Bad Center Trac (type X) bearing?

Has anyone used one of these before?
I just got one when I ordered my Shutter, which I now thoroughly regret now that they have blasted versions. Anyway, my 10 ball bearing hardly spins. Spinning ONLY the bearing it can get a maximum of ~4-5 second spin time where as any other bearing I have spins for 15+ seconds.

Did I get a bad bearing, are 10 ball bearings always like this, or do I just need to clean it?
Thanks for any help in advance.

I have found yyf bearings to be cheaper. Some vary, 4-5 seconds should be fine. Less than a second is when you need to worry.

The yyf bearing i got with it seems decent but I got a separate Center Trac bearing with the order.
It was closer to ~2 seconds when I got it but luckily I had some lube on hand.

Thanks for the info though!

My YYF X bearing that came with my stacked catalyst and all it needed was a good cleaning.

I’ve had to clean almost every CT bearing I’ve gotten straight from retail. I thought I hated CTs, what I actually hated was whatever they are doing to the poor bearing to make it play terribly.

noob question here, what do you recommend to clean it with?
I’ve never done it before, I know the general steps but not what I need to soak it in.

Mineral Spirits! (acetone, goo-gone, lighter fluid, etc.)

My CTX spun for a pretty short time, but a simple cleaning should do the trick. The only complaint is that i have to lube my CTX on like a monthly basis, or else the bearing will start to lock up

ALL CTX BEARINGS COME PRE LUBED. :slight_smile:

Lube is gonna knock those numbers down further.

Lube is for maintenance/preventing wear, not increasing spin time. Lube SLOWS spin and reduces spin time. Use lube VERY sparingly. A teeny bit goes a LONG ways.

I could care less if I have to clean new bearings. I don’t mind cleaning bearings. Many bearings I get, even in $100+ yoyos need cleaning from the get-go. So, cleaning a bearing isn’t a big deal.

I’ve yet to have any issues with the regular CT’s. I hope I have the same good experience with the CTX bearings when I finally get around to buying some. At the same point, anyone can get a bad bearing from any brand. It happens.

How long a bearing spins on a flick really doesn’t indicate anything. A bearing with a heavier outer race will spin longer than a bearing with a lighter outer race. It’s better to look for how smoothly the bearing comes to a stop.

Really though, you should just clean the bearing. It can’t hurt.

CTX bearings all come pre lubed and will only spin for like 1-3 seconds on a flick, however in my opinion a broken in or cleaned CTX is one of the best bearing you can get. It’s now CLYW’s choice of bearing.

I currently have them in all of my main throws.

1 Like