Google Groups no longer supports new Usenet posts or subscriptions. Historical content remains viewable.
Dismiss

What is the difference between white lithium and lithium grease.

3,803 views
Skip to first unread message

spinner

unread,
Jan 19, 2001, 8:15:22 AM1/19/01
to
I almost hate to ask a lube question, I have seen where this can lead.
:)

But seriously what is the difference, besides the color of course.

Lincoln

--
"It does not get any easier, you just go faster." - Greg Lemond


Sent via Deja.com
http://www.deja.com/

Mark

unread,
Jan 19, 2001, 12:24:23 PM1/19/01
to
It depends upon the brand. Some of the aerosols are 60% water by wgt;
some of the tubed materials are soaps and mineral oils. Use a search
engine to look up the brand, manufacturer, etc and find the MSDS for that
product. It will tell you the ingredients.
regards, mark

Dan Goldenberg

unread,
Jan 19, 2001, 1:25:33 PM1/19/01
to
Generally, white lithium grease will have some kind of whitening agent
in it, which allows you to more easily see if the grease is
contaminated.
Dan Goldenberg

Jim Adney

unread,
Jan 20, 2001, 6:35:18 PM1/20/01
to
spinner <linc...@my-deja.com> wrote:

>I almost hate to ask a lube question, I have seen where this can lead.
>:)
>
>But seriously what is the difference, besides the color of course.

Grease is a mixture of oil and a stiffening compound known as a
"soap." Soaps are compounds containing one of the alkali metals of
which lithium is one. Lithium based soaps make the most high temp
resistant soaps, so most greases available today are lithium based.
Most, but not all, lithium based greases are white or whitish.

In the past, greases made from calcium or sodium soaps were common,
but they are seldom found today.

The soap base is basically inert and serves only to dispense the oil
which is mixed in with it. All the lubricating properties, except the
overall viscosity, are a function of the oil and the additives which
have been added to it.

I know that there are companies out there who tell their customers not
to use lithium grease on their products, but there really can't be any
truth in this since the soap is inert and doesn't react with anything.
It may well be true that there are certain greases out there which DO
react adversely with the rubber seals on some parts, but the adverse
reaction is between the rubber and the oil, or the rubber and some
additive (unlikely, since the concentration is low.)

Since bicycle service is never high temp, there is no real reason to
use lithium grease here, but then again there is no reason not to.
Your only consideration should be whether it works well or not and
whether it costs too much. There are many excellent greases out there
and most of them can be bought for just a dollar a pound, or so.

-
-----------------------------------------------
Jim Adney jad...@vwtype3.org
Madison,Wisconsin USA
-----------------------------------------------

Default

unread,
Jan 21, 2001, 11:15:55 PM1/21/01
to

Jim Adney <jad...@vwtype3.org> writes:
> Since bicycle service is never high temp, there is no real reason to
> use lithium grease here, but then again there is no reason not to.
> Your only consideration should be whether it works well or not and
> whether it costs too much. There are many excellent greases out there
> and most of them can be bought for just a dollar a pound, or so.

I've been trying to use lubes that are essentially free.
I've had some success with leftover vegetable oil on the chain,
and I've been packing my hub and freewheel bearings with bacon
drippings.

So far, the lubes work fine, but I seem to be having more problems
with dogs. Or maybe that's just my imagination.

Henrik Münster

unread,
Jan 22, 2001, 6:50:05 PM1/22/01
to
Jim Adney <jad...@vwtype3.org> wrote:

> Grease is a mixture of oil and a stiffening compound known as a
> "soap." Soaps are compounds containing one of the alkali metals of
> which lithium is one. Lithium based soaps make the most high temp
> resistant soaps, so most greases available today are lithium based.
> Most, but not all, lithium based greases are white or whitish.
>
> In the past, greases made from calcium or sodium soaps were common,
> but they are seldom found today.
>
> The soap base is basically inert and serves only to dispense the oil
> which is mixed in with it. All the lubricating properties, except the
> overall viscosity, are a function of the oil and the additives which
> have been added to it.

I have a small box of Campagnolo grease from the eighties. It's
white, as most of you know. There is some oil on the bottom of the part
of the box, where I have already used the grease. Does that mean, that
the oil is "sweating" out of the grease leaving only the inert lithium
soap, so that the grease does not lubricate well anymore?
--
Med venlig hilsen
Henrik Münster
Esbjerg

Jim Adney

unread,
Jan 23, 2001, 11:20:10 PM1/23/01
to
hen...@muenster.dk (Henrik Münster) wrote:

> I have a small box of Campagnolo grease from the eighties. It's
>white, as most of you know. There is some oil on the bottom of the part
>of the box, where I have already used the grease. Does that mean, that
>the oil is "sweating" out of the grease leaving only the inert lithium
>soap, so that the grease does not lubricate well anymore?

Yes, or at least somewhat. Separation of the oil from the soap is the
way that grease is expected to lubricate. It is likely that there is
still plenty of oil still in there, however. In the future, you can
minimize this separation by leveling the grease in the container when
you are finished with it.

Once ALL the oil has migrated out of the grease, the remaining soap is
pretty hard, and grease in this condition is often described as "dried
up." It is clear that it is no longer a source of lubrication.

0 new messages