Stainless bearings

[#ARRMArcfanboy4life]

I was looking into getting a new set of bearings (my old set have rusted solid). I was looking into the jims bearings sets because they have the ability to do bearing for the hot racing hubs (I have a set of those hubs). I saw they had stainless steel bearings of the same thing, double the price. So I was wondering are there any advantages of using stainless steel over normal steel? If I was to not do maintenance on my car after it got wet would the rust solid? Would they be usable if I were to soak them in water for 24hrs and then put them on the shelf (without maintenance)? Will they last twice as long to make up for the price difference?

 

[jkflow]

Do not get stainless, they are too soft. Get a doubleset of standard or if you have way too much money go ceramic, overkill for a basher though imho.
Why double? Switch out when they start going bad, you can always clean them as well.

Jim's and Fasteddy are probably the most common. I actually prefer the Avid line but full list of vendors below.


https://jimsbearings.com/
https://www.avidrc.com/
https://trbrc.com/
https://www.acerracing.com/
https://www.fasteddybearings.com/
https://www.vxb.com/Default.asp
https://www.bocabearings.com/

 

[Monster Dork]

For a meaningful discussion about bearings, you can't say "steel vs stainless." You need to say something more like 4140 vs 440. Precision rating (ABEC) and hardness matter. If your bearings got ruined because they rusted, I'd say that greased bearings are better than anything you've been running, regardless of what they're made of!

 

[BurninTrees]

I just finished cleaning and swapping bearings in my HR aluminum hubs for my EXB. Went with Fast Eddy. Pulled the shields on the new bearings, and them let sit in acetone to remove the factory oil. Then repacked with Parktools wheel bearing grease.

You don't want to soak them in water, soak in a solvent solution instead.

 

[Clubin]

A little maintenance goes a long way.

 

[BurnTheMartyr]

I just finished cleaning and swapping bearings in my HR aluminum hubs for my EXB. Went with Fast Eddy. Pulled the shields on the new bearings, and them let sit in acetone to remove the factory oil. Then repacked with Parktools wheel bearing grease.

You don't want to soak them in water, soak in a solvent solution instead.

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Do you use grease because you play in the water? Or do you get a noticeablely longer lifespan out of the bearings?

 

[BurninTrees]

I try to keep my RC's dry, messing with rusting parts is no fun. Grease stays inside the bearings better than oil and help to keep dirt from getting inside and to the bearings. I would only recommend using an oil if you are really good about re-oiling the bearings regularly or drive your RC indoors only. Anything outdoors where dirt can be a factor, I would recommend using a grease.

 

[Monster Dork]

Oil is wonderful for eking out a little more speed for race cars and speed runs, where longevity and maintenance interval takes a back seat to performance. It comes at a price- constant servicing and frequent replacement. For bashing in the dirt, using a good, light bearing grease that is rated for the RPM our cars see will help you spend more time bashing and save you money from replacing bearings often. The high-end bicycle greases are perfect. Someone mentioned Park blue grease. I like Rock-N-Roll Grease from RWC. A $15 tube lasts a long time.