Topic: Holy bearings, Batman!

[csendker]

I swapped out the front end on my 175 today.  I guess I should have studied the diagrams a bit closer.  Seems the bearings are UN-housed, as evidenced by the 'raindrops' of balls falling all over the place. It took a while, but I finally found all of them.  I guess I just assumed it was a housed bearing.  It should be fun trying to re-assemble everything without them continuously falling out. Another day, another lesson learned.

[kghost]

When reassembling...........

If you grease the bearings as you should the grease will hold the balls in place while you're inserting .

[csendker]

That's what I was figuring.  I've cleaned up all of the raceways & the bearings, but I have to wait until tomorrow when I can pick up some grease for the reinstall.

[byidesign]

The first time that happened, I said a lot of
    bad words, and had to go back to the shop to
         replace the one's I couldn't find...
      you were lucky...........
           
                Bruce

[seaweb11]

Why not use this opportunity to replace the old ball bearings with a sealed tapered system?
It makes a lot of difference to the handling and steering of the bike.

[kghost]

True Enough.

I only use those old balls for assembly during mock up

When all is powdercoated or painted tapered it is

[Terry in Australia]

Can you buy a tapered roller bearing kit for a 175? Probably not, but if you can find one, get one for sure. Before you re-install those 30+ year old steering head ball bearings, check them and the races for damage, I'd be surprised if they're any good to be honest.

The balls should be available from most engineering supply stores, but the races might be a little thin on the ground by now, so best of luck! Cheers, Terry.