Debate: Should you grease every bolt on a bike or just some of them?

I’ve been wrenching for like 5 years and always greased every single bolt on a build, even brake caliper bolts. Then last week I had a customer’s seatpost slip on a brand new frame, and a mechanic at the shop told me I’ve been putting grease on things that need friction, like seatpost clamps. He said the manual for a 2022 Trek Emonda actually says no grease on the clamp bolt. So now I don’t know what to do. Do you grease everything or pick and choose based on the part? I’m curious where you all draw the line.

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the_nina1mo ago

Used to slather everything in grease myself until the same thing happened with a customer's dropper post. Really changed my thinking once I realized you're basically creating a slip plane on parts that need to stay put. Now it's grease for threads and bearings but anything clamping something where friction matters gets a dry install or maybe a tiny bit of carbon paste.