| Author | Message | ||
     Wolfridgerider |
WOOO HOOO!!! I'm back on the road! I dropped my wheel of at Farrow's on Tuesday thinking I would have it back that afternoon. No such luck. The sleeve inside the wheel that goes between the bearings had part of the the toasted bearing welded to it. They ordered the replacement part on Tuesday afternoon from Erie HD. It didn't come in until today. I stopped by on my way home to find my wheel with new tire mounted up and ready to go. Then came the news. $190.00 bucks??? We needed to talk. The service writer got the service manager and I told him the bike was less than 2 years old. He said let me call Buell Customer Service. I said OK. He came back in about 15 min. NO PROBLEM its covered. I AM SOOOOO HAPPY. I just paid to have the tire mounted and I was out the door. LET THE WHEELIES BEGIN! Thanks Buell Customer Service and A.D.Farrow's HD & Buell | ||
| Etennuly |
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| Hughlysses |
Jb2607, AFAIK, nobody's reported a problem with the bearings on the 08's, but it certainly can't hurt to have them. From what's been posted above, the 08's use the same NTN made in Taiwan bearings as the earlier bikes, but the bearing failures may have been due to an installation problem or a QC problem at NTN that's been corrected. Wolfridgerider, glad they took care of you. That's amazingly quick considering they had to order a part. | ||
| Jwnsc |
Hugh, I thought someone with an '08 had reported a failure. Maybe just my paranoia, or perhaps they were reporting they had only replaced the OEMs as a precaution. And of course, that may well be why we don't see as many '08 bearing failures, because the word is out and owners are changing them before they can fail or performing more frequent inspections and maintenance on them. When Buell unveiled the '08s they presented a list of all the changes from the previous model years. It would have been very comforting to see "stronger wheel bearings" or "improved wheel bearings" on the list. I think a good PR person can always tweak the information without admitting any screw up. The fact that we haven't seen Buell say anythng officially, probably means the number of failures hasn't reached critical mass (for them) or if they are looking at it, haven't found the cause or decided what, if anything to do about it. Is it ever going to stop raining? I'm drowning over here. Matt, did you know Irongate used to be a swamp? | ||
| Tomtower |
What is the bearings numbers on the front 6004? The back is 6005 correct?  | ||
| Tomtower |
I meant! What is the bearings numbers on the front 6005? The back is 6006 correct? | ||
| Jwnsc |
I hope so. Those are the numbers I used with the Koyos I just ordered from Applied. | ||
| Bross |
Maybe this is what you guys need. World Wide Bearings Ceramic Bearings From the April Cycle World "...ceramic hybrid bearings-steel races with silicon-nitride balls-are gaining popularity, particularly with sport bike riders. Compared with steel on steel, ceramic bearings can drop friction by as much as 40 percent...Ceramic bearings can be expensive..." Um they only start at $395 for a complete wheel bearing kit. http://www.worldwidebearings.com/motorcycle.htm | ||
| Teeps |
ATV bearing set: http://www.vxb.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=P ROD&Store_Code=bearings&Product_Code=Kit112&Catego ry_Code= or full ceramic, not sealed: http://www.vxb.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=P ROD&Store_Code=bearings&Product_Code=Kit7675&Categ ory_Code= I bought bearings from this place for my Honda VTX 1300 cruiser wheels. Made in Taiwan, but worked ok for the application and they were cheap... | ||
| Jwnsc |
I don;t know if this was just my local Applied store's policy, but they wouldn't sell me the Koyo steel bearings I ordered if I said I wanted them for a motorcycle. When I asked why, they said liability. Did I say motorcycle? I meant lawn mower. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Jim, I guess I didn't mention it when I bought mine and I'm glad I didn't. | ||
| Jk3campbell |
Mine just went out last night  at 8200 miles. Called the dealer and they said it would be covered under warranty. He said I would need to bring in the bike and then they could order the parts and it would take 4-5 days. Why wouldn't they stock something that small? I went to a local bearing shop picked up a set and changed them in a couple hours. I think I'm going to call CS just to report the failure anyway. Hopefully this set lasts longer than 8000 miles. | ||
| Jb2607 |
Quick questions from a first time Buell owner. 08 Uly, I have my new Avon Distanzias, new Koyo bearings, so I am going to remove my wheels for the experience (better in my barn the first time than in a Motel 6 parking lot somewhere). Shop is going to mount the tires, but my question is--- is there is anything unusual about removing the wheels from a Uly that I should be aware of. Dumb things such as "righty tighty"... "lefty loosey", I am hoping that there are no quirks to this bike, but Y'all know better than I. I have read up on some previous posts regarding this subject and don't foresee anything, but better to ask those that already know. Thanks... JB | ||
