squeaky GT mirage drive

Last year, I had an issue with my mirage drive squeaking, which I was eventually able to resolve. This year, I "upgraded" to the GT drive components, and I've now got a worse squeak. The video gives a pretty good idea of how annoying it is.



Not only does this noise drive me nuts, but I wouldn't be surprised it it's attracting every shark within 10 miles. If I can't fix it this weekend, I'm going to "downgrade" back to the non-GT setup.

It's easy to reproduce the problem and it seems that the noise is coming from the plastic bearing rubbing on the spine. The offending bearings are visible in the picture.

I'm thinking that this might be solved by placing a washer between the bearings and the spine. But, a stainless fender washer might eventually cause problems due to it rubbing against the axle. Maybe a nylon washer would be a better choice? Anyways, if you have any suggestions let me know.

I'll post more once I find a solution, or give up, as the case may be...

What kind of lubricant is in there?

On both of my GT mirage drives there is a small amount of grease that has worked its way out of there with use of the drives.
Both of mine are silent.

What kind of lubricant is in there?

On both of my GT mirage drives there is a small amount of grease that has worked its way out of there with use of the drives.
Both of mine are silent.

I didn't use any grease. Here's a quote regarding the GT drive from the Hobie forum at http://www.hobiecat.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=53229 (look for the 2nd post by Roadrunner):

"I believe Hobie is currently greasing them with marine axle grease. Apparently they originally were not going to grease but found that they had a tendency to squeak over time. The potential for grit and grease is no different than with the older Drives-- rarely an issue. I understand Hobie has tested these extensively both with and without grease with no accelerated wear problems either way. Delrin is pretty tough stuff (is also low friction)."

So, I might try greasing them, but I'm skeptical that it'll last very long (since the squeak comes from the ends of the bearings rubbing on the spine, not from the bearings rubbing against each other). And, I also don't agree that the "potential for grit" is the same with the GT drive---I think it's much greater and grease will tend to trap it. Anyways, my GT upgrade was completely silent the first couple of times I used it, then a very small squeak started about the 3rd time out, and it's gotten progressively worse each time.

Sorry to hear about your problem Nowhereman.

If the lubrication on the drive doesn't work .

Try a little Wd40 on your knee's, maybe that's where the problem is ? 

Hope ya get it figured out. That noise would irritate me as well.

Alex

My GT Drive came greased from the factory.  6 months of use and no squeaks.  I lubricate the metal parts with WD 40 after every 2 trips.

That sure sounds annoying!  I'm not a grease expert, but was thinking that silicone might be a good option.  I use it on my MD, the hatches, the rudder, etc.  It doesn't seem to pickup as much grit as grease does. 

Try a little Wd40 on your knee's, maybe that's where the problem is ? 

Hope ya get it figured out. That noise would irritate me as well.

Alex

Hey, that's a thought...

Yea, I'd try silicone spray first.

Anyway, let us know what you do and results please.

Yea, I'd try silicone spray first.

Anyway, let us know what you do and results please.

I should have mentioned that I'd used some silicone spray before the last outing and it was worse than the previous time.

I took the drums off, greased it all as best I could and put it back together. I should get a chance to test it out this weekend. If it squeaks again, it'll be hard to resist throwing the thing overboard...

From the photo, it looks fairly new ? No warranty left ?

Alex

I don't have any experience with the new GT Drive but I know on my current drive it definitely wants to be lubricated before every use.   Hope u can figure out the problem.

As I previously mentioned, I greased the bearings on the main axle (the 1/2" stainless that the crank arms pivot on). I forgot to mention that before doing so, I filed the bearings down so they are all about 1/16" shorter. I filed them because it seems to me that the noise was mostly (if not entirely) coming from the ends of the bearings rubbing on the spine.

I was on the water today for 4.5+ hours, pedaling (essentially) nonstop, and no squeak. It's interesting that the other bearings apparently don't require any lube. And now I'm wondering if it would have been enough to just shorten the bearings. I'd really like to not have to grease them, if possible, since there's a good chance of washing dirt out if there's no grease, but if some grit gets into the grease, that'll be a serious issue.

Assuming grease really is necessary, it would be nice if there was way to inject grease into those bearings without disassembling. I've seen on the Hobie site that someone installed grease zerks (non-GT drive), but it seems like those would not be very solid, since they're only screwed into the plastic. I think a small (like 1/8") hole would suffice, provided there is some way to plug it that won't interfere with the bearings.

Anyways, the bottom line is that the problem is solved. Regardless, I'm still probably going to experiment with it some more.

Glad you were able to make some head way on your issue nowhereman. Now I wont be hesitant in fishing near you wish the GWS caller rectified. Enjoy your posts.

Alex

Glad you were able to make some head way on your issue nowhereman. Now I wont be hesitant in fishing near you wish the GWS caller rectified. Enjoy your posts.

Alex

Yes, with that squeak I was thinking I had the ideal GWS lure. Unfortunately, I was riding in it.

Just a quick update...

Recently, my GT drive started making some noise, and it was getting a little worse each time. It was nothing like the screech in the video above, but still far from (and getting farther from) silent. I suspect that either some grit had worked its way into the bearings or the lube was getting washed out.

Just for fun, this week I downgraded to the standard drive so I could get a better comparison of the two. The GT drive definitely makes for easier pedaling---after 4 or 5 hours of trolling, the difference is fairly significant. And for sprints, I'd say it's even more noticeable.

Anyways, I've got the GT drive apart and I'm debating on what to use to lubricate it. If you've got suggestions, don't hesitate to suggest. Ideally, I'd like to have something in there that won't trap dirt, and can be reapplied without disassembly.