# Meteor Pedal Overhaul



## pedalpower17 (Dec 31, 2018)

Happy New Year to all fellow Cabers...our bikes are now all one year more cool!  I'm trying to overhaul this pair of "Meteor 3N" pedals taken off a 1949 Schwinn girl.  I'd like to remove the bearings and spindle from the pedal housing, but I'm doubting that the design allows it.  That cap at the end of the spindle doesn't give the impression of being threaded.  Any clues?


----------



## cyclingday (Dec 31, 2018)

The bearings, spindle, cups and cones are not replaceable on these.
Just add a couple of drops of 3 in 1 oil and your good to go. 
Unless, they are too far gone, then it's off to the round file they go.


----------



## SKIDKINGSVBC (Dec 31, 2018)

Hi , Unfortunately these were made not to take apart so..Clean all exterior surfaces of rust . spray out internals with grease cleaner . Finish internal spray  with clean with CRC  brake clean . blow out all residue with air . Inject grease into top and bottom  of bearings ,work back and forth so grease gets into bearings. BAM !  done..


----------



## pedalpower17 (Dec 31, 2018)

cyclingday said:


> The bearings, spindle, cups and cones are not replaceable on these.
> Just add a couple of drops of 3 in 1 oil and your good to go.
> Unless, they are too far gone, then it's off to the round file they go.



Got it.  Thanks for the confirmation.


----------



## pedalpower17 (Dec 31, 2018)

SKIDKINGSVBC said:


> Hi , Unfortunately these were made not to take apart so..Clean all exterior surfaces of rust . spray out internals with grease cleaner . Finish internal spray  with clean with CRC  brake clean . blow out all residue with air . Inject grease into top and bottom  of bearings ,work back and forth so grease gets into bearings. BAM !  done..



Thanks.  Any special tool you use for injecting grease into such tight space?


----------



## TieDye (Dec 31, 2018)

What I do is flush the bearing ends out a lot with brake cleaner or carb cleaner.  I use a metal small pan, like a bread pan, to capture the cleaner.  I will soak the pedals shafts in there, reuse the cleaner and keep dumping it in there, working the shaft around.  When they flush clean, pack the crap out of them with fresh wheel bearing grease.  this will take some patience and time. You have to get the dirt out of them or they will sound terrible, and ruin the bearings.  I have done 4 sets this way and they work like new now.  If you need someone to do them for you, let me know.  You could mail them to me and I'll do them for you.
Deb


----------



## pedalpower17 (Dec 31, 2018)

TieDye said:


> this will take some patience and time. You have to get the dirt out of them or they will sound terrible, and ruin the bearings. I have done 4 sets this way and they work like new now. If you need someone to do them for you, let me know. You could mail them to me and I'll do them for you.



Hi, Deb. I really appreciate the generous offer, but this is the stuff I really enjoy.  After your comment, and the one from skidkingsvbc, what I'm hoping to learn is an effective way to inject the new grease.  The opening to the bearings, especially on the crank end, is tiny.  I was thinking of maybe a syringe with no needle in it. - Mike


----------



## RUDY CONTRATTI (Dec 31, 2018)

*Here is a tid bit of info.for ya all,,for those of you that know chainsaws,,at the end of the bar there is a sprocket which the chain wraps around,,and at that point there is a spot to inject grease into to keep the sprocket lubed(most people don't no or do it)but when I service our saws here at the shop I use a DUALCO CHAINSAW GREASE GUN..What I like about it is it comes in real handy for packing bearing cups,,ETC...on bicycles,,and you can fill it with your favorite grease,,It works wonders,,,and maybe someone can post a photo of it and  you will understand more.They are made in Houston TX.USA
Rudy*


----------



## Shawn Michael (Dec 31, 2018)

RUDY CONTRATTI said:


> *Here is a tid bit of info.for ya all,,for those of you that know chainsaws,,at the end of the bar there is a sprocket which the chain wraps around,,and at that point there is a spot to inject grease into to keep the sprocket lubed(most people don't no or do it)but when I service our saws here at the shop I use a DUALCO CHAINSAW GREASE GUN..What I like about it is it comes in real handy for packing bearing cups,,ETC...on bicycles,,and you can fill it with your favorite grease,,It works wonders,,,and maybe someone can post a photo of it and  you will understand more.They are made in Houston TX.USA
> Rudy*


----------



## Shawn Michael (Dec 31, 2018)

Here you go. It looks like a pretty cool/useful tool.


----------



## TieDye (Dec 31, 2018)

Good tip Rudy.


