In this case, a Suzuki DR-Z 400. I'd be a lot happier with the design if the manufacturer supplied grease fittings on the rear suspension linkage, at least the swingarm bearings, but I suppose they have their reasons. And that leaves us with complete annual disassembly for inspection and lubrication, which the manufacturer recommends at a 7,500 mile interval.
I have not found any way to determine what type of grease the factory used at initial assembly so chemical compatibility is somewhat of a concern, probably not enough so for me to pull all of the seals and wash out all of the needle/roller bearings, that seems like an opportunity to do more harm than good.
This is an older low-miles very lightly used bike (2004, just under 7K miles, no visible wear associated with hard riding except it looks like it was dropped once necessitating handlebar replacement and a light bash from the brake pedal on the right case) otherwise the bike looks essentially unused and undamaged. It appears to have had two or three sets of tires at the most (came with a partially worn out set of spares, the ones I removed from the rims this week had a 2007 date code) so the bike probably has the original factory grease on the suspension linkage if any at all.
Chevron makes a 5% Moly that holds on heavy equipment linkage like nothing I've ever seen. This grease will take a pounding. It is almost impossible to wash off even if you are trying to, and the ability to hold up to shock loads is noticeable, even on track mounted hydraulic hammer linkage.
I can't back this up with anything except a few years of greasing heavy equipment but it seems like this might be a good choice for dual-sport motorcycle shafts and bearings as well, the load isn't that different from the pins and bushings on excavating equipment.
Thoughts?
I have not found any way to determine what type of grease the factory used at initial assembly so chemical compatibility is somewhat of a concern, probably not enough so for me to pull all of the seals and wash out all of the needle/roller bearings, that seems like an opportunity to do more harm than good.
This is an older low-miles very lightly used bike (2004, just under 7K miles, no visible wear associated with hard riding except it looks like it was dropped once necessitating handlebar replacement and a light bash from the brake pedal on the right case) otherwise the bike looks essentially unused and undamaged. It appears to have had two or three sets of tires at the most (came with a partially worn out set of spares, the ones I removed from the rims this week had a 2007 date code) so the bike probably has the original factory grease on the suspension linkage if any at all.
Chevron makes a 5% Moly that holds on heavy equipment linkage like nothing I've ever seen. This grease will take a pounding. It is almost impossible to wash off even if you are trying to, and the ability to hold up to shock loads is noticeable, even on track mounted hydraulic hammer linkage.
I can't back this up with anything except a few years of greasing heavy equipment but it seems like this might be a good choice for dual-sport motorcycle shafts and bearings as well, the load isn't that different from the pins and bushings on excavating equipment.
Thoughts?
