Club Flex use with caution

gonz0 said:
Actually the PM of the Flex sounds quite legitimate and reasonable to me. Now as far as documentation of said PM, it would appear as if that is lacking from the manufacturer. The design itself I'd call sound from the description (I've yet to hold one in my hand). The needle bearing is a good design for quiet, smooth and consistent operation, but comes at the cost of needing lubrication and maintenance. Brass bearings would work but they'll still wear over time, requiring replacement, just the interval will be extended (with all other constants remaining) but during that time the vibration and noise will be higher for the tool. Now a reasonable solution would be a service port for grease, but maybe the position of the bearing doesn't allow for such an opportunity, again, I've yet to handle one so I cannot comment.
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I also prefer rolling-element bearings, and it seems like the logical choice for this application. And if the other gentleman is using this machine 8 hours a day/5 days a week, then he's lubing it at 1000 hours, which also seems like a reasonably long lubrication interval. If that's the case, I'll be dead before I have to lube mine, so it's all good. Usually I try to design/select components to reduce/eliminate maintenance for the expected life of the equipment, largely because that is what customers demand today. I mean, you don't see any grease fittings on HVAC fan motor bearings anymore, because they used sealed bearings that are lubed for life...OTOH, I just had a fan motor burn up that was only 2 years old...and of course a needle bearing is a different animal.
 
Junebug said:
Has anyone other than the OP had a Flex failure like this? Ok, the backing plate is well known and a buddy of mine had his trigger lock break but other than that - isn't this a one time thing? I sure hope so cause I have a Flex and really like it...-
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-AND-





Setec Astronomy said:
.. I'll be dead before I have to lube mine, so it's all good..
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That's way I'm approaching this.



Custom Detail implied that his Cyclo required PM in order to provide 20-some years of service, but my older one went that long with absolutely *zero* maintenance. I suspect his equipment gets a lot more use than most people's.
 
After reading all of the above, I thought a little PM was in order. My Flex has had an easy life....probably used not more than a dozen times.

When I removed the top shaft and bearing assy.the needle bearing was devoid of any grease:



P1010281.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting



Here's the other end of the drive assy. The bevel gear seemed to have no grease on it, but the needle bearing was lubed:



P1010278.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting



Here's the housing with grease removed. Quite a lot in there.



P1010289.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
 
cjbigcog said:
After reading all of the above, I thought a little PM was in order. My Flex has had an easy life....probably used not more than a dozen times.

When I removed the top shaft and bearing assy.the needle bearing was devoid of any grease:



P1010281.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting



Here's the other end of the drive assy. The bevel gear seemed to have no grease on it, but the needle bearing was lubed:



P1010278.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting



Here's the housing with grease removed. Quite a lot in there.



P1010289.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
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How old is yours? Did you replace the grease that you wiped out of there? It's possible that that grease liquifies when the unit warms up and performs its function...or maybe not. Gearbox lubrication like that is always tough with grease (vs. oil) but it depends how the gearbox is sealed. I'm still stuck on the issue of whether Flex has corrected this issue, etc., because it's obvious that they are greasing something, so it's not like they forgot the lube entirely. It really seems this was a work instruction/new employee problem, and they weren't lubing the lower bearing. Unless they weren't doing it on purpose for fear of the grease coming out the front, I haven't had mine apart to really see what's going on.
 
I purchased mine in Sept 07. I replaced the grease with a stickier grease that is not much thicker than the original.

Jim at Powerhouse said not to use a heavy grease that could cause the motor to overheat.

After my next use, I'll open it up and take a look inside.
 
cjbigcog said:
Here's the other end of the drive assy. The bevel gear seemed to have no grease on it, but the needle bearing was lubed:



Here's the housing with grease removed. Quite a lot in there.
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Just checked mine (received last month) - gear was also void of lube. I took some from the well and coated it.



Haven't taken out the other assembly as the press fit is really tight.



What about 3 drops of full synthetic motor oil such as Penzoil Platinum? It would get in there very nicely without the need to remove the assembly, stands up to heat, etc.



Regards,

GEWB
 
cjbigcog said:
Assuming that yours is lacking in lubrication, the addition of any oil would be a benefit IMO.
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Thanks - I agree that something is better than nothing. Maybe I'll email Flex North America next week and ask them.



Regards,

GEWB
 
OK managed to pull the shaft out after releasing the internal clip. Thread a long bolt in then use a small socket to make a slide hammer, its not a very tight fit.



The bearing had some lube but fairly minimal, so I lumped a load more grease in for good measure. worth doing just for peace of mind, thanks to the OP for the tip
 
ok guys so I just got my flex 3401 and I greased the gears but just how do I remove the pin where you bolt the BP out of the needle bearing? hope you guys know what I'm talking about. I want to lube it to avoid any problems.

THank you guys.



P1010281.jpg
 
since I didn't want to take the risk of braking anything on my new flex I just put some sinthetic oil in there and lubed the felt ring. I hope this keeps my flex healthy.



I'm ready to :buffing::2thumbs:
 
r1805 said:
since I didn't want to take the risk of braking anything on my new flex I just put some sinthetic oil in there and lubed the felt ring. I hope this keeps my flex healthy.
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better safe than sorry is what i say... :bigups
 
There's a thread around here somewhere that shows the process of taking it apart, then lubing it. Of course I can't find it right now...
 
SuperBee364 said:
There's a thread around here somewhere that shows the process of taking it apart, then lubing it. Of course I can't find it right now...
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Assuming we're thinking about the same thread, that wasn't really explicit enough for me to follow with confidence; I sure don't want to pull mine apart only to precipitate issues I don't currently have.



I'd sure appreciate somebody doing a real how-to about this...I'm not afraid to disassemble -and-lube my [uhm...other tools] but I like to have either a teacher or a good manual for the first run-through.
 
Accumulator said:
Assuming we're thinking about the same thread, that wasn't really explicit enough for me to follow with confidence; I sure don't want to pull mine apart only to precipitate issues I don't currently have.



I'd sure appreciate somebody doing a real how-to about this...I'm not afraid to disassemble -and-lube my [uhm...other tools] but I like to have either a teacher or a good manual for the first run-through.
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I'm in the same boat! A picture with guide through would be awesome.
 
I'm about to purchase a flex, is this still an issue nearly a year later? Seeing as how this thread pretty much stopped I'm going to guess this type of failure is pretty rare. If the problem still persists, I'd really like to see some pictures/video for disassembly instructions and where to lube. In the mean time, would a shot of gun oil be OK? If not, what about WD-40?
 
I recently just got my flex also and I am noticing a lot of heat from the housing. Its hot enough that you cant hold it for long. Then again this was after an hour of speed 6 compounding. Is this normal? I know my PC used to get so hot it actually melted the velcro on the backing plate. Other than the housing getting hot I LOVE my flex.
 
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