# Cleaning boca hybrid ceramics



## Scumfrog (Dec 9, 2012)

I almost hate to post this cause I'm sure it's been covered but couldn't find anything.I put a drop of lightning lube on the Abec 5,s and there pretty smooth but lost my ease of pitching lures like they were dryQuestion is would soaking in lighter fluid,carb cleaner,any of these harm the ceramics?


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## MattK (Feb 9, 2006)

Would it hurt them? Nope

Just pop the rubber shields out if you haven't already.


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## Scumfrog (Dec 9, 2012)

Good enough for me thx


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## george.maness86 (May 29, 2012)

To get the stainless shields off of the 5 you will need a sewing machine needle. You can flush them with shields on but wont get a complete flush if you have sand and such in it. You can also soak them in acetone and can get the small container of it for around $7 at any store that carries paint (where it will be located). I think wal-mart even carries it.


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## Scumfrog (Dec 9, 2012)

Cool,how do you feel about running one side open,I was thinking they would be easier to maintain,plus it might be convenient if I can't get the shields back on lol.


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## george.maness86 (May 29, 2012)

you can run them completely open if you want, it will not hurt them.


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## Frankie14 (Mar 30, 2012)

How long do you typically need to acetone soak bearings in general, or specifically, boca ceramics?


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## george.maness86 (May 29, 2012)

Frankie14 said:


> How long do you typically need to acetone soak bearings in general, or specifically, boca ceramics?


Just swirl them around in a jar of acetone for a few minutes and you should be fine. If you have a US cleaner that is even better.


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## rjc1982 (Sep 27, 2005)

Getcha one of these ultra sonic cleaners from Harbor Freight. Great for bearing and all reel parts. Dip recommended them once on this forurm and it was the best $75 bucks I've spent.









http://www.harborfreight.com/25-liter-ultrasonic-cleaner-95563.html


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## george.maness86 (May 29, 2012)

rjc1982 said:


> Getcha one of these ultra sonic cleaners from Harbor Freight. Great for bearing and all reel parts. Dip recommended them once on this forurm and it was the best $75 bucks I've spent.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


They work but I won't run one just because of the max time in a cycle. I would pull my hair out if I had to reset it every 8 minutes. For the holiest it works great. Trying to get a lot of reels clean not so much or at least for me.


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## rjc1982 (Sep 27, 2005)

george.maness86 said:


> They work but I won't run one just because of the max time in a cycle. I would pull my hair out if I had to reset it every 8 minutes. For the holiest it works great. Trying to get a lot of reels clean not so much or at least for me.


I agree about the timer, drives me nuts! Maybe one day I'll crack that bad boy open and see if I can rewire it and bypass the timer with a simple on/off switch.


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## Scumfrog (Dec 9, 2012)

Cool looks like a fry daddy


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## Scumfrog (Dec 9, 2012)

All I wanted was to try to clean a reel 6 mos ago I keep getting deeper and deeper,who would of thought tinkering with reels would be addictive!


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## rjc1982 (Sep 27, 2005)

Scumfrog said:


> All I wanted was to try to clean a reel 6 mos ago I keep getting deeper and deeper,who would of thought tinkering with reels would be addictive!


It's like crack! Don't start super tuning or you'll end up hopelessly addicted.


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## ClearLakeClayt (Aug 2, 2011)

rjc1982 said:


> It's like crack! Don't start super tuning or you'll end up hopelessly addicted.


Too late for me... I'm getting the shakes and breaking out in a cold sweat just reading this thread! I keep a reel and tools in a brown paper bag in the bottom drawer of my desk for moments like this...


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## rjc1982 (Sep 27, 2005)

ClearLakeClayt said:


> Too late for me... I'm getting the shakes and breaking out in a cold sweat just reading this thread! I keep a reel and tools in a brown paper bag in the bottom drawer of my desk for moments like this...


LMAO!


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## Scumfrog (Dec 9, 2012)

Dang it , my reels are all good,this is terrible


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## JSimpson65 (Feb 20, 2012)

george.maness86 said:


> They work but I won't run one just because of the max time in a cycle. I would pull my hair out if I had to reset it every 8 minutes. For the holiest it works great. Trying to get a lot of reels clean not so much or at least for me.


Brings up a good question. How long should an US cleaner run for? I also have a cheapy one that doesn't even have a timer - just hit the on switch and it runs a few minutes and stops. I assume there is no harm in going too long, but curious how long is typically enough?

Thanks,
Joe


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## george.maness86 (May 29, 2012)

JSimpson65 said:


> Brings up a good question. How long should an US cleaner run for? I also have a cheapy one that doesn't even have a timer - just hit the on switch and it runs a few minutes and stops. I assume there is no harm in going too long, but curious how long is typically enough?
> 
> Thanks,
> Joe


Depends on how dirty. I like running mine for 30 minutes which works perfectly with cleaning the outsides and reliving. Then I am ready to get all the small stuff.


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## Pro Reel (Jan 3, 2010)

Hey guys, I have cleaned thousands of bearings in my shop in the last several years. I use a us cleaner for most bearings, but have stopped using it for ceramics. I kept noticing that my ceramic hybrids would actually lose a little free spin after running them in the us tank. I did a lot of research and found some industrial info sites that actually suggested that sonic waves can produce a spider web of fine cracks in the ceramic balls. I now use the us tank for stainless bearings, but use other methods for ceramic hybrids. Larry at Boca told me they spray brake clean through the bearings to flush them out when they need one with out lube but only have lubed bearings in stock. I do that now, plus i found a neat method of finishing them off that gets them spotless clean inside. I carved the end of an old paint brush into a tapered stick. I then carved the other end to an 1/8 in stub that fits in my dremmel. I have a wide mouth jar full of solvent and i hold the bearing wedged on the taper, while submersed in the solvent. I'm holding the outside race with my fingers and the dremmel is spinning the inside race on the stick. While it's submersed, the solvent forms a venturi that sucks solvent through the bearing and because it's turning, all the balls are moving and getting scrubbed clean. As long as the bearing is submersed while you do this, it is being lubricated by the solvent so it dosent heat up and get damaged. You can do this to bearings that had a hitch spot in them even after all other cleaning and many times it will get loose whatever was still stuck and the bearing will run perfectly smooth after that. You only need to spin them at the low speed setting for 10 to 20 seconds to get them completly clean.


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## MattK (Feb 9, 2006)

We have been spinning out bearings for a long time and it works well most of the time but I have a concern with your method. I'm not sure what kind of solvent you are using but hopefully it's not flammable because dremels throw off and electrical spark from the brushes. You can see it in the dark.


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## xxxxxQTRODS (Nov 17, 2009)

*the best is*

brake cleaner fumes are tuff and it is flamable. the best is wd40 for cleaning bearings. it will unfreeze bearing that has been in salt are brackesh water. u have to lock the center race and spin the outer race or work it loose if its frozen. keep spraying through the bearing until the wd runs clear. i then put light weight in the bearing of choiset. i have tried all kinds of stuff over thirty or so years this is the best.


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