Dry coating bearings

What’s you favorite product?

When do you do it?

Do you lube it after?

Any suggestions on this topic will be helpful. I’ve only dry coated twice.

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I am not familiar with dry coating. Going to look it up.

@Colty maybe this will help with your situation :grin:

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Molybdenum disulfide. Nobody really makes it as fine as terrapin used to. Supposedly .003 micron texture on the terrapin stuff. Closest I can find in the wild is 1 micron texture. Not sure how well that would work in our bearings.

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So this is dry lube like powdered graphite? Just with a smaller structure?
I’ll see what I can do.

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Essentially, yes. Not sure if the larger grain size can be rectified with acetone thinning. A drop or two of acetone after application was the method for applying terrapin’s dry lube. Might end up with good results or just crunchy bearings.

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0.003 microns is ridiculously small. 3 nanometers. I’m not sure you can achieve that, I don’t know maybe.

This stuff claims 0.5 microns.

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So I should be cleaning with an acetone after application?

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That video is 12 years old. I feel like if it was a thing, filks would be doing it.

I like experimenting though so if we have a means to try something, I’m down!

YYE carried it for sometime.

The acetone is a solvent so it shouldn’t do anything except wash out impurities. I used to do acetone wash a lot back in the 70s.

YYF dark matter is a “dry coat” lube

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Instructions unclear: nose is bleeding.

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This all seems like way more effort than I want to put into my bearings. I’ll just leave it dry till it dies

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I use this on other applications. Works very well.

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Not yoyo?

Are there any health issues associated with substances milled this fine? I would not want to be inhaling this stuff. Even getting 0.003 microns on the skin would risk absorption.

Seems sort of scary for a bit of yo-yo lube.

Havent tried it in a yoyo. Didnt even think about it till this post.

Will try it after the next cleaning.

I have almost no doubt it will work.

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I wear gloves. Tbh I’m not sure

I want to add for anyone considering to do/not to do dry coating.

My gemstone yoyo has been somewhat responsive from day one. The bearing has always had a slight rattle. I had tried cleaning it many times… alcohol, acetone, lighter fluid…still rattled. -----When a yoyo is sleeping you can feel imperfections in the balls of the bearing vibrating through the string.------ I used a dry lube from a Japanese yoyo supplier. It has significantly help but still has slight imperfections you can feel through the string. I will be trying another application when I feel like it.

I first tested on a magic V10 yoyo that already played fine. It changed the way the bearing sounds. It’s does feel smoother and I think it sounds better. I think it’s worth it.

Edit: I did not clean with acetone after these applications.

This is a description of the mentioned dark matter lube. Note: I have this but did not use it on above applications.

  • YYF DARK MATTER Lubricant

This lubricant coating is specially designed to maximize your bearing’s potential.

This special lubricant creates what is known as a “dry coating,” which can greatly improve the performance of a bearing and revive a bearing that has fallen into bad condition. You’ll immediately notice the difference just by lightly spinning the bearing with your finger.

We recommend treating new bearings with this lubricant to help it perform at its best, and to protect it. This product is likely to become a new standard maintenance for advanced players.

*This product is not meant to protect against rust and oxidization. If that is your goal, we recommend using Bearing Maintenance Oil.

*Do not apply too much of this lubricant, otherwise the membrane it creates will be too thick and will hinder the bearing’s spin.

Official Description
TREAT your bearing right. For smooth spins and longer bearing life on modern unresponsive yoyos.

Dark Matter™ was scientifically formulated and is intended only for use on yoyo bearings. Follow these steps for maximum performance:

open your yoyo

Remove your bearing and clean the bearing with Rubbing alcohol in a small canister (something you can let the bearing soak in and allow you to shake the bearing in the fluid vigorously without making a mess).

Remove bearing and let it dry on a piece of paper towel. Try spinning the bearing to confirm it is clean and spinning freely and easily.

Shake well bottle of Dark Matter™

Apply three small drops of Dark Matter to side of bearing

Rotate outer race of bearing slowly to help Dark Matter™ to soak into bearing

Re-assemble yoyo

Put a new string on your yoyo

Play with your yoyo. Note that your yoyo will be responsive at first. This is normal.

Throw some fast spins and maybe a few “Around The World” or “Pinwheels” to help settle the Dark Matter™ in your bearing.

Your bearing should now start to play unresponsive again. If not play a while longer.

Dark Matter™ is only to be used on a clean and well functioning bearing. Dark Matter™ is not intended to repair a broken or faulty bearing.

Keep the lid tight on your Dark Matter(R) or else it will escape quite quickly back into the atmosphere.

Do not use more than three drops. Make sure you re-clean the bearing thoroughly before re-applying Dark Matter™