Sorry if this has been done before I searched and didn't really find anything. Is there a high quality replacement for the wheel bearings? I've heard mixed reviews of All Balls most of which leaned toward the bad. I'd really like to find a quality Japanese or German made solution but after googling the past two hours I'm more confused than I was to start. I don't want schmancy ceramic bearings, I just want a nice high quality precision replacement like Nachi but the ordering part is confusing.
5Th Gen Wheel Bearings
22 posts Started 21 Jan 2013 Last recovered post 17 Mar 2017 Wayback Machine snapshot 2 Jul 2017
Is there a particular reason not to go with OEM?
After checking around the web the common consensus is that Honda just sources the cheapest they can and plop it in a Honda bag and mark it up. I'm trying to avoid the Chinese stuff b/c I have an irrational fear of the front wheel wobbling or coming apart. I know a 5th gen isn't much to a lot of people but I deeply care about this bike, I've waited ever since I got my license to get a motorcycle and it took a lot of hard work, saving and disappointment before it finally happened. The bike and I have been through a lot and she's taken pretty good care of me so the small investment is well worth the piece of mind to me. Before I get flamed- yes I know this is ridiculous and silly.
There are many good bearing manufacturers out there, NSK and FAG being but two of them. If you remove your existing bearings and bring them to an industrial bearing supply house, they can cross reference them to another manufacturer. I bought rear wheel bearings for my 1983 VF750 for like 1/3 of what Honda wanted for them. Bear in mind that some bearings are "special" and not available elsewhere. RC51 front wheel bearings for example. Their I.D. is uncommon, and NACHI makes them just for Honda. The western Canadian NACHI bearing distributor in Edmonton could not source them, and he had my old ones sitting right in his hands. Check in your yellow pages under BEARING, and you should be able to find a specialty industrial place that sells only bearings and nothing else.
Veefer800CanuckThere are many good bearing manufacturers out there, NSK and FAG being but two of them. If you remove your existing bearings and bring them to an industrial bearing supply house, they can cross reference them to another manufacturer. I bought rear wheel bearings for my 1983 VF750 for like 1/3 of what Honda wanted for them. Bear in mind that some bearings are "special" and not available elsewhere. RC51 front wheel bearings for example. Their I.D. is uncommon, and NACHI makes them just for Honda. The western Canadian NACHI bearing distributor in Edmonton could not source them, and he had my old ones sitting right in his hands. Check in your yellow pages under BEARING, and you should be able to find a specialty industrial place that sells only bearings and nothing else.
Thanks! Just the answer I was looking for :)
Still looking for this bearing supply warehouse everybody keeps talking about, does it have an address and a phone number? LOL been looking for it for 10 years now!
OEMs are fine, sealed and handle the load just fine, I suppose you can go to a napa autoparts store and source a bearing of the same size, they had a fuel injector oring kit for my 98 complete with the nitrile stops too, good kit.
I hope it's not in Roswell,NM lol I am a fan of Napa though :)
What do you have against Roswell ?[image: post-19304-0-07017400-1358829115.jpg]
I've bought bearings for my woodworking machines from these guys, and would call them without hesitation for my VFR.
http://www.accuratebearing.com/index.php
Terrific staff, and you can get exactly what you want with a quick phone call.
Please please post what you end up doing, and how the experience went. It would be a useful reference for future searches.
Aram
HispanicSlammerStill looking for this bearing supply warehouse everybody keeps talking about, does it have an address and a phone number? LOL been looking for it for 10 years now!
Well, maybe they are more prevalent where there are sawmills, paper mills, pulp mills, oilfields and other heavy industry that needs bearings.
Edmonton has a bunch of them all over the place, and it's just over 800,000 people.
awacsI've bought bearings for my woodworking machines from these guys, and would call them without hesitation for my VFR.http://www.accuratebearing.com/index.php
Terrific staff, and you can get exactly what you want with a quick phone call.
