wheel bearings

[His Dudeness]

I discovered water has gotten into one of my front wheel bearings and it needs to be changed. I know you take the seal out first then knock the first bearing out with a drift and then knock the second one out but when you're knocking the first bearing out there doesn't seem to be much of the bearing free to hit against because of the inner spacer. All you've got is a small bit of the inner race to hit against. I want to try and get the bearing out intact so I was wondering if anyone has changed the front bearings what did you find was the best way to get that first bearing out?

[markbubble]

iv not done a fazer wheel bearing change but iv done loads of others but as a rule you can move the spacer across enuf (with a large screwdriver or similar) to be able to drift the bearing out,some carefully used heat(hot air gun or hot water orsimilar)near bearing will help expand the wheel slightly to aid removal(watch for burning paint,greese etc tho) when fitting new ones put bearings in freezer and warm wheel again and will again make muc easyer fitting,plenty but not too much grease on new bearings and smear on spindal to refit,buy good quality bearings and they will last a good while,id sugest because there not expensive to replace both bearings not just try and clean/grease your old ones ,ebay as well as your local bearing shop do them at great prices

[unfazed]

 Just to add to what markbubble recommends, ensure the pair of bearings have rubber seals and are C3 spec. The full bearing number for the front wheel is 6203/C3 RS, this is the middle range of bearing clearance and can cope with all heat and vibration levels in motorcycle wheels. Generally, internal clearances are designated from C1 (the tightest) through to C5 (the loosest or largest).
 With the spacer pushed aside there is only about 1 or 2 mm of space to use for pushing out the bearing. Work on opposite sides of the bearing by pushing the space to alternatively left and right and so on until the bearing falls out. Push out the righthand bearing first as it will push out the seal with it.
 When refitting the bearings fit the righthand side first snug up against the internal wheel lip. When driving the left one home take not to drive it in to far as the fazer wheels have a bit of room left between the bearing and the wheel lip. If you drive it into the lip you will not be able to rotate the bearings by putting your fingers in to turn them as the outer race will be pushed to tight against the ball in the bearing. You should be able to turn the bearings with your finger jammed in the axel hole. When driving in the bearing the sound will change when the internal race meets the spacer, stop driving. Don’t forget to put in the spacer before fitting the left hand side bearing can be easily forgotten.
 

[His Dudeness]

ok cheers for the tips thought there might have been a way of getting more purchase on the bearing but i guess you just have to be careful getting the first one out

[His Dudeness]

anyone got any opinions on the brand to get? there's koyo bearings in it now so i'm leaning towards them

koyo
skf
fag
nke
Nachi

[markbubble]

iv used skf,fag and koyo(and others) in the past with no problems at all not used the others you mentioned tho,price is an issue but id stay clear of the dirt cheap ones even the good ones arnt expensive and then you only do it once,i get the rubber sealed ones then can pop them out easy to regrease etc

[His Dudeness]

I went for the Koyo ones. Not cheap but Mr.Yamaha used them and he seems to know what he's at

[His Dudeness]

So I got the new bearings in with no major problems and went for a test ride and all is well. I took some picture of the operation but it's hardly worth putting them up. One thing I did find was that the bearing on the speedo side came out a lot easier than the other side so I would recommend taking that one out first.

[unfazed]

Yes you are correct, my post should have said to push out the left side first as it has less distance to travel and push in the right first.