How fast do bearings wear out?
My wife and I put nearly 500 miles on the bike over the weekend... I parked it on Monday night after having NO problems.
Today I went to work and I heard pops and bangs from the front end... I put it up on the centre stand and could really see anything wrong... Gave the wheel a spin and heard one little clunk.
By the time I got home it sounded like I was making popcorn.
An hour later I have new bearings in the front wheel but it's raining and I cant test it out yet.
My question is: Is it common for bearings to go bad this fast?
Two Notes I found elsewhere:
1. To remove bearings use liquid nitrogen to freeze/shrink the bearing.
2. Put the new bearings in the freezer before installation.
Also Posted on V4HondaBBS
When you removed the old bearings were they:
Dry? (no grease in them)
Rusted?
Falling apart? (came out in pieces)
Every time I put the bike up on a stand, I spin the front wheel and listen, then move it around by hand and feel. Never found a problem yet in either of my '96 Magnas. (I also check the fork bearing at the same time.)
If kept lubricated properly, and if the seals are in good condition to exclude dust and moisture, they should run for a very long time.
Not long after I got my '94 I replaced the front tire.. with my hand, the bearings felt "chunky" you know chunk, chunk chunk as you spin them with your finger, so I replaced them.. I've put on at least 50K miles since then, and all is fine..
A little later I had some noised similar to what you are expressing and it turned out to be the metal plate that engages the speedo piece on the front wheel. The tabs were bent and were slipping by the plastic catches on the speedo piece.. I bent the tabs and that has been fine ever since as well..
One side felt perfect (I replaced it anyway of course as I had hammered on it to get it out.)
The Other had a broken seal (My fault on removal) and the cage that holds the balls in place was broken in a few places. It was full of UGLY looking silver (bits of metal I expect) grease.
I have inspected the wheel fairly regularly... And never seen anything out of the ordinary. I suspect it was simply a case of catestrophic failure... But I've never had a bearing go on a bike before.
Fork Bearing? Head Bearing?
There's nothing you can do with the sealed bearings is there? Other than replace them if they develop a problem is there?
Quote from: arbadacarba on May 25, 2011, 08:47:46 PM
There's nothing you can do with the sealed bearings is there? Other than replace them if they develop a problem is there?
I will tell you that when I installed the new bearing (that I got at a bearing company NOT Honda).. I was not impressed with the quantity of grease, SO.. I lifted the seal and got a little more in there..
Bearings seem to go bad quick when using a pressure washer or car wash. Water is forced into bearing.
I figure that's what did mine in. I pressure washed it a couple of times last year... I've learned better since then.
The fact that the bearing behind the speed sensor was fine leads me to conclude that that is the likely culprit.