New 2013 KTM 250SX setup advice

mynewcr250 wrote:

i did not grease mine either. just cleaned and re-greased at 11 hours. not much grease in the linkage or swing arm, the steering head had...

i did not grease mine either. just cleaned and re-greased at 11 hours. not much grease in the linkage or swing arm, the steering head had a decent amount.

i think a lot of guys harp on the OEM's for not greasing things to their liking...but who actually knows what is optimal? what is too little/too much grease? does all that excess grease you pack in there do anything other than stick to everything but the bearing needles?

btw, to those guys that like to use Bel Ray grease, keep in mind its an aluminum complex based grease. very low compatibility level with other greases. if you use bel ray and you're not cleaning out the old grease in the bearings fully and with solvent, there is a chance you're doing more harm than good. KTM uses Bike Grease 2000 in some areas which is a calcium based grease (they don't specify which kind though so bel ray may/may not be compatible...) and they also use skf LGHB 2 which, again, is a calcium based grease. i personally just use the "water proof marine" grease available at wal mart. its cheap, its water proof, its sticky, and its a lithium complex grease. you can see using the chart that there really isnt a whole lot of incompatibility using a lithium complex grease and even though we dont know what kind of calcium based grease the motorex stuff is, we know that it doesnt matter since we're using a lithium based grease. the walmart grease (or any waterproof lithium complex grease) is a win/win. pick your grease wisely...



"Figure 1. Relative Compatibility Rating
B = Borderline C = Compatible I = Incompatible
Note: This chart is a general guide to grease compatibility. Specific properties of greases can dictate suitability for use. Testing should be conducted to determine if greases are compatible.

Compatibility of grease mixtures is typically categorized as follows:

Compatible – The properties of the mixture are similar to those of the individual grease.

Incompatible – The properties of the mixture are significantly different than those of the individual greases.

Borderline – The properties of the mixture may or may not be acceptable, depending on the nature of the application."

source link: http://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/1865/grease-compatibility

dirtbikersa wrote:

Wow that is interesting. But does it really make much of a difference in a linkage? I can understand if there is a high work load...

Wow that is interesting. But does it really make much of a difference in a linkage? I can understand if there is a high work load or a heat load on the bearing then using the correct grease is important.