How to check, replace and maintain dirt bike wheel bearings︱Cross Training Enduro

[@crosstrainingenduro]

EXTRA TIPS FROM VIEWERS Consider buying a bearing driver kit - foolproof and cheap. Put your bearings in the freezer overnight to slightly shrink them. Use a rubber mallet when tapping in, with a pipe or large socket on outer race. Even better, use old bearings to tap the new ones in! Budget lines in Japanese brands are sometimes made in China - see the fine print. CAN YOU OVERPACK A BEARING WITH GREASE? You don't need to jam a bearing completely full with grease. If bearings are doing extremely revolutions it creates extra friction and may even pop the seals out. But for enduro bikes they are spinning too slowly. We see nothing wrong with 80% full of grease.

[@Matt43]

Definitely recommend using a rubber mallet or dead blow hammer when driving bearings in. If you don't have one, a solid piece of wood that isn't going to splinter all over works well between your hammer and bearing.

[@sarathmenon4828]

A few things I can think of: A bearing driver kit is very inexpensive and makes the job 100 times easier - easily pays for itself in the time and effort saved for the first replacement. I usually only buy SKF bearings. Over the years, I've got SKF bearings made in Argentina, USA, Mexico, India and China. The reliability has always been the same irrespective of where they are made. The main thing to watch out is to buy from a proper industrial supplier and avoid no-name brands. I don't regrease my bearings, but I always use the sealed variant for wheels. Mine last several years and 30-40k+ before needing replacements. Most quality manufacturers add the correct amount of grease for the longetivity specified in their datasheet. It may seem lacking on inspection, but my experience has shown that it's plenty.

[@RodNeufeld]

I also put the new bearings in the freezer the day before I plan to do the job, just a little bit of cold to make it easier to put them in. I can't say that it helps any more than perceived effort but at least I think it is easier to put them in.

[@philmenzies2477]

When installing, avoid hitting the outer race directly with a hammer. Use a socket or short piece of pipe that is slightly smaller in diameter than the recess your bearing is going into.

[@lostinpa-dadenduro7555]

I have the wheel bearing tools from Tokyo Off-road. They work really well.

[@richardhammond2633]

Some excellent tips in the comments section. Water is the killer, i try and avoid the deeper stuff. I'm mechanically challenged by much beyond the basics so these videos are gold. Cheers.

[@ptft4]

Good tips, Agree all the way, my last and current bike has 220 and 245 hrs of enduro ponishment on the wheel bearings without any issues. This by the way applies for Linkage, swingarm and steering stem bearings as well.

[@crosstrainingenduro]

Good stuff!

[@randybounds2244]

If you ride the strip pits of SE Kentucky You know to check wheel bearings after every ride. The coal dust & sandstone mud eats chains, bearings, wear pads like they have a sponsorship.

[@destryrobinson3708]

I agree with everything said here all balls bearings are garbage, dont waste your money on them. Thanks for the pro tip on Japanese bearings, I didn't know that.

[@agee8322]

Agree. Pop the seal and grease them up. Freeze bearings, heat hub with a torch and bearings will almost drop in. Final tap home with a big thick flat washer just a bit smaller than the o/a bearing size. You will hear the sound change when bearing is seated. Use grease around gap between seal and spacer. Side that you popped the cover off, face that side into hub. Care with pressure washing - dont blast your bearings! Think about your other chassis bearings as well. Marine grease is the kiddie.

[@brapamaldi7666]

talk about timing. just about to replace my bearings since i noticed the rear wheel moving in ways it shouldnt, haha. its been through two engine rebuild since the last bearing change so probably a little overdue. looked up the sizes on a ktm supplier wbsite and bought them for a fraction of the cost at a local bearing supplier.

[@kevinarmstrong478]

And the dander of a bearing tightening up or seizing altogether. I usually take my old bearings into a bearing shop and more often than not they just look at them and get the replacements.

[@gophop]

Someone on Thumpertalk forum has recommended this. And I've been doing it every tire change. Put 2-3 drops of gear/transmission fluid on the bearing seal edge, clean and regrease the seals (don't need to remove them). Eventually some of that oil will seep into the bearing. Also, if there is any moisture inside the hub, I use a leaf blower to dry it. I have wheels with 350hrs and original bearings.

[@PeterSzaraz-rr6st]

That is a very clever suggestion! I completely removed all the grease and flushed the bearings with engine oil. This is also valid for the linkage and for the PDS. I don't even need to change the seals since then. The seals need a fluid to fulfill their purpose. The grease is anything but a fluid. I apply grease on the steering bearing only.

