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SD2OR with a trophy fall walleye

Topic: Mirage drive with dry bearings, grease or no?  (Read 5521 times)

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Lutefisk

  • Rockfish
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  • Location: Washougal
  • Date Registered: Jul 2017
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I had a squeaking sound from my mirage drive for a couple trips out. I thought the cables were either too tight or too loose. So I adjusted them once, twice, three times, still squeaking. I finally put my ear up to the drive and found the squeak coming from the inside bearings. So I tore apart the drive and found that the bearings had been so dry that the plastic pieces had wore down (pict below). I ordered up 15 new plastic bearings for the front end of the spine and I am going into Portland today to pick them up. I was thinking that I would grease up all of the bearings used inside the spine with marine quality grease (pict below). Good idea? Bad idea? Do people just spray a WD40 type lubricant up in the bearings? The Hobie Owners Manual recommends using a lubricant on the chain cables only. So maybe this is a warranty issue? Anybody have any other recommendation?


hdpwipmonkey

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I was hearing a grinding noise from my MD180 drive so I tore it down and saw a lot of sand in with those needle bearings.  They had grease on them and all the sand from beaching my kayak with the drive in had made its way in there and was grinding away at the plastic.  I cleaned all the greasy sandy stuff off and and put a thin layer of grease back on (more to help hold the bearings in place than anything) and put it all back together.  Just realize if you use grease it will hold onto sand and grime and you'll have to be vigilant on doing your drive maintenance. 
Ray
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INSAYN

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I would suggest not using grease, but instead a good dose of silicon spray.  I will dry leaving a slick surface void of squeaks and won't attract sand.   8)
 

"If I was ever stranded on a beach with only hand lotion...You're the guy I'd want with me!"   Polyangler, 2/27/15


Shin09

  • Salmon
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  • Location: Portland
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Recently noticed a squaking form my MD180 drive and found this thread through a search.  How did you feel about taking your MD180 spline apart? I know hobie says  not to....


Aquaholic

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  • Date Registered: May 2021
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Guess we can't view the video  ???


Klondike Kid

  • Lingcod
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  • Date Registered: Sep 2016
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Guess we can't view the video  ???
It booted up for me.

What are the odds?  Yesterday & night on another 10 hour marathon stint on Hidden Lake for kokanee, my 2016 Mirage Drive developed an annoying squeak when only the left pedal was pushed. For hours I scratched my head as to how something water-lubricated could be squeaking. The mystery went home with me, unsolved. And now this post and discussion. Hmmm.

My drive is mostly freshwater exposure with limited saltwater trips to date. But recently I too decided that when beaching, even on a lake or river, let alone a sandy/gravel beach, I'll opt to pull the drive and paddle in. Sounds like I should look into an inspection of the drive for preventative maintenance.

For those who may not be aware, the most durable long-lasting, salt spray test resistant mil spec spray-on lube (that's a mouthful) you can use for rustproofing and lubrication is Motorcycle chain lube. Because of the high speed the chain travels, many lubes just sling off but not this stuff. And the wet road conditions adds another variable that tries to strip the metal of its protection. Often marketed as "CABLE AND CHAIN LUBE". Best coating you can put on your shotguns out on the salt marshes hunting waterfowl, or any gun in any environment. 10X better than WD-40 in any situation except when sprayed on your lure as fish attractant.  ;D  And I use WD frequently too in its proper place.
The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

Take a Kid Fishing and Hook'em For Life!  ~KK~


Shin09

  • Salmon
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  • Location: Portland
  • Date Registered: Oct 2015
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https://www.hobie.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=63785

Dave

Thanks for the link.  I started get a bad squeak lasttime out. I cleaned/relubed the normal GT bearings but didnt break into the lower part of the spline.  Need to take it out again and see if its still there.  I beached the boat a few times recently and curious if that was the cause of my issues....


Lutefisk

  • Rockfish
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  • Date Registered: Jul 2017
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Update:

One of the bearing got sideways and created wear and tear on plastic components, as seen in the photo above. The thick marine grease idea wouldnt work anyways.

I had the spine replaced. And now I frequently spray a generic silicon grease spray into the cracks and crevasses of the spine after use.



Captain Redbeard

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They seem to ship with a thick marine-type grease IIRC. I didn't take it apart but that's what it looked like to me from the outside.

Thanks for posting back about what corrective action you've taken. The silicone spray stuff is great for all kinds of stuff on the drive and kayaks in general, FWIW. I also use it on moving parts on composite rod holders, lawn sprinklers, etc.

That said, it's been almost 2 years since my annual lubrication pitch, so I feel OK saying this again: My #1 choice for spray-on marine lubrication is Boeshield T-9. I don't mean this as advice specifically about your spline roller bearings, but just as general advice. It's great for the external parts of the drive and really anything metal that gets near saltwater. Also, unlike motorcycle chain lubricant, it doesn't dry tacky. YMMV, but I love the stuff and now use it constantly in my garage, too. It's expensive (1 can on Amazon is about $20) but it lasts a long time.


Tinker

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I thought Boeshield was just a corrosion inhibitor.  I learn something new every day!  Thanks, Cap'n.
I expected the worst, but it was worse than I expected...


Captain Redbeard

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I thought Boeshield was just a corrosion inhibitor.  I learn something new every day!  Thanks, Cap'n.

They actually have a few products with the Boeshield name, but the T-9 is an all-purpose marine suitable spray lubricant.


[WR]

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Looking at the Hobie forum linked to here, toward the bottom, Matt the Hobie Maint guy says that they don't stock the needle bearings as a replacement part because they didn't anticipate needing to do so.

Didn't t notice the date/time stamp on that. My question ; have they fixed that parts issue or is it still a problem?   

Ok, 2nd question / would this also apply to a 10+ yro gen 1 drive or is it only a problem with the latest iteration?  To best of my knowledge the drive in my seldom used I9s hasn't ever been serviced, so this thread has got me thinking I should probably pull it out of storage and check it. 
Why so many odd typos ? You try typing on 6 mm virtual keys with 26 mm thumbs....


Shin09

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[WR] - Pre-180 drives are completely serviceable and Hobie has (relatively) reasonable replacement parts for the sprockets, GT bearings, etc. 


[WR]

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Thanks guys.
Seldom use the I9s, so it sits in storage a lot. Will dig it out and get it cleaned and lubed sometime in the next human generation.   
Why so many odd typos ? You try typing on 6 mm virtual keys with 26 mm thumbs....


Klondike Kid

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[WR] - Pre-180 drives are completely serviceable and Hobie has (relatively) reasonable replacement parts for the sprockets, GT bearings, etc.

Thanks for that update on Pre-180s. That makes me sleep better now after reading this thread and the Hobie discussions.  :)
The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

Take a Kid Fishing and Hook'em For Life!  ~KK~