----------



## pedalpower17 (Jan 1, 2019)

RUDY CONTRATTI said:


> Here is a tid bit of info.for ya



Hey Rudy, thanks for the suggestion.  I just reviewed the Dualco website and think this might be a good solution. On the side of the pedal that threads into the crank arm, the opening to inject any lubricant is less than a millimeter.  Very tight.  The Dualco site doesn't indicate the diameter of the nozzle opening.  Can you offer your best guess?   One mm?   If I can't inject grease into that end, I was thinking of just oozing some Phil's Tenacious Oil into it.  The bike will likely be ridden occasionally, but not a lot.


----------



## rusty.kirkpatrick (Jan 1, 2019)

pedalpower17 said:


> Thanks.  Any special tool you use for injecting grease into such tight space?



I’ve put grease in a syringe with a big gauge needle and injected it all around in there, after a good degreasing though.


----------



## Andrew Gorman (Jan 1, 2019)

You can get large bore  needles at a farm supply store. I usually just clean out the pedal and squirt in some aerosol white grease.  It comes out of the can quite liquid and can be shaken down to the outboard bearings.


----------



## pedalpower17 (Jan 1, 2019)

Andrew Gorman said:


> I usually just clean out the pedal and squirt in some aerosol white grease. It comes out of the can quite liquid and can be shaken down to the outboard bearings.



Thanks, Andrew.  That sounds like maybe the simplest option, especially for pedals that won't be ridden many miles.


----------



## Autocycleplane (Jan 1, 2019)




----------



## pedalpower17 (Jan 2, 2019)

Autocycleplane said:


> View attachment 927441



Just when I thought I had my plan, another cool option.  A quick internet search indicates that the injector is the Manitou Microlube, used for mountain bike suspensions.  $17 and screws right onto your existing tube of Park or Phil grease.  Thanks, Autocycleplane


----------



## pedalpower17 (Jan 8, 2019)

Andrew Gorman said:


> I usually just clean out the pedal and squirt in some aerosol white grease.



Andrew, I took your recommendations of white lithium grease in an aerosol can.  The 70-year-old pedals are working great.  Thanks.  - Mike


----------



## Andrew Gorman (Jan 8, 2019)

Yay!  Another bike back on the road.


----------



## TieDye (Jan 8, 2019)

I went to a local farm supply store where they sell chainsaws. They had a grease gun with a super tiny end on it and it's spring loaded and comes preloaded with grease. It cost $4.99. You put the end in the tiny gap and push and grease comes out. It was designed to fit in the super tiny grease hole in the end of chain saw bars.


----------



## GTs58 (Jan 8, 2019)

Call me dumb or stupid, but I can't see how the he!! someone can get grease all the way down to the outboard bearings with a needle from the spindle end. Impossible unless you fill the whole pedal up with grease using high pressure. Put a few drops of 85-90 wt. gear lube in it and call it done.


----------



## TieDye (Jan 8, 2019)

GTs58 said:


> Call me dumb or stupid, but I can't see how the he!! someone can get grease all the way down to the outboard bearings with a needle from the spindle end. Impossible unless you fill the whole pedal up with grease using high pressure. Put a few drops of 85-90 wt. gear lube in it and call it done.



You can grease both ends. The outer bearings can be greased directly.  You have to take the spindle/shaft out of the pedal. The end plates come off. The outer bearing can be greased very well by pushing the grease in there, and the whole end and turning the shaft. It will pull grease inside a bit. The hard end to grease is the inner end bearing, but you can clean both ends and you can grease the inner end. I've done it by pushing grease in using a toothpick. Now I have the spring loaded tiny nippled grease gun I got at the farm store.
It is just as important to flush the grit and yuck out first or else new grease still won't keep the bearings from getting ruined.


----------



## pedalpower17 (Jan 9, 2019)

TieDye said:


> I went to a local farm supply store where they sell chainsaws. They had a grease gun with a super tiny end on it and it's spring loaded and comes preloaded with grease. It cost $4.99. You put the end in the tiny gap and push and grease comes out. It was designed to fit in the super tiny grease hole in the end of chain saw bars.



Hi, Deb. Thanks for that confirmation. If I were working on a bike that would have gotten heavy miles riding, I would surely have gone with the heavier bicycle grease and some sort of tiny injector, but this particular bike won't be ridden many miles.  So, I was attracted to the ease of squirting this white lithium aerosol grease into each end.  It's quite liquid when it comes out and I suspect it penetrated well, coating the bearings and maybe even the axle.


----------

