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Fj1200
| Posted on Sunday, June 16, 2019 - 12:17 pm: |
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I had my first issue yesterday, bad bearings, and I'm getting ready for a long Nova Scotia ride, from Atlanta, in October so... I'm looking for a shop in the Atlanta area that can help with bearings and maybe even a once over to get her ready. Any suggestions? Thanks for any help, |
86129squids
| Posted on Sunday, June 16, 2019 - 12:31 pm: |
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Get in touch with Matthew (Pwnzor), Glitch, or Charlie (New12R)... they're local to the area. Buellish too. |
Fireboltwillie
| Posted on Sunday, June 16, 2019 - 01:28 pm: |
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you can also call some Harley dealers to see if they still have a few Buell techs working for them. I went that route recently for some work in Panama City Beach. they were more than willing to do the work. |
Glitch
| Posted on Sunday, June 16, 2019 - 06:54 pm: |
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The first place I would go to is https://hellbenderhd.com/ They've been there for me when I needed them. Stone Mountain HD&B unfortunately closed years ago. Sorry Fraser's wasn't what I was thinking of. I think hellbender used to be Earl Small. Hope so. Buellish will know. (Message edited by glitch on June 16, 2019) |
Zac4mac
| Posted on Sunday, June 16, 2019 - 10:09 pm: |
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Fj - once you get your bearings replaced, please do this - Never torque your axles, tighten to snug then torque and blue loctite your pinch bolts. The torque in the FSM is too high and preloads the bearings too tight and they WILL fail. Been doing it this way for 10+ years with zero bearing failures. I even hit them obliquely with a power washer with no water in the bearings. FYI, YMMV. Z <edit>BTW, this is for XB and 1125/1190, Tubers may be different. (Message edited by zac4mac on June 16, 2019) |
Fj1200
| Posted on Tuesday, June 18, 2019 - 04:09 pm: |
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Thanks for the tip. Looks like I'll be giving it a go. I do wonder if the tire guy over did it a year ago. The PO noted new bearings around 39k and I'm at about 47k now. |
Buellish
| Posted on Tuesday, June 18, 2019 - 06:02 pm: |
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Your right Dave Hellbender used to be Earl Smalls HD/Buell.I just checked with Chris Elsbery who was the Buell tech there and he said they don't work on Buells anymore.He recommended Shawn at C&G Cycles in Roswell 678-680-8483. |
Shoggin
| Posted on Wednesday, June 19, 2019 - 02:22 am: |
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If you are having pre-mature bearing failure issues repeatedly it is most likely a wheel spacer issue. Roller bearings like the Buell uses HATE being side-loaded, so if your aluminum spacer has been squished by some ham-handed mechanic (happens all the time), they will be side loaded beyond their comfort zone and fail quickly even at normal torque values. If keeping your axles way too loose solves the problem, I'd recommend getting a new spacer ($20) and torquing the wheel properly. Front 20ft/lbs,back off and then 40 ft/lbs. Rear 25 ft/lbs, back off then 50 ft/lbs. Proper axle torque is important for a lot more than just bearings! OP: If mechanics ain't your thing, I get it. But If you can take off your own wheels, you can swap you own bearings. All the instructions are in the basic service manual you can get a download from here, Buellmods.com, or Buelltooth.com. Besides, It's a good excuse to drink beer in the garage |
Fj1200
| Posted on Wednesday, June 19, 2019 - 12:42 pm: |
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This is my first time. But it's not enjoyable so I'm going to try and do it right. I can only speculate what happened but when I can get it sorted I'll know what to tell the tire guy next time. |
Fj1200
| Posted on Thursday, September 19, 2019 - 06:21 pm: |
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A quick happy ending. Shawn at C&G put in the bearings for me but did say that he doesn't work on Buells so there's that for anyone else that needs an Atlanta shop. And long story short my buddy did most of the work with me watching but we tightened the new axle to snug and then I gave it an extra pull of a fraction of a turn. Hopefully that's not to much beyond snug. Also put in a new belt while we were in there. |
Sifo
| Posted on Thursday, September 19, 2019 - 07:30 pm: |
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I had a front and a rear fail fairly early into owning my XB. Both has water intrusion that rusted the bearings. Someone around here mentioned pulling the seals out with a small screw driver, dental pick, etc. and packing with new grease anytime the wheels are off for any reason. No failures for me after I started that. Just be careful and it's pretty easy to do without destroying the seal. They pop right out. |
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