Grease For Carbon Bikes? Yip!
You all know that here at Bike Cycling Reviews we like carbon, be it frames, handle bars, stems and components, that black stuff is what we want to be sat astride. That weave of carbon fibers just get the heart beating a little bit harder, but who knows anything about preparation of the surfaces, well we do now!
Carbon tends to be smooth, OK I know its cool as well, but I mean it is not rough on its contact points, which makes it more difficult to grip and is much more slippery than say alloy, steel or titanium, also carbon compresses when clamped so the problem is people over tighten the bolts and can cause damage to your expensive kit or worse things become lose, which is not the best thing to happen when your racing or descending off a mountain at speed.
Build-up Time
When you assemble your bike you always prepare the threads and other surfaces with grease, this makes the assembly easier and protects the threads from corrosion and also usually allows you to be able to unscrew the component at a later date, so always use a grease when building up your bike, but what about Carbon?
Now you can buy from Tacx an assembly grease for carbon components, its not really a grease its more like a paste which has miniscule plastic balls in a grease like liquid, when this is applied to the surfaces of your carbon goods, Tacx claim that it increases by 30% the friction between these slippy surfaces so this in effect means you don?t have to tighten the retaining bolts as tight, say on your handle bar stem where it clamps to the carbon steerer on the front forks, with less pressure being exerted on the carbon parts then it is less likely to be damaged by squashing the fibers.
A Lot of Balls
The small plastic balls give more grip, but they are not abrasive, they will not mark any surfaces, as they are soft enough to squash when under compression, making them harmless to the surfaces they have been applied too. There are other very good reasons for protecting you components with the Tacx Dynamic Assembly Compound, first of all you need to protect the other parts that you are clamping your carbon goods too, there are many alloy sleeves in your carbon frame that you need to protect.
The second reason you should smear the compound on places like your seat pin and steering column is that the paste also allows for easier adjustment when you are setting up your position on the bike, you don’t have to struggle to lift the saddle or stem to your exact riding height, just like a grease it lubricates the movement between the parts when not tightened up, so making the job much easier.
The third reason is the same as using a normal grease, it keeps the rain out, the last thing you want is corrosion of any part of your bike, so you must use a grease to seal any gaps that may allow liquid of any kind (rain, sweat or drink) getting into your frame.
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We like this product very much as it is easy to use and a must for those expensive carbon parts, its so good that FSA, the makers of those sweet carbon cranks are using and recommending it for their equipment, so it must be good.
What Do We Think? 9/10, It would have got 10 but nobody knows you are using it, not like a new frame or a new chain set.
More Information about tacx assembly stands, cycle tools, bottle cages and water bottles at www.tacx.com