| Hughlysses |
JB- It's best to refer to the service manual, but basically both ends are pretty easy. Support the bike- easiest way is using a wooden cradle to fit the muffler and a standard motorcycle floor jack. You can find a template here for making the wooden cradle. Rear wheel- Remove two allen screws on the left and lay the caliper outside the swing arm. Remove the lower portion of the belt guard (2 torx screws). Loosen the pinch bolt under the ride sight of the swing arm. Back the rear axle out (there's a "double-nut" tool in your tool bag that allows you to use a 32 mm socket to do this). Adjust the height of the jack as necessary and roll the rear wheel forward until the belt is loose and can be GENTLY slipped away from the wheel sprocket. That gets the rear wheel off. Front axle is LEFT HAND THREAD- i.e.- righty loosey. Loosen the two pinch bolts on the left fork leg and back the axle out using the tool from your toolkit. Remove the rear portion of the lower fender. Move the wheel back until the disk is clear of the caliper, rotate the right fork leg counterclockwise as view from above, remove the wheel. Installation is pretty straight-forward. With the rear, take your time and be careful with the belt. Avoid twisting or forcing it to get it on the sprocket. Be sure and follow the two-step torque sequence for the rear wheel. Tighten to ~25 ft-lbs, back off two full turns, then tighten to factory spec of ~41 ft-lbs (check the manual for the correct range). (Message edited by hughlysses on April 06, 2008) | ||
| Teeps |
This is probably not the case with your bike JB, but pay attention when loosening the real axle. I as many on this board have found the axle stuck to the left wheel bearing. Corrosion is the culprit. Anyway, just make sure the axle is sliding through the wheel bearing and not spreading the left side of the swing arm. You might spray the axle with WD-40, just in case. One last thing; before installing the axle, liberally apply anti-seize to it, the swing-arm and bearing bores. | ||
| Jb2607 |
Thanks everyone... every bit of info helps. | ||
| 12bolt |
Add me to the list of bad bearings. rear belt side bearing flew apart at 9500miles. Lots of dirt/snow/rain riding. still a bummer. I ordered the Koyo's as a replacement. | ||
| Xbimmer |
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| Bigkuri |
Officially then - a failed set of front bearings on my 2008 Uly with 3,600 miles on it. Straight from factory (as in the wheel had not been off). No jet washing, no deep rivers (as if!), and no sign of water or corrosion in the bearings at all. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Bigkuri, that's weird. AFAIK virtually all the problems (on Uly's at least) have been with the rear wheel bearings. | ||
| Jwnsc |
Jk3campbell, 12bolt, & Bigkuri Did any of you call (or plan to call)Buell directly to advise them of your problem and maybe ask a related question like are they aware of the number of Ulysses wheel bearing failures and what are they doing about it? If so, it would be interesting to know what they said. | ||
| Bigkuri |
Yep strange I know. Rear ones were utterly fine. I have a free spirits belt tensioner fitted, which are known (at least I think so) to be easier on the rear bearings. The mechanic (Buell guru) just shrugged and said that the bearings on XB's are just to small for the stress or some such. | ||
| Bigkuri |
Jwnsc - nope. Buell support is terrible in the UK. I'd most likely have to explain to them what a Buell is... | ||
| Jwnsc |
Bigkuri I was referring to HD/Buell Customer Service (414)-343-8400 or (414) 343-4056. That may be a bit of a sticky wicket for those of you across the pond. I would have thought UK riders would have a number in country to call. | ||
| Bigkuri |
Ah - righto, the USA one. THe UK one just goes to HD. Called them twice, and plonkers answered both times... | ||
| Hoon |
Sorry to hear about the bearings Bigkuri,at least now I know not to bother calling Buell customer services. Did you get Buell bearings or did you get a possibly better quality set from a bearing factors? | ||
| Bigkuri |
Seemingly better quality ones, but sorry to say it was 2100 at night by then and I was flagging (so poor mechanic!). All I can remember is that they were French, and had a very short name. I think that it was SNR? | ||
| Teeps |
Jwnsc Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 Did any of you call (or plan to call)Buell directly to advise them of your problem and maybe ask a related question like are they aware of the number of Ulysses wheel bearing failures and what are they doing about it? If so, it would be interesting to know what they said. I would be surprised if Buell corporate disclosed any information (that can and would be used against them) with regard to the number of failures. | ||
| Johnboy777 |
I'd be willing to bet that a number of people within Buell read this forum, cover-to-cover. | ||
| Teeps |
Not likely Johnboy777. If there are Buell corporate types lurking (or participating) here they will be guarded with the info they confirm, denie or divulge. (Message edited by teeps on April 09, 2008) |
