Peaty’s Bicycle Assembly Grease

Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

According to Peaty's website:

For general use in headsets, bottom brackets, bolts and axles, Peaty's Bicycle assembly grease uses the latest generation of base oils and additives to provide long-lasting, low friction performance under extreme pressures.

* Keeps your bike running quieter & smoother for longer

* Long-lasting lubrication under extreme loads

* High resistance to water washout

* Anti-corrosion protection

* Readily biodegradable

* Carbon safe

* 100% recycled packaging

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

Peaty's scientists explain:

"In order for it to lubricate really well, a good grease needs molecules which flow over each other easily (less drag) and coat the metal surface thoroughly and evenly, to prevent metal on metal contact (which results in parts wearing out).

In nerd talk, our base oils have been formulated using synthetic esters with a marked polarity.

Ok... Who's ester and why is she in your oil?!

Ester isn't a woman, it's a variant of synthetic oil! Esters are more expensive than straight synthetic oils because the ingredients all have to be collected from natural sources and then synthesised in much smaller quantities than regular synthetic oil.

The number one reason to use ester oil is how well it bonds to surfaces. Ester oil has an electrochemical bond because the ester molecule is polar, sort of like a fridge magnet. It is attracted to metal and sticks like peaty's hand to a fresh cool pint of yorkshire ale.

Also, because of this electrochemical charge, the grease naturally distributes itself evenly over a surface since each molecule will repel away from each other - like trying to push two positive ends of a magnet together."

Peaty's Bicycle Assembly Grease is compatible with all oils of a mineral or synthetic nature except for PAG (polyalkylene glycol) based products.

It feels like a quality grease, easy to spread thinly and evenly over bearings. So far it's stayed where I've put it.

Peaty's claims it's got high resistance to water wash-out. While I haven't had winter conditions to ride in during the test period, it's still all where I put it in my bottom headset race (a notoriously demanding environment!) and mech pivots.

The use of Synthetic esters as opposed to ordinary synthetic oils means this product costs more than some all-purpose products, but even so, given the price comparisons outlined below, it's not outrageously expensive.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

This is a nice medium thickness blue grease that's ideal for coating sealed bearings, threads and axles. It goes on smoothly and economically and so far has stayed put.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Mmm, minty fresh!

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

You need an M15 threaded grease gun to fit this tube. I tried it with the three (!) guns in my workshop and it didn't fit any of them.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

Price comparisons aren't easy as a lot of greases are sold by volume rather than weight. However, Park Tool High Performance Grease is priced at £13.99 for 113g, and Finish Line's Premium Grease for Bicycles has a full retail price of £29.99 for 457g. Respectively these work out at 12p and 6 1/2p per gram of grease, compared to Peaty's 10p.

Use this box to explain your overall score

Short of extending the test into winter conditions, it's hard to fault the performance of this grease. It feels like a quality product of excellent thickness and consistency for smoothing over sealed bearings and into the headset, and weather-resistant enough for wheel bearings without being stiff or claggy.