am I gonna die (wheel bearing question)

I recently replaced the rear wheel bearings on my 79 SR650. Getting the old ones out was tricky but putting the new ones in was even worse.

Long story short, I was not able to get them far enough in so that the distance collar touches the inner races of each bearing. There's about 1/16" gap(maybe even less) And believe me they aren't gonna go in any further, (unless I use a bearing press)

I put in the axle and torqued it up, and the wheel rolled very smoothly and did not rock at all. My fear is that when I torque the axle nut I will put an excess load on the inner race, since the distance collar is not there to support the load.

My plan is to ride it gingerly until I'm confident it's gonna be ok. Does anyone think this is extremely stupid??? Should I just buy a new wheel and start over??

Hard to say.

When the old bearinfgs came out hard and it became apparent the new bearings were a tight fit, might have been a good idea to clean up the bearing recess surface to make 'em fit easier.

Anytime you have to *force* something to fit, *something ain't right*.

More than likely, the bearing collar/inner race has enough excess to handle the asymetric loading, but that's just a guess.

It's also possible that when you torque down the axle nut, the spacers will press the bearing in the rest of the way. Might want to examine if it in fact does.

Take it easy on that wheel - pay attention to possible run-out and balance issues.

If you really want to do things right, get a fresh set of beings, beat out the new ones, figure out why the bearings weren't going in right to begin with, fix that situation and re-install with new.

bison wrote:

I recently replaced the rear wheel bearings on my 79 SR650. Getting the old ones out was tricky but putting the new ones in was even worse.

. . .I was not able to get them far enough in so that the distance collar touches the inner races of each bearing. .

Maybe all is not lost at this point. . . go here and see what I did, maybe you can do the same to finish driving in the bearings. . .the races need lubrication if you didn't use any.

It's about the last picture.

With all due respect, I don't think leaving it alone, or trying to pull the stuff in with the axle nut tension is going to work. Or a good idea.

Post edited by: KaZooCruiser, at: 2007/04/30 14:44

del

Bison,when I installed the new bearings in MY front wheel,it was the same as what You're describing Bud...to a tee.
Not to worry though...the bearings aren't going to come out.
I've put on some pretty serious miles,and some serious riding,with no problems at all.

Why did You have such a problem installing the new bearings,btw?
Did You freeze the new bearings,and heat the bearing hub?When I did Mine,I did it that way,and they pretty much dropped into place...worked like a charm.