Bevel bearing or paralever bearing ? easy check

tosh23 · Aug 16, 2012

Sorry neil,
I didnt mean to offend you
It was just a video to go with your teachings..
I would love a film crew to film you over a week and put it on the telly..
......
......
I thought of it first....

(RIP) DitchWater · Aug 17, 2012

Excellent. This is just what I need now. To find a thread about some bearings which I know are fecked.

A day or so before I left for Spain I changed the main bevel bearing because the wheel was wobbling and found that one of the internal cages of the paralever bearings had collapsed. :blast

I'm going to ignore it and not do any offroading for a few weeks. I'm sure it'll be fine.

peagoose · Aug 22, 2012

Just got back from roaming the somme and did my bevel bearing in my man cave. The hardest part was pulling the old one off (ooh err missus) no play but when cornering when it was cold slight noise and rumblings could be felt... Cage was ok but the races were just worn out with slight side play.
Just glad it didnt collapse at the roadside

ELIMINATOR · Aug 25, 2012

Why not make the Steptoe bit a "sticky"?

The Other PaulG · Jan 16, 2013

May I ask for a bit of clarification?

The locknut was very tight, as expected, but released successfully.

I would have thought the adjuster(s) would not be so tight, especially if they need taking up, but my 12mm allen bolt is exceptionally tight.

So.. can I confidently lean on it a bit with an extension bar (which just feels wrong for an adjuster) and secondly, do I take up the slack using just the inner adjuster (ie the one inside the locknut) or do I need to address the similar 12mm fastener that's located on the outside of the swing arm too?

I'm trying to get rid of 1-2mm of play measured at the rear of the rear wheel, if you know what I mean.

Cheers,

Paul G

DrFarkoff · Jan 16, 2013

Paul stop what you are doing pulling and hauling! and go and get a decent heat gun and Heat the centre adjusting pin up well and then try to move it

You may be unlucky as to have half a bottle of threadlock on the pin as some I have come across

and IF you use threadlock when putting it back just TWO DROPS

So Note One If it is tight do not just keep pulling heat it some more and try again! Watch the edge of the FD gaiter that you don;t melt it!

Note Two Yes the slack is taken up by the adjusting pin but if yours has a lot of thread lock on it you won;t be able to feel the preload point properly

Probably better to remove it and clean it and the threads in the swingarm out too

The Other PaulG · Jan 16, 2013

DrFarkoff said:
Paul stop what you are doing pulling and hauling! and go and get a decent heat gun

Heat the pin well and then try

Thanks Dr F - is that just the inner adjuster, the one I access through the wheel?

P

Timolgra · Jan 16, 2013

The Other PaulG said:
I'm trying to get rid of 1-2mm of play measured at the rear of the rear wheel, if you know what I mean.

Cheers,

Paul G

Something worth 'bearing' in mind when adjusting any slack out is that the bearing pivot can't wear evenly so taking all the slack out when on the main stand may make it too tight under weight. (or not)

ie. outside the usual range of movement :beerjug:

It's not a bad idea to take the rear wheel off, remove the torque arm and check for play/tightness throughout the up and down range.

DrFarkoff · Jan 16, 2013

yup thats it!

Like I said If you are unlucky enough to have some clampet who uses threadlock like tootpaste it will be bloody tight until well heated!

I do what Timolgra does so I can check if it's got flattened rollers and making it okay in one place but tightening up with up or down movement If it does tighten up the bearings will need replaced and they are "BMW only" I have tried to find non OE ones but the dimensions are patented some way by BMW

If you have only got the bike I highly recommend splitting the back end off and lubing the shaft and checking the bearings and properly cleaning the threads front and back as someday the swingarm will have to come off for something

Amazing the difference a dollop of waxoyl can make on the inner threads of the swingarm pins when you eventually need to get them out

The Other PaulG said:
Thanks Dr F - is that just the inner adjuster, the one I access through the wheel?

