New wheel bearings

[Guest]

So I picked up a full set of brand new bearings at the bearing supply place and I have the sealed bearings for the front. The other bearings are exactly like the ones taken out only they have a shield on both sides. The guy said I could pop off the one side if I need to. So finally that is my question, should I take off that shield and repack them with grease or just put them in as they are? Thanks!

[7981GS]

They are packed/sealed bearings.
Just install.

Daniel

[midnightcafe]

Unsure what you're asking. Shielded bearings can be repacked with grease, but sealed bearings are non-serviceable.

http://www.wwdmag.com/how-grease-lubricated-bearings-function-article4043

Bearings of the sealed design will not permit entry of new grease, whereas with shielded bearings grease will be drawn in as the bearing cage assembly rotates

I would assume the shielded bearing would be greased for installation. I'm curious if this assumption is correct...

[Nessism]

I would get bearings that are sealed on at least one side for the rear outer bearings. The large one in the sprocket carrier can be full open. Shielded bearings can let dirt enter which is not good.

[ukilme]

IF they are what I think they are, yes you can pop them and repack it with grease and then put the 'shields' back in.

Personally, I would as I do not find often there isn't much grease from the factory to be with.

[bwringer]

Leave the shields and/or seals in place. They don't hurt anything, and help retain the grease.

The bearings already contain the right amount of grease. If you remove the shield, it doesn't look like much grease, but it is the correct amount. You don't need to add to or replace the grease that's already in there. In fact, different types of grease can be chemically incompatible, so adding grease to the unknown grease inside the bearing could actually cause early failure.

Keep in mind that these bearings are primarily designed for very high-speed, very heavily loaded industrial uses. Duty as motorcycle wheel bearings is a tiny fraction of their capabilities.

Here are the specs for an ordinary cheapo low-rent 6302 bearing, as used in the front of a GS:
Dynamic Radial Load Capacity, lbs.
2,550
Maximum rpm
12,000
Temperature Range
-22° to +230° F

Motorcycle wheel bearings never actually wear out -- they simply get contaminated by water and/or dirt, and then the contaminants destroy the bearing. In this environment, the seals are most critical to long life, so don't disturb them.

[koolaid_kid]

I have repacked a sealed bearing on an LS1 idler pulley. Just popped the cover off, packed it with grease, and reinstalled the seal. I put too much in and some leaked out, but it no longer squeaked or squealed.
On my wheel bearings, however, I would not run the risk. My bike's tender bits and my tender bits are too precious to me.

[bwringer]

Wheel bearings are cheap -- depending on the supplier, you can easily pick up new bearings for $3 to $8 each if you know the numbers. I always keep the common GS sizes "in stock", which has saved the day on more than one occasion.

http://www.skatebearings.com/6300-series.htm

http://www.thebigbearingstore.com/servlet/the-473/6302-dsh-2RS-6302-dsh-ZZ-Radial-Ball/Detail

All Suzuki GS shafties use two 6302 bearings in front, two 6303 in the rear.

Chain drive GS bikes also use 6302 in front, but the rears vary a bit. There's also a larger third bearing in the sprocket carrier. Look on the fiche (any place that uses Suzuki part numbers -- NOT BikeBandit), and the bearing number will be embedded in the description and/or the part number. (Other common bearing numbers include 6204 and 6305.)

The kits from All Balls are also not a bad deal.


If you have the slightest doubt, change the bearings. I used to change them every other tire change, but now I normally just go by an inspection of the seals and by how they feel when I spin them with a finger.

[koolaid_kid]

Yup. If they feel like they have sand in them when you spin them by hand, replace them. Pretty much true for all bearings, btw.

[ikantbreave]

Thanks for all the great info, folks! As usual. Well, I ended up putting in all the bearings as they came out of the box as Brian said. I did fubar one of the front bearings trying to get the spacer out because.... I used the rear wheel spacer instead and caused all kinds of havoc. It all worked out in the end and now moving on to putting the tires on.

[midnightcafe]

Yup. If they feel like they have sand in them when you spin them by hand, replace them. Pretty much true for all bearings, btw.

+1. When I got my front tire replaced at the local shop, I told the owner how my bike still needed some work, that I hadn't checked out the wheel bearings yet. My wheel was on the tire puller machine and he wiggled the bearing and told me they were sh1t. That distinctive "sandy" feel is a giveaway. Lesson learned; whenever you rebuild a bike, replacing wheel bearings is another checklist item. Other people say you should swap out the steering head bearings for modern tapered bearings, but as long as the ball bearings and races are smooth/in good shape, repacking them with grease should do just fine.

[Darin Jordan]

The kits from All Balls are also not a bad deal.

I'm getting ready to order a new bearing set for my GS... Just wanted to double-check to make sure that this statement is still true?? I need to order a couple of other things that Bike Bandit stocks, and Z1 doesn't, and I like to try to order all from one place when I order if possible.

Their kits from All Balls seem to be pretty nicely priced. http://www.bikebandit.com/all-balls-...=3650&t=1&td=1

If they are good quality, I'll pull the trigger.

Thanks,

[cowboyup3371]

Darin,
When you say Z1 doesn't carry something, is it based on what's on their website? If so, call them. You'll find out they don't post everything on their site but there's little they can't get.

[mike_of_bbg]

Z1 lists the wrong bearings for the rear of my bike. The standard bearing numbers are embedded as the first four digits of the second set of 5 #'s in the Suzuki part #. Check the fiche - it's always best to be sure!

[Dakotakid]

Do the All Balls kits contain Chinese bearings? Judging by their price...I would rather think so. My local industrial bearing supplier recently sold me Koyo's (as I recall) which were the same supplier as OEM (Japanese). The rears in the 850 wheel were like $7 each.