Hot take: watching a mechanic in Cincinnati rebuild a hub changed how I look at grease

I was killing time at a shop in Cincinnati last month waiting for a part and this old guy was rebuilding a Shimano hub. He scooped out the old grease with his finger, smelled it, then tossed it. I asked why and he said if it smells like acid or has a burnt smell the bearings are toast. I never thought about grease that way before. I always just packed bearings until they looked full and called it done. Now I check the color and smell before I even bother cleaning anything. Has anyone else ever had a bearing fail because of bad grease you couldn't see just from looking at it?

3 comments

3 Comments

felix82418d ago

Man that old guy in Cincinnati really knew what he was doing... I started sniffing my grease after I had a wheel bearing lock up on my old pickup on the interstate. Scared me bad. Now I always go by smell first - if it's sour or vinegary I pull the bearings right away even if the grease looks perfect. Saved me on a boat trailer last fall too. That little trick is worth its weight in gold honestly.

danielhenderson1mo ago

Sniffed grease in my truck's front diff last year after a muddy trip and got that sour smell. Pulled the bearings and found pitting I never would have caught just looking at the grease color. Now I do a quick sniff check every time I open a hub or diff. Saves a lot of headache later.

luna8911mo ago

That old mechanic in Cincinnati sounds like he knew his stuff. Three years ago I pulled apart my trailer hubs and the grease looked fine but had this weird vinegary smell. Turns out water got in somehow and the bearings were already starting to pit. A quick sniff test saved me from a blowout on the highway later that summer. It's amazing how much you can learn just from paying attention to the small stuff like that.