P

The Other PaulG · Jan 17, 2013

Thanks for the advice, careful use of the heat gun sorted it out, 3 x 1 minute blasts did the trick and once the locking fluid loosened, it was quite obvious and turned without too much effort.

I left it with an incredibly small amount of play, barely perceptible but enough to know it wasn't over-tightened. Seemed like a good idea - I'll monitor it over the next couple of weeks and make sure it all settles down happily.

Thanks again for the advice.

Green Boy · Jun 16, 2013

Just did mine today as there was a bit of movement in the paralever on a 2004 40k 1150gsa. Turns out there was a bit of slack...

If anyone finds half a cage and roughly the same number of rollers at the side of a road in Hampshire, I don't need them back.

Captain Black · Aug 26, 2013

I've just done mine, don't think it's been done before on this bike (22k miles) nothing is marked up so looks like its still as was from BMW. Also the nut came off and the adjuster moved pretty easy with a breaker bar.
I've done it in 5 stages to a total of 1/4 turn, its eliminated most of the up/down and side/side but now I'm feeling one slight sudden movement with a click or tick sound.
Do I tweak again or leave as is ?.....

Yeti · Sep 30, 2013

Green Boy said:
Just did mine today as there was a bit of movement in the paralever on a 2004 40k 1150gsa. Turns out there was a bit of slack...

View attachment 232452

If anyone finds half a cage and roughly the same number of rollers at the side of a road in Hampshire, I don't need them back.

The other half were in my final drive . . . :augie

Slipperyeel · Oct 1, 2013

I've just done the ball joint (which has had an unexpected outcome: the slight pulsing from the front brakes has totally gone - i thought it might be the hoses as there seemed nothing left to check. If you have pulsing brakes at low speed, maybe your ball joint has had it?).

Anyway, started reading this thread so thought i would check for any wobble in my rear wheel. Sure enough there is, about 1-2mm at the wheel edge when holding at 6 & 12 O'clock and the rear brake applied. I can't get to adjust them for another couple of weeks, you know, just when it's started to get cold outside! Fitting new bearings looks straight forward enough, but how much are the bearings and is there normally any need to replace the pivots as well?

Cheers
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Green Boy · Oct 1, 2013

Yeti said:
The other half were in my final drive . . .

Ian J Hartley · Oct 1, 2013

Slipperyeel said:
Fitting new bearings looks straight forward enough, but how much are the bearings and is there normally any need to replace the pivots as well?

Cheers

The job is pretty straightforward. You will need to heat the paralever casing to help with the bearing removal.

The bearings themselves are a tapered needle roller type unique to BMW and therefore are a ridiculous price. Look to pay between £35 to £40 per bearing.

The trouble with these bearings is they never fully rotate, just rock backwards and forwards, this can lead to brinelling. If the brinelling gets to bad then the bearing will likely seize. When that happens the bearing will either self destruct or the pivot pin will become the bearing surface. You won't know if you need either new bearings or pivot pins until you dismantle and have a look.

Hope that answers your question

Ian

MattW · Oct 1, 2013

Not too difficult a job - here's one I did earlier (as a part of something else):
http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=180313

Slipperyeel · Oct 3, 2013

Matt, Ian

Thanks for the comments (and your linky Matt, very useful) .

I'll go for adjustment first of course, but at least i have an idea of what i'm in for if they seem to have gone (a bit cheaper than that flippin ball joint!).

Cheers

Bevel bearing or paralever bearing ? easy check

tosh23

Registered user

(RIP) DitchWater

I fell ill once...

peagoose

Registered user

ELIMINATOR

Registered user

The Other PaulG

Still searching

DrFarkoff

Grumpy Ole Git!!!

The Other PaulG

Still searching

Timolgra

reformed

DrFarkoff

Grumpy Ole Git!!!

The Other PaulG

Still searching

Green Boy

Well-known member

Captain Black

Well-known member

Yeti

Registered user

Slipperyeel

Well-known member

Green Boy

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Ian J Hartley

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MattW

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Slipperyeel

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