I recall stories of hubs being cleaned, loaded with toothpaste, ridden a few miles, then cleaned again and greased.
-S-
Mark Stevens wrote:
>
> Dear All, I have done this successfully on an old pitted headset. Only good
> for an occasional rider as you will wear away the hardened surface to take out
> the pits. It's only microns thick.
> I used valve grinding paste from an auto repair shop. I held the cup in the
> lathe chuck smeared it with the paste and stuck a load of balls to it. Then
> the race was offered up on the running centre. A slow speed ,about 180rpm and
> moderate pressure was used. I kept undoing it all and cleaning out the black
> goo to check on progress. I also ran the lathe backwards and forwards. I guess
> on 5 -6 applications of paste before it looked uniform. I wont say smooth
> 'cause it wasn't. It looked dull grey but with no pits.
> Re Lawrence's enquiry about grey/black patches. If no rust is visible and
> it feels smooth then I would'nt worry too much. Mark Stevens. London