linkage question

[britishgas]

Will greasing my bikes linkage improve plush ness ,and what's the best way to do it ?

I clean my linkage bearings up with a small paint brush and some solvent(but mainly petrol!). Just watch the small needle bearings! They are much easier to clean if you do it on a regular basis. My friend actually presses the bearings out and cleans them then puts them back in! I'm at the point now that my wheel spindles and swingarm bolt slide out with ease, i then just wipe of excess old grease(which looks clean) and smear some new stuff around and job done!
It can be a boring job but a few quids worth of grease is better than buying bearing kits!
This is just the way i do it, once you get among it a few times you will find your own way! And nice clean lubricated linkage must perform better than one that is dirty an knackered! Oh and don't go mad with the pressure washer around bearings as it can displace the seals and wash the grease out!

[Jakobi]

As above. If done often its as easy as wipe it out, pack some new grease in. If they've started to go to crap you can clean with solvents, repack, and go again, or really if they're that nasty you're better off just replacing them and then going back to point a)! do it often..

[swazi_matt]

On a similar note, can anyone tell me the correct position for the bearings - how deep they need to be. does the o-ring seal need to also seal against the flat washers which would mean the o-rings will need to sit slightly proud of the linkage face.

Just conserned that i do not create more drag on the linkage than is absolutely necessary

[spooly]

iv just pressed my in last night and I was asking myself the same question. . I pushed um in fare enough so the baring seal wouldn't be rubbing the washer.. Don't know if this is correct but its done now.. the old kit had o rings I replaced with the new seals.. There was a debate on a different tread over oring vs seal.. I think myself the seals would keep more water and dirt out..

[Jakobi]

The o-rings are simple, and work so much better. Once you squish them in you have a large sealing surface vs a single lip of a traditional oil seal. Seal stiction isn't an issue in this application.