Please please post what you end up doing, and how the experience went. It would be a useful reference for future searches.
Aram
Will do, I like this kind of thing. I could just try the all balls or OEM but the hunt is a lot more fun :) It's this stuff that keeps me sane while it's too cold to ride. In NY I only had about 5 or 6 months to ride if I didn't travel for work. By doing the "funky colored brake lines" and farkling you really learn a lot about your bike and as silly as it sounds kinda bond with it. I know some people look down on it but to each their own :) Being relitively new to motorcycles, it's the unneccesary add on's that have really taught me a lot (not that I know a lot) about them. I've fabbed up stuff and loved it (CBR 929 shock conversion, side mount plate) and while I caught a lot of flack for the plate mount I like it and am proud that I designed and fabbed it. Sorry for the rambling, I'm having knee surgery on the fourth and the hydrocodone they gave me for the mean time is kicking in :blink:
Nachi are what came out of my wheel last year when I changed bearings. I'm thinking that's what Honda sent me for replacements, but I don't recall for sure. My guess is that I would remember if they had been different.
Veefer800Canuck, 1/21/2013 at 9:13 PMWell, maybe they are more prevalent where there are sawmills, paper mills, pulp mills, oilfields and other heavy industry that needs bearings.
Edmonton has a bunch of them all over the place, and it's just over 800,000 people.
Ok mr VFer800 any idea of where to find 6th gen sizing or part #s as i am on the hunt... Beside taking in the bearings and hoping for a match.
I just ordered front wheel bearings for my Hawk GT, 5th gen VFR and 77 XS650 from here. Chose all Nachi bearings made in Japan.
Art
Edited February 19 by artpongsforgot to include link
Axel_7, 2/17/2017 at 9:11 PMOk mr VFer800 any idea of where to find 6th gen sizing or part #s as i am on the hunt... Beside taking in the bearings and hoping for a match.
Partzilla, Ron Ayers... Standard bearings are listed in the parts microfiche by part number--and bearing number. Wheel bearings, for example, are nearly always standard sizes you can get anywhere. You could also look on the bearing itself for the bearing number, but that usually involves taking the bike apart and leaving it apart whilst you search for the new bearings...
Ciao,
I actually have a bearing and seal for a 5 Gen front wheel sitting at my desk, if anyone needs the info.
Standard 6204 sealed bearings. FAG, NSK or similar . I bought a set last year for $12 at a local industrial supply store. Can also try someplace that repairs heavy equipment or farm machinery.
Yes I went with Nachi on that site http://www.vxb.com for all of my bikes. Go with Japanese brand from what I hear their tolerances and durability are better than generic/chinese brands. I have All Balls in my Hawk for 2 years now and I will inspect them once my order arrives and follow up with update to their condition.
Art
I knew the vxb website looked familiar, Motorcyclist Magazine did a couple of videos on bearings, one on how to replace them, then other on how to decode the numbers on them. They even gave a link to vxb. The video in this link is on how to decode them, thought I throw this in for good measure.
As I was looking for other MC related items, I stumbled onto this... http://www.engineerstudent.co.uk/bearing_numbers_explained.html
As well as another site that sells bearings, maybe better for the EU folks. https://www.123bearing.com/ Although I did buy a few from them to see how their service is. Other than taking a few more days to get here, I got exactly what I ordered and no issues...knock on wood. Ironically VXB is located in Anaheim, CA. but I found the 123Bearing web site a little more easier to navigate and find stuff.
I can say that NOT all Honda bearings are great. Having had five fifth gens, they all needed steering head bearings, some before 30,000 mi. They are ball bearings and apparently not great. I've had them all replaced, once, with All Balls roller tapered bearings and it has ceased to be an issue. I've never changed any other bearings, even on my 105,000 mi. fifth gen. Lucky? Dumb?
Honda bearings are fine, just more expensive than you can get from other sources.
Ciao,
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End of thread · 22 posts recovered Wayback Machine snapshot 2 Jul 2017