Tech Tip

Goose Grease was the recommended grease to use with Grease Guard bearings, but unfortunately it is no longer made. The following tips may be helpful in finding a substitute. Proceed with caution though, fooling around with different grease likely voids any warranty you may have on your components and Cunninghambikes.com provides these tips without warranty of any kind.

It is important to avoid any grease that could react with Grease Guard seals. Testing by putting a prospective grease in contact with a GG seal for an extended time and measuring for dimensional change is how to determine compatibility. No change in dimensions passes this test. If a grease passes and it a has excellent high pressure performance and water resistance it is probably OK to use.  Ideal viscosity is NLGI 1.5 but up to NLGI 2.0 works acceptably.

Pro Gold's EPX Lithium Complex Grease with MFR for is an exceptional grease in terms of extreme pressure performance and water resistance. It also seems to be compatible with the seals. It is a little on the thick side at NLGI 2.0 but this hasn't been a problem for users that have tried it.

Lubriplate 105 is another potential option. It is quite "thin bodied" with a NLGI of 0. (Goose Grease is NLGI 1)  Lubriplate's website doesn't disclose the ingredients for the grease. If after testing you find that the grease isn't causing problems with the seals, it should be okay.  This grease should be extra desirable in cold weather because its low viscosity will cause less rotating friction.

Once an acceptable grease is found, it is really important to flush the bearings with grease whenever they are exposed to water for maximum bearing life.