[@Thebowber]

An often overlooked part of fitting wheel bearings is how far you drive them in. It's tempting to just knock them in until they stop moving, but this often drives the outer in to far and adds too much side load to the bearing, or they don't go in far enough and then once you tighten the wheel spindle you add side load, this is one of the worst loads for this type of bearing.

[@devaneaton4651]

Solved my problem , thank you

[@MOTOMINING]

Professional Mechanic/machinist here, don't fill roller bearings more than 2/3 full of grease, or they can blow up! In a pinch, the old bearings can be used to drive the new ones in most of the way, and socket can be used to finish them. Make sure you hear that KLAK at the end, that means they are seated properly! Also, I grease the piss out of the spacer and the void within, to prevent any water from intruding.

[@bobromans4476]

I have for many decades, while the bearings are out of the the hub, drilled, tapped and added a grease fitting to the middle of the hub, so that once assembled I pump the entire void with waterproof grease so that water and mud cannot enter. Extending the bearing life 2 to 3 times. I do remove the inner bearing seal to allow the grease to flow thru the bearings and seal. One pump of grease after every ride insures nothing will enter. This may add friction to the hub assembly, but at the speeds I ride at, 60 MPH or less, usually about 25 MPH, I have never noticed a bearing "blowing up ". I only do this on dirt bikes, not road bikes. Have you had bearings "blow up " ?

[@MOTOMINING]

You were onto something when you mentioned friction. When packed with too much grease,bearings overheat, and with thermal expansion the grease has nowhere to go so the seals blow, leading to an overheated, under lubricated, contaminated bearing.@@bobromans4476

[@reecebauer5261]

I appreciate all your videos!!

[@crosstrainingenduro]

Glad you like them Reece!

[@glenobrien727]

Check the spacers, if there is a wear groove in the alloy axle spacers , replace them too , its no good fitting new hub seals in the spacers are worn

[@Dom-nt4gn]

I have seen a destroyed wheel bearing break the rear hub on a bike. Also a wheel bearing check is part of my pre ride checklist. I do it while checking my psi.

[@OtisFlint]

Buying from a bearing supplier is the way to go. Main bearings for a vintage KTM were $200. Quality Japanese bearings (same spec) were $40. I've got a KX450 with smoked main bearings on the bench now. $80 from Kawi, $40 from a bearing supplier. Bearings are essentially standardized, just look up the code and you'll have a list of substitutes from quality Japanese suppliers at half cost or less.

[@Hyngyynj]

Is there a good way to get the code/size? I’ve always heard of people buying straight the from the supplier but not sure how to find the size. Might be a dumb question haha

[@crosstrainingenduro]

Damn, that's a massive price difference with the KTM bearings!

[@spatchist]

​@@Hyngyynj re: sizing bearings - get out the calipers and measure them - you need id, od and width . At least in the UK there are websites for bearing specialists that will show the results for the dimensions.

[@damiank2568]

Take the bearing with you to the bearing shop and they will measure it (if there is one near you) @@Hyngyynj

[@stuarttrezise7542]

D❤ewZ

[@imridingwithstoopidohwaiti3948]

I will say I found if you take all balls and pull the seal out and grease them from the start they do fairly well.. We have lots of mud and Im a big guy so even OE stuff tends not to last... All balls come barely greased with with some odd clear grease Im pretty sure its their main problem.. I still try not to buy them but if your in a pinch use them just pack them with good grease to start.

[@Phillip_of_Burns]

I needed this video in September! :)

[@murraybarber777]

i,ve been greasing my bearings for years as a matter of course and have over 110,000 adv kms on the oem bearings on a 2013 dr 650,and in british columbia we have water crossings..no crocs though

[@MrJanaRobi]

I use the axle to line up the wheel bearings so they go in strait .

[@firefly3333]

I had a rear bearing fail on US50 exactly halfway between Gunnison and Montrose, Colorado headed West. No cell service, and it was bad enough that it would throw the chain every 50ft. Only person with me was my wife on her bike. We got lucky and a fellow DSer happened by with a trailer load of his own bikes but had enough room for mine. He hauled us back to Gunnison but the KTM guy there was already closed for the weekend. So we stayed the night there, then I rode her 400 lc4 all the way back to Buena Vista to get the car and trailer, then to Gunnison for my bike and wife, then on to Montrose where that KTM dealer was open Saturday. Lastly, to the Harbor Freight for the requisite tools to change wheel bearings. Luckily after that we got another two good days of motor camping in high in the San Juans.

