, he had a dodgy set of spaniards, half a dozen sockets, and just got all the torque settings from a site like this........read the workshop guides as found on this site, and just DIY.....I am gonna do it before Winter this year (They have only been done 2000 miles ago) and it was peez easy then.:pirate

They just dry out, road *****, salt, whatever, just re pack them with grease (after cleaning) and Gertrudes your Uncles fanny.
 
Last edited:
Haha!!...........cheers Ian, i'll be giving it a go sometime this week (hopefully)! Is it just standard grease that's used, or copper etc.....
 
andirsv said:
Haha!!...........cheers Ian, i'll be giving it a go sometime this week (hopefully)! Is it just standard grease that's used, or copper etc.....
Click to expand...

Ignore that reply Iain mate, just read your post properly and you've already told me.........**** that i am........:devious
 
Mate.

For the bearings I used Castrol HT grease.....standard stuff from the motor factors, it was what I had in my garage, however I have heard since that graphite or "MOLY" might be the stuff to use on the "roller" bearings in the suspension linkage (It gives better mechanical protection)

A quick look at the workshop manual, or a dog and bone to the Aprilia stealer may help.................................................does that help?:exclamation
 
Oh yeah forgot, grease, castrol HT would work, or LM grease.
Personally I use silkolene pro RG2 grease.
 
Now you have me thinking....LM or HT.......LM is Low Melting I think, HT is High Temp, prob same stuff, different label.

I am sure mine is HT, but I can't be arsed to go to the garage and check...(Too much vino), it could be LM, but I am sure it's all the same stuff........HELP:dunno

HT & LM is used in bearing applications as it does not break down under pressure or temperaure.......eeeekkkkk
 
Not sure how much difference it would make with LM and HT
I'm sure one of the more mechanically minded on here will know for sure.
 
Update

Just looked, from the Castrol site


Castrol LM Grease

Lithium based, high melting point grease, specifically designed as a wheel bearing grease for use over a wide range of temperatures. Also suitable for general purpose applications.

Here is the link to the Castrol product guide thingy.

Castrol Link
 
Viper...Rockdoctor.......thanks very much, i'll definately give it a go. I'll get the seals and bearings ordered tomorrow.

Thanks again guys.................:thumbup
 
I use lithium grease because of it's waterproofing properties.

The seals on the links are pretty bad at keeping water out and normal grease just turns to a rusty mush after a while if water gets in.

If you have never lubed the bearings before it's likely to be rusty in the back one. Aprilia seem to have an embargo on grease during assembly and they only have the grease the bearing manufacturer used to build the bearing.
 
rockdoctor said:
Simply bearings would do the bearings and seals, the links are:

For the seals

http://simplybearings.co.uk/shop/p24320/18x24x4mm+R21+NBR+Oil+Seal/product_info.html?osCsid=2aab77836cf7d5425e2de53b894ce2a5

And for the bearings

http://simplybearings.co.uk/shop/p8254/HK1812+Drawn+Cup+Type+Needle+Roller+Bearing+With+Two+Open+Ends+18x24x12mm/product_info.html

I hope I got those links right!
Click to expand...

Rockdoctor mate.........sorry to be a pain in the arse but are those the actual bearings and seals i need or was that just a link the the site??????

TA.............:thumbup
 
Andi,

I may have some laying around mate.

Once you get it all apart give us a shout and I'll pop them in the post to you.

Pretty sure I have 2 bearings and 2 seals left.

Alan
 

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