Rusty Bearings

lol After i cleaned my hitman and speedmaker’s bearings, 2 weeks later, they rusted. So, i had to replace the bearing of my hitman, and my speedmaker got stolen. But that doesn’t matter.

My meteor’s bearing is already turning black, like my hitman’s bearing. My hitman’s bearing started turning black after i got it stock, and after cleaning it, it rusted. I’m not sure if turning black is a sign of rusting. Is it a sign of rusting, or just dirt? because i’m really worried about my meteor getting rust stains lol :frowning:

Is there a way to remove rust stains from the bearing? If my meteor gets rust from my bearing? Yes i know, aluminium doesn’t rust, but it can get stains from the bearing i think. Not that it happened yet, but i predict that it will in the near future.

So the point of this post: Is there a way to remove rust stains from aluminium yoyos if they get rust? Or will they get rust stains lol? My strings do o.0

What are you cleaning your bearings with?

Well, scientifically speaking, aluminum can’t rust, unless in a non-atmospheric condition. When exposed to the atmosphere, the metal develops a thin and rather permanent coating of aluminum oxide, which is about as rust resistant as anything can get.

It can, however, corrode or tarnish. I imagine this explains your current problem. It doesn’t explain what’s actually causing it, though.

Explanation time…

What are you using to clean your bearings? And do you live in a particularly humid environment?

I’m using a paint thinner. I live in singapore, so i guess you could say its VERY humid. Btw, my rusting problem with the bearing is probably because i played them dry i suppose? I lubed one of the bearings and it didnt rust, while the ones i metioned up there were dry. Does lubing the bearing have any relevance to rust?

Anyway, if you can answer, will my bearing seat get bits of rust stuck on it if my bearing is rusty? Thanks.

Playing them dry should have no effect whatsoever on corrosion, but in an environment as humid as yours I just can’t be sure.

Lube will serve as a protective barrier for more than just metal wear, so this might be something you want to try. I would.

And your bearing seat will pick up corrosive or tarnishing agents from the bearing. Best to have everyone in good condition before putting them together.

So, if my meteor’s bearing is turning black, is that a sign of rusting? or is it just getting dirty? (Its really hard to clean off the dirt.) And is there any way to remove the rust i get from the bearing/on the yoyo? or do i need to get a new stainless steel bearing?

Btw, this hasn’t happened to my meteor, but it has to my speedmaker and my hitman.

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This really sounds like some sort of external chemical being introduced. It’s not rust, but it sounds like tarnish of some sort.

Do you handle any oddball chemicals during the day? Maybe at work?

I’m using a paint thinner.
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You should try a REAL yoyo lube. It might work. It is always good to have an extra bottle of it somewhere around your house anyways, just in case you ever need any.

Yeah, paint thinner probably isn’t the best idea, either. I didn’t catch that at first.

You need to be cleaning your bearings with either white spirits or lighter fluid. Anything else is going to cause you issues.

Just for the sake of curiosity, can you list the ingredients on that paint thinner you’re using?

To clean your rusted bearing so you can use it again, I suggest that you clean it again spin it on a pencil for a min or two and repeat for a while you should be able to break some of the rust off of the bearing, then lube and use. Or better yet if you can just get a new bearing. Rust will stain aluminum and it will be next to imposable to get it out of the metal. The paint thinner has chemicals that will leave a film after it drys and your bearing with the black on it is the film mixing with dust and microscopic metal parts it is ugly and hard to remove, so the lesson of the story clean your bearings and apply lube, use mineral spirits for cleaning and for lube thin lube, baby oil, clipper oil or any really thin oil that you can find. I hope that helps. Yah some what random sorry that is how my mind works.

I suggest you try to completely clean your bearing first, then lube it slightly. Look here to clean:
http://yoyoexpert.com/forums/index.php/topic,871.0.html

Yea, thats what i do. I cleaned the bearing with that method, deshielding, dumping it inside some paint thinner and shaking it around, then drying it. After leaving it in a box on a hitman dry for like a week or so it gets rusty. (I didn’t like lube, made it too responsive)

Oh yeah, i don’t think my thinner does anything to rust it. I think its because its completely dry in a completely humid place. So since i didn’t lube it, it just got rusty :frowning: (I have a cleaned bearing with that paint thinner and its not rusty, because i lubed it, so i’m assuming that the paint thinner doesnt have anything that rusts.)

Well the main question of this post was: Is my bearing turning black a sign of rust? or is it just really tough to remove dirt? And is there a way to clear the rust? Thanks.

Ok, what we’re trying to get across to you is that this shouldn’t be happening in the first place. There should be no “black stuff” forming on anything. At all. Whether or not you lube your bearing shouldn’t have anything to do with it, either.

We don’t know how to clean it, as we can’t figure out what it is just yet. Hence, why I asked you for the ingredients of your paint thinner as a place to start looking.

Also, don’t use paint thinner to clean bearings. Not a good idea.

okay then. Well, im not sure whats inside lol, theres no ingredients thing. I think its got something to do with humidity :frowning:

oh yeah, i havent cleaned the turning black bearing yet.

in an extreme case like this i would recommend, putting the bearing into some wd-40 for a little while, then take it off, clean it, lube it, then repeat, but then you want to microlube it, with a toothpick, you kno? wd-40, is only good in a situation like this, dont use the stuff for anything else yoyo related… good luck…

I have that problem too… and I live in CA. It’s just like these blackish small dots. Maybe from string?

well its just dirt from your string and you soudn’t worry about it.
that seems to happen with all YYJ bearings and it does not affect the play
here are some pics:
YYJ stock:
http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/6156/picture009p.th.jpg
10 ball stock:
http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/9420/picture011loo.th.jpg
compared:
http://img23.imageshack.us/img23/1695/picture010bra.th.jpg
left to right:10 ball,YYJ

sorry if that is hard to see but those are the best pics I could get

yeah, that’s it.

I thought so,anyway dont worry about it.