This doesn’t look good…

[Mzokk]

Yip mine is still on the original bearing at 77,000 miles. Reckon it was correctly shimmed or it would have gone by now.

 

[Steptoe]

Hi Marc it's the big crown wheel bearing which is a caged ball bearing and the inner is a tapered roller bearing. I reckon they fail because there is a turning moment on the rear wheel because of the single sided swing arm. The big caged roller bearing fails most commonly and you end up with a mess like in the picture above.

The old K series bikes had the same set up and rarely suffer from bearing failures. If they do it’s usually at 150k plus miles.

 

[ThreeDawg]

Super Teneres have a similar setup, wonder how they last? Anyway, changing the bearing is pretty straightforward and not too expensive, so why not do it every 40 or 50K for peace of mind?

 

[Ogmios]

Grand so.

The old K series bikes had the same set up and rarely suffer from bearing failures. If they do it’s usually at 150k plus miles.

Ah - So i'm only halfway there at 78k miles?

~~~
A wishful thinker?
(on an R850R)

 

[Mzokk]

Super Teneres have a similar setup, wonder how they last? Anyway, changing the bearing is pretty straightforward and not too expensive, so why not do it every 40 or 50K for peace of mind?

There are a couple of differences the super10 has a double sided swing arm and no paralever joint before the bevel drive. I havent heard that failure is an issue with these. I'm sure they have other faults all bikes do! A bloke in America "long haul Paul" did 300k on two of them in his quest to do 1,000,000 miles for MS. Think that they where relatively trouble free. That said I think a few r1150gs's have done monumental mileages. Ricardo Kuhn who used to post on this site springs to mind. Most r1150gs related issues now I'd say are related to age both the bikes and the riders

 

[ThreeDawg]

Oh gawd, so they do (have a double sided swingingarm) Dunno where I got the idea they were the same as a GS, especially as I have ridden one around the South Island in New Zealand.

 

[Neil W]

Sure the Moto Guzzi's of a similar era used the same large bearing and suffered similar failures

 

[theoneandonly]

Sure the Moto Guzzi's of a similar era used the same large bearing and suffered similar failures

carc bikes used the same size bearing with...19 balls , hence they failed. the m/works bearing should have 21 balls. and i change my oils at every 5k miles i think the BM service schedule is every 12k miles ?

i think the BM ones fail cos people put too much weight on the back topped off with a generous pillion passenger .

 

[Paul Young]

For those of a sensitive disposition, please look away now… This ain’t pretty.

I’ve got the inner race off the hub so now it’s a matter of ordering the replacement bearing/seal and measuring up to check how much, if any, the shims need modifying.

 

[Aidan1150]

This ain’t pretty.

Pretty much fucked Paul....

 

[oblertone]

I'd be thinking of changing that ...

 

[Mzokk]

Crunchy

 

[mikeyboy]

For those of a sensitive disposition, please look away now… This ain’t pretty.

I’ve got the inner race off the hub so now it’s a matter of ordering the replacement bearing/seal and measuring up to check how much, if any, the shims need modifying.

Whilst you have it apart,
Take a proper look at the input pinion bearings,
I know historical advice on here is to just change the crownwheel bearing,but most of the fd’s I look at these days have worn if not knackered input pinion needle rollers.

 

[mikeyboy]

The old K series bikes had the same set up and rarely suffer from bearing failures. If they do it’s usually at 150k plus miles.

Similar story with the later K’s
Same design (albeit flipped over)as the 1200gs hexhead ,but I probably rebuild 20/30 gs ones for every single k .
I can only put it down to the 4 cylinder motor gives the transmission an easier life.

 

[Paul Young]

Thanks for the heads up, Mikey. I’ve just ordered both bearings and a spare seal so that’s the job for next weekend.

 

[Dickyb]

Similar story with the later K’s
Same design (albeit flipped over)as the 1200gs hexhead ,but I probably rebuild 20/30 gs ones for every single k .
I can only put it down to the 4 cylinder motor gives the transmission an easier life.

Jeez, about time I got shot of mine then! It's got 70,000kms on the clock but I've always been paranoid about the FD going on a long(ish) trip. Think I'll stick with my little V Strom.

Cheers,

DickyB

 

[Paul Young]

Chain drive is great until it goes wrong - eg snaps and takes out the engine case or just generally needs replacing. £110 for seal and bearings vs the same cost every time i need to swap a chain/sprockets is a no-brainer for me.

 

[Aidan1150]

Jeez, about time I got shot of mine then! It's got 70,000kms on the clock but I've always been paranoid about the FD going on a long(ish) trip. Think I'll stick with my little V Strom.

Cheers,

DickyB

Just take the bearings and seal with you. It's not such a big job.

 

[Udders]

Whilst you have it apart,
Take a proper look at the input pinion bearings,
I know historical advice on here is to just change the crownwheel bearing,but most of the fd’s I look at these days have worn if not knackered input pinion needle rollers.

Did you do mine when you had it?

 

[Buckingham]

Have we got a how-to for this job ? I thought Steptoe did one years ago ?