Shimano Nexus hub dipping oil

[Piscator]

Does anyone know what spec this oil as provided by Shimano for their hub gear dipping kit is?

The current price for one of these kits is somewhere North of £50, or even £60, which seems one heck of a lot for a small-ish can of oil (it's not clear exactly what the quantity is). However, it's still priced like liquid gold, and it seems grossly overpriced for what it is.

 

[Moodyman]

No idea but £60 is a lot.

I recently bought an Alfine equipped bike will be lookiing to get grease changed after 2k miles. I understand that I only really need to do this once - 2k miles is enough time for everything to get wear in and once worn in, it runs like clockwork.

For a one-off servicing, I was quoted between 30-45 pounds. Which is bearable and will be done by someone who knows what they're doing.

Are you in the cycle trade? If not, might be worth getting it done by a professional.

 

[hubgearfreak]

you could try SA's internal hub grease £7.50 incl p&p for 100ml. that's enough for several hubs given that an AW takes 3 teaspoons of oil and a rholhoff 25ml of oil
http://oldbiketrader.co.uk/display_Sturmey_Archer.php?options=books

 

[Piscator]

Thanks for that.

I should think the SA oil would probably be OK. The big snag with these Shimano Nexus hubs is that they have to be taken off the cycle (a drag in itself), dismantled to remove the innards which are then dipped in the oil. The whole lot is then reassembled.

Therefore enough oil to submerge the hub is needed. I just couldn't see why the oil should be so expensive.

The other thing that occurs to me is that each "dips worth" of oil is not reusable. I wouldn't want to dip a gear into an oil full of wear products from a previous dip.

 

[hubgearfreak]

the SA stuff isn't oil, it's grease. very oily grease. although it's quite like very greasy oil. it's hard to describe accurately. however, if i had cause to strip a sealed for life greased hub i'd not hesitate in using it and hoping for the best

i agree fully with your apprehension about dipping your mechanism in someone elses dirty receptacle

 

[P.H]

The other thing that occurs to me is that each "dips worth" of oil is not reusable. I wouldn't want to dip a gear into an oil full of wear products from a previous dip.

It is intended to be used several times, even after it's no longer deep enough to submerge you can swill it round, in which case £60 isn't that dear. Unce you strip it down you'll see why it's OK to reuse.
The oil refreshes the grease which will over time dry out. This isn't a one off as Moodyman thinks, the grease is always going to dry out. I wouldn't risk using anything else without knowing it had the same composition. It's not a question of whether it's a good oil, you need to know it's compatible with the soap and seals.
It is a faff of a job and I'm glad Shimano have gone for oil rather than grease on the new 11 spd Alfine.