Front Wheel Bearings

[dickturpin]

After reading the words of encouragement on this site, I have just ordered a pair of front wheel bearings for my 2004 23k miles Fazer. Does this seem premature for new bearings? The symptom was a bit of 'notchiness' when cornering. No play evident on the front wheel bit I can hear a 'ticking' when I spin the wheel with the calipers removed.
Prices do vary dramatically on fleabay but I ordered from bikebearings in the end.


D

[markbubble]

not sure on expected milage you should get but depends on how well maintened and riding conditions they have been in but if in doubt then its a good idea to change them,you could get them from local bearing supplier as they will only be metric bearings i persume,prices and quality do vary greatly tho
 

[Phil TK]

Good call. Any noises from bearings when you spin them is a signal to replace, I recently did mine and it's a simple quick job and of course the bearings cost less than an hour down the pub.
 You mentioned 'notchiness' when cornering which would have me checking the steering head bearings. When you have the front wheel out -and if your bike is very securely jacked up, it would be worth moving the steering from side to side feeling for 'notches'. Unfortunately replacing steering bearings is a pain usually, but needs to be done sooner rather than later as notchy bearings get worse quickly.

[Gingernutz]

Wemoto.com do them for as fair price. Better safe than sorry - they are cheap enough so change them. Not sure if you have the last of FzS but if so watch the accelerator ceramic drive dog (little ceramic disc at end of cable - they break really easily)

[dickturpin]

As an update, make sure you order the kit YA004. It is cheaper than the two bearings alone and includes the seals.

[Lazarus]

i got mine replaced in June - there was a slight play on the front and as I was getting anew tyre anyway, told the guy to replace the bearings anyway
 
Thats on a 2003 FZS600 with about 19000 miles.

[AdieR]

I'm with Phil on this - I'd be checking head bearings too.
Beware also that bearings can fail due to aggressive jet washing (the pressure drives out the grease).
Whilst some bearings will be specific, many are "generic" (it keeps manufacturing costs down) and used widely through the engineering sector (and as such, quite possibly cheaper than getting it from a bike / car shop).

[VNA - BMW Wank]

Yup if you get the details off the bearing you can get a better higher spec bearing off these guys for a fraction of the cost of the cheapie OE bearing. 


http://www.scots-bearings.co.uk/

If you work in engineering you'll find the same bearings fitted to pumps and small electrical motors etc. 


There should be various bearing services firms across the country.

[chris.biker]

Yup if you get the details off the bearing you can get a better higher spec bearing off these guys for a fraction of the cost of the cheapie OE bearing. 


http://www.scots-bearings.co.uk/

If you work in engineering you'll find the same bearings fitted to pumps and small electrical motors etc. 


There should be various bearing services firms across the country.

Bearing suppliers can provide bearings very cheaply if your in the trade but then you can get as much as a 70% discount, but if you have a price of OE if their cheaper you will know.
OE I take to mean  original equipment if so I can not see the likes of Yamaha needing to fit sub standard bearings, other cheap after market bearings I would be wary of.

[VNA - BMW Wank]

Bearing suppliers can provide bearings very cheaply if your in the trade but then you can get as much as a 70% discount, but if you have a price of OE if their cheaper you will know.

Not quite sure what you are trying to say.  Bearing services don't usually deal with the public, but if you phone up or turn up at their counter they will generally serve you.  And as they don't generally deal with the public, well, as far as I am aware, there ain't no trade and retail prices, just one price.   Sure they will discount a wee bit for big contracts.

OE I take to mean  original equipment if so I can not see the likes of Yamaha needing to fit sub standard bearings, other cheap after market bearings I would be wary of.

Yes OE means Original Equipment, as in what the bike comes with.  I never said that Yamaha fit sub standard bearings, but they will fit the cheapest option that will do the job.

The wheel bearings fitted to your bike will usually have a multitude of industrial applications.   In the power station in which I work we use loads of these types of bearings in a variety of different applications.   A good industrial electrician or mechanical fitter will understand the codes or refer to their guides to determine correct bearing selection.  There can be quite a few different options for one basic type of bearing, plus a quite a few manufactueres.  Most of the stuff I see is SKF.

A simple upgrade to better seals and a high tolerance unit over the one fitted to the bike will cost you buttons at the bearing factor, the guy at the counter should quickly determine the best option for your application (assuming you have the bearing code).

There's a thread in the thou section, BMCfaz got a quote for the OE chain and sprockets kit, it was 568.89 quid.  I wouldn't bother asking a Yamaha dealer about bearings, just get a set of best quality SKF from the bearing factor for buttons. 

If you wanna read up on bearing selection;

http://www.skf.com/portal/skf/home/products?maincatalogue=1&lang=en&newlink=1_0_50

[dickturpin]

Right boys, the bearings and seals have arrived. Anything I need to know that isn't explained well in Mr Haynes manual?


Thanks


D

[wfbroddy]

Mr Haynes will probably say heat the wheel up so you can remove/refit the bearings, if you don't have a heat source boiling water poured over the area can work,

if using a flame as a heat sourec don't let it play too long on the one area or you'll be getting your wheels re-powder coated as well..............

Don't know I know that 

[dickturpin]

Do I need to freeze these bearings?

[paul1606]

nooo just rest the wheel on a couple of bits of wood on the casting & not the disc and drift them out they should come out reletively easily, you can try and freeze them if they are a bitch to remove

[VNA - BMW Wank]

Can't see how you can freeze a bearing to remove it??

But yeah if it's tight, bag the bearing and freeze it overnight and hope it'll slip neatly into the wheel the next day.

[dickturpin]

Yeah, sorry guys, I meant for the replacement.

[paul1606]

freeze spray m,man its the future

[dickturpin]

OK Guys, job done, just need to test drive now!
At the risk of appearing dense I will add a comment that might help someone else trying for the first time.....remove the old bearings by drifting downwards out of the underside of the wheel. I tried to get them out upwards and failed miserably! Then the penny dropped!


When you've finished laughing....This site is about helping others and I don't think that part of 'the bleedin' obvious' is mentioned elsewhere.

D

[VNA - BMW Wank]

Job done - nice one.