R1200RT LC swinging arm bearings - ALERT !!

Cortina

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My bike from new - late 2015 produced , not ridden in winter - closing in on 24,000 miles

Service time. Undoing the (FFS ... thankyou Mr H. !!) overtightened rear bevel drive drain plug , and I noticed an unusual feeling / noise . Yip - swinging arm rattling around !!

Loosened the lock nut and tried adjusting the pivot (in the way obviously) .... half a full turn , no sign of resistance ... play reducing but still there.
Eventually (thinking I must be doing something wrong) I got the play adjusted out ... and with rear shock out - things felt semi ok..

Naaahhh ... don't like this - not sure what the thread pitch of adjustment screw is ..... but has to be approx 1.5 or 1.75mm ... so we have moved a full turn ... where did 1.5mm + of free play come from ???

It's got to come apart for piece of mind / check grease condition / drive shaft , etc while we are at it

Well ... it's totally bolloxed ...... not easy to get apart ... due to one bearing in total kit form and other a rusty muddy water mess ... not to mention a dry driveshaft at both ends (PS - should there not be a circlip at the engine end ?? .. I see a groove for one , but no sign of a clip)

will start the hunt now for two new bearings (I am sure not to like BMW prices !) ... defn NOT what I would expect to find on such an age of bike .

so ... give yours a rattle
 
Thanks for the heads up. Glad I've got the warranty in place, so if any issues, Mr BMW can sort, although I only had my 18k service done two weeks ago
 
Update 1. Got new bearings (£8 for 2 vs BMW price of just uner £51 !!) pressed in tonight - at first put in flush which was same as what had come out. Then , using old bearing inners (and a wee hammer) - made sure they were fully home ..... no way !! , Both bearings went in about another 25 to 30 thou (old money measurement) before seating hard. Hmmmm ... I wonder was that my problem ?, that Mr BMW had not seated them fully , and use / side loads, had caused them to move in slightly ... giving excessive clearance , and better access to road dirt / general grime ??

I will never know ... but they were not right !!

To be continued.
 
....pressed in tonight - at first put in flush which was same as what had come out. Then , using old bearing inners (and a wee hammer) - made sure they were fully home ......

Did you freeze the bearings and heat the housing? That'l make a big difference to the ease with which those bearing cups pop in.
 
Update 1. Got new bearings (£8 for 2 vs BMW price of just uner £51 !!) .

I get that BMW stuff is expensive, but what sort of quality are you getting in a £4 wheel bearing - a high stress precision part? How do you know this is of equivalent quality and to the correct specification?
 
I get that BMW stuff is expensive, but what sort of quality are you getting in a £4 wheel bearing - a high stress precision part? How do you know this is of equivalent quality and to the correct specification?
I totally agree with you here. However, there is middle ground where high quality bearings can be bought at a good price.
 
Did you freeze the bearings and heat the housing? That'l make a big difference to the ease with which those bearing cups pop in.

Yes and yes - first side went nearly half way in by hand.

... and the bearing quality is just fine £4.40 for a bearing is not cheap ... it's what they should be .
 
(PS they are not wheel bearings - they typically have balls ... these are taper rollers)
 
(PS they are not wheel bearings - they typically have balls ... these are taper rollers)

Yes, but my point being, that I'm not right impressed with BMW's OEM bearings, the seal might as well of not been there.
Just that water may have got into your bearings and wrecked them prematurely.
 
I get that BMW stuff is expensive, but what sort of quality are you getting in a £4 wheel bearing - a high stress precision part? How do you know this is of equivalent quality and to the correct specification?

Don't equate quality with price, just 'cos you're charged a lot doesn't guarantee good quality. The OEM chain on my F800GS was dire compared to the cheaper DID one that I fitted once the OEM one expired.

I'll warrant FAG bearings or similar will be a lot less than £50 and be excellent quality
 


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