Njee20: i’m not comparing car bearings to those used on a bike i’m implying that car warranties are similar in that if you take your car to a garage after almost a year as there’s wire sticking out your tyre they’re going to say ‘wear and tear’ as you’ve been tanning your motor much the same as we hammer our bikes up and down mountains.
SimonfBarnes: so are you saying you can’t and never have regreased a bearing? don’t be ridiculous man! the seal got in there without being damaged so sure as hell you can remove it and re-insert it if you’re careful.
But yes you are right bearings are cheap (ish) and supposed to be maintenance free………for riding in California or Utah or somewhere like that without our mud where these bikes were designed. All i was trying to put across is that if you look after your bike and its components then they will last a lot longer.
Another example is a bike chain, do you leave your bike chain all sh1tty after a ride or do you clean it after every ride and then periodically run it through a degreaser bath?
Foxy, Yes a lot of companies do offer a lifetime warranty on their bearings because they know bearing inevitably screw up if not looked after. Marin started this all a few years back probably to help promote their full sus designs after a few years in the wilderness whilst watching Trek and Specialized really take off as mountainbiking became more for the masses and now several other companies have jumped on the band wagon. I remember getting the sales talk from bike shop about the lifetime bearing warranty myself. It is a very good idea and very good customer service but not a statutory requirement in the bicycle industry