Best grease/lube for DT Swiss ratchet system

[Greenduck]

Hi all,

I just received a pair of DT Swiss PRC 1400 wheels which uses 240s hubs and their rachet system. I read different places that the red grease from DT Swiss causes quite a bit of drag. Also when I turn the cranks backwards it feels like theres alot of resistance or drag? Don't know if that's just a part of the rachet system?

Does anyone have any experience using a different grease or even a lube for even smoother operation? I'm very good at maintaining my bike components so I have no problem cleaning at re-greasing/lubing the rachet system often. So I was thinking about just using a high quality lube. Anyone with any experience to share?

Thanks in advance,
Jake

[sungod]

the dt swiss special grease does not cause a lot of drag

it's thinner than typical greases used on a bike, and it should be applied sparingly - recipe is apparently 95% molykote tp-42 and 5% mineral oil - it's supplied in a tiny pot, but if you are applying it right that should last ages, i reckon 10+ years

if there's significant drag it's because too much was applied!

you could use a heavy oil, but i think you'll need to re-apply often otherwise the dry ratchets will wear fast

edit: when they're new, there's often a bit too much grease and the ratchets are pretty quiet, once it gets squished out they will get louder, when they get really loud you know it's time for a bit of grease!

[ms6073]

I will probably get roasted for saying this, but once a month or so (more frequently if we get caught in the rain), I typically pull the freehub out slightly and squirt in some Prolink Gold.

[TobinHatesYou]

White Industries recommends heavy oil or dry lube on its freehub mechanisms, but DT and CK style freehubs generally take light grease. Slick Honey is pretty light. CycleOps uses Krytox GPL226, but it’s quite expensive...

[kode54]

i use NFS synthetic grease. i suppose you can use Mobil 1 grease or other similar types. never had any issues with NFS. i use it with DT 240 hubs all the time.

[GothicCastle]

I read different places that the red grease from DT Swiss causes quite a bit of drag.

I don’t believe you did. Unless “places” were Internet forums where uninformed randos spout off with no basis in reality.

I can’t think of any case where freehub grease would cause significant drag. Bearing seals are almost certainly generating far more drag, and even that is insignificant in the context of a moving bicycle.

[Catagory6]

I just did a complete overhaul of a 240 that was maybe 15 years old. Stripped completely apart. Cleaned re-packed bearings. Everything.
I had the same problem you describe. Lots of drag on the hub when freewheeling.
Always been that way, even when i sent the hub to a wheel builder to have a different rim built up. He said thats just the waythey are.
After the overhaul, it now spins SO much easier.
I just used a very light coating of progold epx.
I have no clueif this made the difference or not. It was just what i had laying around.
Of course i havent ridden the wheel yet (winter in new england), so maybe it will explode like fukushima under my butt

[Priit]

I've used in ratchets Dupont Krytox GPL 205 - works well but it's a overkill for sure Krytox is very expensive and long lasting, used mostly in applications like sealed-for-life bearings and extend relubrication intervals in bearings that require relubrication. But for bottom brackets and repacking bearings Krytox (like GPL 205 or GPL 226) is quite superb.

[bm0p700f]

Rock n roll super Web grease or there super slick grease for lower drag.

[Greenduck]

Thanks for all the replies.

I took of the cassette body and the rachets were smothered in grease. I have wiped most of it off and only left a very thin application. I will look into a more light lube or oil to use.

[nickf]

I always use dt red grease. A thin coat goes a long way, no way it causes noticable drag. Don't like drag then keep pedaling.

[Calnago]

I have some of that “special” DT red grease for their star ratchets that came with their hub service toolkit. I always wondered what was so “special” about it.

[sungod]

Thanks for all the replies.

I took of the cassette body and the rachets were smothered in grease. I have wiped most of it off and only left a very thin application. I will look into a more light lube or oil to use.

like i said, when they're new, there's often excess grease

you can put some lighter lube on, but why?

apply rational thinking and physics...

any likely loss from grease on the ratchets, or from wheel bearing grease, or seals, when coasting at speed, will be dwarfed by even minor changes in rider position, or a slightly loose jersey sleeve, or a baggy mitt, to say nothing of the drag from the spokes

spinning a wheel with the bike on a stand will be a system mass probably < 1kg, sure grease may spin down faster than oil, big deal, because that's the wrong test, the mass of bike+rider is what counts, the % impact of any drag from grease reduces in direct proportion to the ratio of the masses, and that's before the impact of aerodynamic drag out on the road

whatever you see with a wheel on a stand includes the effect of the bearing grease, and seals, and spokes etc., if you are worried about freehub drag then why not worry about the bearing grease and the seals?

try https://www.cyclingpowerlab.com/PowerSp ... arios.aspx and see what difference a watt or two makes on a descent, the exponential power impact of aerodynamic drag reduces any conceivable ratchet drag to utter insignificance

unless someone can measure a significant speed difference coasting, it's just irrelevant

[wheelbuilder]

King ring drive lube.

[ms6073]

I have some of that “special” DT red grease... I always wondered what was so “special” about it.

You mean besides it being red? I always thought attaching the word 'Red' to a product name was somewhat akin to having an amplifier that goes to 11?