Reusing NEW Wheel Bearings?

Like all horror stories, this one began with a simple premise: I noticed a slight rear-end wobble while riding home from work. The rear tire was down to the bars, so that's probably the cause. No problem. Order new rubber, swear a bit during the swap and ride on. Right? Except the right side wheel bearing was toast. The inner race jiggled about, totally loose. The little balls burst out with a bit of tapping. Did I ride on that? Brrrr. That outer race was a pain to get out.

Okay, I'll just order some new bearings and...oh wait, the brake pads are lopsided now, probably thanks to that wobbling. Add new pads to the list. No big deal and a few days later, I'm back in the garage, cleaning the axle and spacers. The new bearings seem to have a touch of play when slid onto the axle. Not just in one area, the whole length. Is that normal? I guess that means more parts.

Alright, let's just get these new bearings seated and...it turns out you have to seat the RIGHT bearing first (there's a little shelf in the hub on that side). Then in goes the spacer and you seat the left bearing on the other side, carefully against the spacer. There's a little twist, of course. I tapped the LEFT bearing in first before learning about that detail. Knowing this might damage the bearing (and wanting to reassemble correctly), I tap the left bearing back out of the hub. It looks okay, spins freely and the seals seem intact. So can I reuse it? Or is a removed bearing a dead bearing, no matter what? Thanks in advance, gents.

If it was taken out without force, tapped out on outer race, spins freely... I would use it for sure.

Being a wheel bearing in the hub, I needed to tap it out using the inner race. Normally not an issue since they would be old/junk. Here it seems like a waste, though a cheap enough punishment for not reading the manual more closely. I've worked with bearings on other machines but they were more exposed and could be installed L/R or R/L without consequence.

Flywheel said:

The new bearings seem to have a touch of play when slid onto the axle. Not just in one area, the whole length. Is that normal? I guess that means more parts. .

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They should have some tolerance between the axle and the bearing, if there wasn't any play or tolerance - those parts would never fit.
When you tighten the axle nut, everything should squeeze against all the spacers making the bearings work properly.

Flywheel said:

Alright, let's just get these new bearings seated and...it turns out you have to seat the RIGHT bearing first (there's a little shelf in the hub on that side). Then in goes the spacer and you seat the left bearing on the other side, carefully against the spacer. There's a little twist, of course. I tapped the LEFT bearing in first before learning about that detail. Knowing this might damage the bearing (and wanting to reassemble correctly), I tap the left bearing back out of the hub. It looks okay, spins freely and the seals seem intact. So can I reuse it? Or is a removed bearing a dead bearing, no matter what? Thanks in advance, gents.

Click to expand...

I have no idea what you are asking here, sorry.

Sounds like you are using a drift to install bearings? if so be careful and don't damage them. Wheel bearings are just deep grove bearings, if you haven't impacted the raceways or hurt the cage or seal - they will be fine.

You can press or tap a bearing in or out by the outer race but you cannot tap a bearing in by the inner race as this can damage the race or the bearings themselves. You can also press a bearing in or out by the inner race as a last resort. Spin the bearing assy in your hand and feel for roughness or nicks, that'll give a good indication of it's condition. If you're unsure just get a replacement at a bearing supply store, they're not that expensive.

frekeyguy said:

They should have some tolerance between the axle and the bearing, if there wasn't any play or tolerance - those parts would never fit.
When you tighten the axle nut, everything should squeeze against all the spacers making the bearings work properly.

Click to expand...

There wasn't too much tolerance between the bearings and axle but I wasn't sure how much is acceptable. I'm used to a tighter press-fit with shafts/bearings, though that experience isn't motorcycle related. The tolerance seems even along the length of the axle though, no grooves or anything.

I have no idea what you are asking here, sorry.

Sounds like you are using a drift to install bearings? if so be careful and don't damage them. Wheel bearings are just deep grove bearings, if you haven't impacted the raceways or hurt the cage or seal - they will be fine.

Click to expand...

I used a large socket to install the new left bearing into the hub (right term?), tapping only on the outer race. Stopping to reread the service manual, I noticed that it specifies starting with the right (rotor side) bearing first. Not knowing how important that was, I decided to drive the new bearing out with a drift, using the inner race (carefully, it was still cold from the freezer). The scoot is a Burgman 650.

The right side hub is machined with a double lip at the bottom, the left side only has single lip, so there must be a reason to start with the right side, correct? Once removed, the bearing seals were fine and nothing seemed amiss, no dents or misalignment between the races. It turned without making noises or binding. I guess what I'm asking is: should a bearing be discarded when removed via the inner race, even if brand new? Does damage always occur, even if I can't see or feel it? Thanks again.

DJM said:

You can press or tap a bearing in or out by the outer race but you cannot tap a bearing in by the inner race as this can damage the race or the bearings themselves. You can also press a bearing in or out by the inner race as a last resort. Spin the bearing assy in your hand and feel for roughness or nicks, that'll give a good indication of it's condition. If you're unsure just get a replacement at a bearing supply store, they're not that expensive.

Click to expand...

If you are installing a bearing on a shaft, you need to use the inner ring to install. If you are installing a bearing in a housing, you use the outer ring.

Flywheel said:

There wasn't too much tolerance between the bearings and axle but I wasn't sure how much is acceptable. I'm used to a tighter press-fit with shafts/bearings, though that experience isn't motorcycle related. The tolerance seems even along the length of the axle though, no grooves or anything.

I used a large socket to install the new left bearing into the hub (right term?), tapping only on the outer race. Stopping to reread the service manual, I noticed that it specifies starting with the right (rotor side) bearing first. Not knowing how important that was, I decided to drive the new bearing out with a drift, using the inner race (carefully, it was still cold from the freezer). The scoot is a Burgman 650.

The right side hub is machined with a double lip at the bottom, the left side only has single lip, so there must be a reason to start with the right side, correct? Once removed, the bearing seals were fine and nothing seemed amiss, no dents or misalignment between the races. It turned without making noises or binding. I guess what I'm asking is: should a bearing be discarded when removed via the inner race, even if brand new? Does damage always occur, even if I can't see or feel it? Thanks again.

Click to expand...

sounds like you should be fine.

frekeyguy said:

If you are installing a bearing on a shaft, you need to use the inner ring to install. If you are installing a bearing in a housing, you use the outer ring.



sounds like you should be fine.

Click to expand...

Got it, so I've been doing things correctly in terms of installation.

I think I'll put the "used" bearing on the rotor side of the wheel--the rubber seal deforms as the bearing goes, so it's easy to inspect when I check tire pressure. Plus, I know how the scoot rides now when the part starts failing. If it does, I'll get more wrenching practice. It can't be more dangerous than the mess I was unknowingly riding on anyway.

put the bearing in freezer over nite, heat up the hub with a heat gun or torch (really hot) the en get the bearing, it should just fall in to place. to test the removed bearing put force in the middle and spin it. if you feel knocking, toss it.

Thanks guys. Bearings installed properly this time. No clicking, flexing or weeping detected, even when spun on the axle. Now all I need to do is get that SOB tire on the rim; maxi-scooter tires seem a lot stiffer than m/c tires when mounting.

Get liquid nitrogen... Fun stuff