[@crosstrainingenduro]

A good samaritan!

[@johnroethel5527]

Easy way to change bearings. Heat the hub to 180- 200 F with a heat gun. Bearings practically fall out and new bearing taps in easily. No need to chill bearings before hand. Merry Christmas to one and all

[@lessmore444]

I like to abuse my socket set by employing the correct size for the outer bearing race to hammer on when installing the new ones

[@billhill4479]

A couple of points. Buy a bearing and seal driver kit. They are pretty cheap and they do a much better job. Also buy yourself a decent drift punch. They are a bit pricier but so much better. Don't forget to buy a small short handled mash hammer that has a nice bit of weight about it. You can use a claw hammer and a lump of pipe to get out of trouble but the right tools are so much better and there is much less chance you'll stuff it up or hurt yourself. You'll be surprised how often you'll use those tools on other jobs in the shed. Don't over grease those bearings. Put a little extra in but don't pack them full like the old days as too much grease can be as bad as too little. Regreasing the seals is a great idea if you can pop them out without damaging them. Wheel bearings are cheap, really easy to change and should be checked almost every ride. Especially if you ride in the mud and wet. Much better than having one fail on a ride.

[@cedricboivin9422]

There's a reason why they isn't a lot of grease in new bearings. Too much grease can cause drag/excess heat at speed However, motorcycle speed are nowhere near the limit of those bearing so repacking full won't be a problem What may hurt is the damage you do to the seal when popping it up. For that reason, I don't personally recommend repacking a new bearings

[@PeterSzaraz-rr6st]

In my opinion, it's not the quality of the bearings that determines the next service cycle. Many times, the bearings suffer irreparable damage due to improper installation. By applying some heat on the hub, the bearing can be slid easily into its place -without any pressure. Then the next mistake is greasing the bearing and the seals. The rotation immediately pushes the grease out from the contact point of the seals and the bearing spacers -allowing moisture and dirt to get in the hub. Applying some oil does its job and guarantees a life lifelong time for the bearings and the seals.

[@enduro-parts-aus]

No matter what i do i usually only get 50-70 hours out of my rear wheel bearings Have tried everything to stop it from happening but nothing works 😅

[@donaldgrant9067]

I will say there are good bearing and there are all the rest. The good ones are more expensive but well worth it. Find a place that specializes in bearing.

[@twowheelsabove]

bearing rust faster on mechanical speedometer side 😑 _(so i get rid of it)_ 😅

[@EB-rj3ds]

Idee per nuovi video: - mousse - camere d’aria - alternative (tubliss, luccioli…)

[@asherlito3801]

Somehow my drz400 bearings are still going and those have been through hell. Not as much water crossing as enduro riders but at 13k hard miles of just about every type of riding from rockey single track to whoops in the desert they are holding up great. So maybe OEM Suzuki is a good way to go?

[@kevinarmstrong478]

Of course is dual sport guys need to be super careful as a bearing failure on the ride home isn’t funny. my brother once went over the bars!

[@asherlito3801]

@@kevinarmstrong478 i still check them every tire change but there is no play in the wheel.

[@ThisTall]

Ever had any issues packing wheel bearings full on a dirtbike? They get pretty stiff when you fill them.

[@crosstrainingenduro]

Not for dirt riding. We don't cram them full of grease, just put plenty in. Possibly not a good idea for high revolutions... say road racing?

[@mototrailz]

One brand: SKF 👌

[@BricoleurTV]

Nothing wrong with Swedish SKF-bearings either... Use the old bearing as a punch to drive the new one in or (even better) find a socket that just about fits into the hub and only touches the outer ring of the bearing. Like a poor mans press...

[@tazyt3388]

yeah there the bain of our existence mate 10 mins to service the 2wheelers hr per end on the quads time well spent though no one likes walking cause they seize

[@michaelcaton9358]

Try riding in wales…. Bearings fail quicker than you can wear your tyres out…. 😂

[@FeuerZerstoren]

Сперва лучше нагреть ступицу горелкой, а потом уже выбивать/запрессовывать новый подшипник

[@michael397]

SKF better than NSK 😁

[@andrecontois8510]

Different size spacers on either side, really? Engineers, geez

[@danielseibert4082]

I dont know... without any maintenance my rear wheel bearing last for a minimun of 150 hours and front wheel double the time. Just ride them until they are done..

[@mauser8515]

I know in my last enduro race my main rival and I were chatting and he said his beating were worn. I knelt down to give the wheel a wobble and damn were they both loose. I was laughing, and he still beat my ass! Lolol