Replacing Carrier Bearings at home

[Otis.Leo]

I am currently re-doing the rear end on my 400. it is way easier than most say. I found the bearings at a bearing house for $9 a piece and got the seals and o-rings from motosport.com for $55. i know i didn't save myself a bunch or money but it was so easy to get everything apart that i couldn't bring myself to buy the whole carrier. getting the bearings out was simple. the carrier is aluminum and the bearings are steel. when heated, aluminum expands quicker than steel so heat the carrier. i put mine on the grill and cooked it for about 10 min give or take. then i put a piece of cardboard on the deck and pounded the carrier up and down till the bearing slid out the one side. then i used a steel pipe about 2ft. long and a hammer to tap the other bearing out. i only used the pipe and hammer cause the one side wouldn't move when i was pounding it on the cardboard. now as far as putting the new bearings in.. put them in the freezer overnight and they will shrink and once your ready to go heat the carrier again. to press the bearings in i used a ball for a trailer hitch. the top flat part fits the inner race perfectly and keeps the bearing pretty straight. use a hammer on the thread side of the ball and tap the bearing in. remember to grease the inside of the carrier good and keep track of where your o-rings go. the diagram on motosport is a great assembly chart to follow.

[HondaRacing83]

thanks! i gotta put bearings in my buddies 400ex soon this helped a lot

[b0rn c0nfused]

You can actully save a little more money and buy the bearings and seals on ebay for about 15 to 20 bucks.

[CJM]

That will only work if the carrier isnt trashed, most are by the time you notice it sadly. Sometimes the carrier is salvageable, sometimes not.

I curt my double tow bearings out, still was a total pain.

[chronicsmoke]

change your bearings more often if you're having that much trouble with them guys! Change them as soon as any play devellops from the rear end (standing on the bike rocking side to side) if your carrier bearings are bad enough to break the carrier, you might be in the market for swingarm pivot bearings too! (if you don't catch it your swinger will rub the engine cases and ultimately break your case which is big$$

I bought a cheap hyd. press and it's the bee's knees for carrier bearings.. well worth the $150

[dxcody]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ X2

also if your rear end starts to feel funny, then just get off for a seconds and put your hand on the back of the swingarm above the carrier.

If its hot, your bearings are going out.

If its normal then your good.

[Otis.Leo]

i was riding with my uncle and brother when i notice my bearings we bad. my uncles exhaust gasket was loose so we turned around to head back and when i whipped the tail around on a narrow trail it went up on the two right wheels and that was when i heard the first thump... after that i rode really slow but the balls were breaking in the bearing... i stopped and we had to go pick it up with the truck... the carrier was ok but the inside of it, shaft, bearings, and the spacer were black with old old grease.. it wasnt good... who knows when the last time it was greased.. i will definitley be taking it apart every spring for cleaning and regreasing.

[jgar]

I replaced my carrier bearings a few weeks ago. I did the oven, freezer trick. To install the bearings I bought 2 washers, a pice of threaded rod and 2 nuts. 1 washer was a little smaller than the bearing, the other was larger than the dia. of the carrier. 1 washer goes over the bearing being pressed in, the other washer rests on the side of the carrier. The rod goes through the washers, bearing and carrier. Put the nuts on and tighten them up. Its the next best thing to a press and only cost 10 bucks.

I also made this tool for my A-arm bearings, same idea!!
http://s1100.photobucket.com/albums/g412/jgar400ex/bearing%20tool/

[Reece616]

Originally posted by jgar
I replaced my carrier bearings a few weeks ago. I did the oven, freezer trick. To install the bearings I bought 2 washers, a pice of threaded rod and 2 nuts. 1 washer was a little smaller than the bearing, the other was larger than the dia. of the carrier. 1 washer goes over the bearing being pressed in, the other washer rests on the side of the carrier. The rod goes through the washers, bearing and carrier. Put the nuts on and tighten them up. Its the next best thing to a press and only cost 10 bucks.

I also made this tool for my A-arm bearings, same idea!!
http://s1100.photobucket.com/albums/g412/jgar400ex/bearing%20tool/

That's a great way of doing it!
I do it the same way (just with a long threaded bolt instead) and I use an impact wrench to make it easier.
I used it to replace my steering stem bearing and swing arm pivot bearings as well. So much easier than any other way (unless you have a press of course)

[slightlybent47]

As part of a yearly routine I pull mine apart once a year and clean, repack and re assemble with new seals.
This keeps everything in good shape and makes it easy to take apart if you have a problem. use a good synthetic grease that wont break down when it gets wet.

[jgar]

It works real slick with the smaller bearings, nice and easy. With the bigger bearings like in the carrier its a little harder to get everything lined up just right. But it beats pounding them in with a socket and mallet.