# How often should i thin lube a bearing after cleaning it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Yo-Yo Mods and Maintenance\ **Created:** [December 11, 2010, 4:23am UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/how-often-should-i-thin-lube-a-bearing-after-cleaning-it/21704 "2010-12-11T04:23:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fatjoe298](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbce88/32.png) [@fatjoe298](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/fatjoe298)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2010, 4:23am UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/how-often-should-i-thin-lube-a-bearing-after-cleaning-it/21704/1 "2010-12-11T04:23:54Z")
title says it all ---
**Author:** ![Apetrunk](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/apetrunk/32/148_2.png) [@Apetrunk](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/Apetrunk)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2010, 5:01am UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/how-often-should-i-thin-lube-a-bearing-after-cleaning-it/21704/2 "2010-12-11T05:01:01Z")
Oh, once in a while. There’s really no set time. It varies with your environment, usage, and other things. You shouldn’t need to more than once a month unless you’re playing 24/7 in the ocean or something =P ---
**Author:** ![arem250](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/arem250/32/7922_2.png) [@arem250](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/arem250)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2010, 5:04am UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/how-often-should-i-thin-lube-a-bearing-after-cleaning-it/21704/3 "2010-12-12T05:04:45Z")
As often as you feel necessary, but remember the more lube in your bearing the slower it will be. However running your bearing dry is not recommended by me because the bearing wears out faster. I personally do it about every other month but I put a whole drop in and then break it in and have found that that makes the lube last much longer and I don’t have to do it very often. ---
**Author:** ![Domin123](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@Domin123](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/Domin123)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/how-often-should-i-thin-lube-a-bearing-after-cleaning-it/21704/4 "2010-12-12T16:01:02Z")
I would suggest, lube it once after you clean the bearing, and after that, lube it every 2 to 3 weeks. ---
**Author:** ![smartboy3456](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/smartboy3456/32/510_2.png) [@smartboy3456](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/smartboy3456)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2010, 6:35pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/how-often-should-i-thin-lube-a-bearing-after-cleaning-it/21704/5 "2010-12-12T18:35:00Z")
What’s the difference between lubing and cleaning? ---
**Author:** ![Apetrunk](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/apetrunk/32/148_2.png) [@Apetrunk](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/Apetrunk)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2010, 7:07pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/how-often-should-i-thin-lube-a-bearing-after-cleaning-it/21704/6 "2010-12-12T19:07:24Z")
Cleaning is cleaning, i.e. removing things that shouldn’t be in the bearing. Lubing is lubing, i.e. putting an oil in there to keep it lasting longer… ---
**Author:** ![Domin123](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@Domin123](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/Domin123)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2010, 9:42am UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/how-often-should-i-thin-lube-a-bearing-after-cleaning-it/21704/7 "2010-12-14T09:42:12Z")
Yeah, for cleaning, you use mineral spirits or lighter fluid to clean out the impurities in the bearing (including the lube). For lubing, you are basically putting lube into the bearing, which slows it down slightly. And if there is thick lube in the bearing, putting thin lube in breaks down the think lube.