pivot repairs

[numbnuts]

Well I finally got my pivot kit installed, along with a new DH gigapipe bb and my Hussevelt cranks [not light but very stiff and strong !] My ride yesterday was the first in months that didn't involve creaks, squeaks and rear wheel steering.

I am posting to ask if other people had as much difficulty as me getting the old bearings and spacer out. I guess I had neglected mine for too long so they were fused into place, had to whack the hell out of them. Reinserted the new parts was easy and I did not have to use any spreading device, just some jiggling [ i have an aluminum swing arm]. I think I will order a couple of kits as spares and do a relube at least every 6 months. I live on the seaside so stuff corrodes like crazy. It is so good to have the bike running properly again!

I wish the pivot had been designed in a way that it could be lubed easily with a grease gun or in a way that we could pop standard sealed bearings in and out without dismantling, I think I will have a closer look at Simon's conversion.

[jimbo]

I am posting to ask if other people had as much difficulty as me getting the old bearings and spacer out. I guess I had neglected mine for too long so they were fused into place, had to whack the hell out of them..

Yep, same thing happened to mine.  Had to dremel mine out.  LBS recommended squirting oil in and on the pivots.  Yeah I know the oil will draw in dirt, but that's a lot better than having to d*ck around grinding the old bearings out.  

I'm pretty sure mine prematurely fused because of the unusually wet weather we were having.  All that water washed away the lube leaving the metal parts to fuse in a real short time.

[Irby]

Install with some Belray Motorcycle bearing grease or boat trailer wheelbearing grease and you won't have that problem again.

[numbnuts]

what I figured is that the bearings fit in so snuggly that most of the grease between the outer bearing and frame is actually psuhed out as you slide the bearing in. Even if you use premium grease or relube the pivot frequently the same problem is likely because you can't take the bearing in +out easily to relube between the frame and outer bearing.

[Irby]

Numbnuts, I don't think those bearings were designed for removal. I've never been able to get them out without trashing them. Dan

[Scott]

You're talking about the roller bearings in newer K2's and not the bushing type found earlier?  

[Simon]

I did not have to use any spreading device, I think I will have a closer look at Simon's conversion.

You only need the spreader device on carbon s/arms as they are a few mm narrower at the main pivot end (can't see why they had to be though).
My sealed precision bearing conversion is only applicable to the models using pivot bushes not the models with needle bearings located in the frame,
conversion still going strong though [smiley=nod.gif].
Simon.

[Sprucey]

Just to let you know that I rode the Oz in Les gets/ Morzine in the French Alps all last week. Lots of DH and free-ride and cooked the brakes several times during the week.

The good news is that Simons cartridge bearing pivot conversion behaved perfectly without a squeak and is still going strong.

Worth mentioning as I weight about 225pounds so put the Oz seriously to it's limits!

Sprucey