Wheel Bearings

[Pablo]

My DB MB is over 20 years old. I have had a motor on it for the last 6 months.

I have been riding it very hard, I mean slamming it and then going 40 mph then braking hard then downshifting and hitting the fuel up the drive over 3" ruts....all to stress the jackshaft as much as possible....

Until this weekend, I had never even seen the bearings.

I opened the rear up. The grease was a bit aged, but all the balls and races were perfect. I cleaned everything perfectly and buttoned it up with some Amsoil synthetic racing grease.

 

[duivendyk]

I think total milage and especially contamination with abrasive dirt, more than speed per se (within limits) are the principal factors affecting bearing life.Of course quality of components such as surface hardness and the load factor (load to bearing size) are additional factors affecting bearing life expectancy

 

[augidog]

gotta love the steel "105G" shimano-coaster wheel

i've used the same shimano coaster hub that's currently on "bluto" for over 1500 miles with 3 different styles of drive lashed to it, i tear it down and grease it up once in a while & keep a close eye on the bearing-adjustment...

tho the spokes aren't happy about some of the things i've put 'em
thru, i see no signs of this bad baby giving in any time soon

 

[rossfree]

Hi Misteright,

I don't question that you had a problem. And I don't want to state that what I said applies in every case. The bearing problem you had is curious. I don't know what caused it other than what I mentioned before.

But I do not believe that the small engines we have added to our bikes do not add much in additional stresses to the bearings... other than we will likely ride the bike more miles than the normal rider.

The GEBE kit puts more stress on the spokes than anything else. I've broken three and have new 12 gauge spokes on order. The sprockets being bolted onto the bike hubs could cause bearings problems if the hub was distorted in the process of bolting them on. I have no experience with this method and likely this issue does not come up with any frequency or we'd hear about it here.

Steel balls will take a LOT of force. The race is likely the weakest link in the bearing hubs. If the race became distorted or the lubricant dirty or gritty you can expect undue wear and tear. Also overtightening the nuts squeezing the bearings to the hubs can put significant loads on the bearing races.

If you are using a chain to a relatively small sprocket then fairly significant loads are likely being placed on the axil and hub. If they are enough to distort either then you have likely found your problem.

Then there's the material quality influence.

My two cents only... I make this stuff up as best I can.

Ross

 

[uncle_punk13]

My two cents only... I make this stuff up as best I can.
Ross

LMAO!!! Great stuff that...