Those of you with knowledge in the Way of the Bicycle, I need counsel.
Let me begin by saying I know nothing about how to repair a bicycle, and mine is a cheap one for cycling in the city.
One of the bearings of my front wheel said life is not worth living and broke down to pieces and flew off.
The shop tells me I need a new wheel. I took the ailing creature back home, removed the wheel and the axle, and found myself with the situation shown in the picture.
Is the piece at the top, still around the axle, part of the fallen bearing or part of the axle? It won’t budge, and the other bearing is impossible to remove because well, it turns. Because it is a bearing.
Do I need a new wheel? A new axle maybe…? I was hoping to save a lot of money by replacing the bearing myself, but it looks worse than I thought.
Thanks beforehand!
EDIT
Thanks so much for all your advice!
Tried the flathead screwdriver and WD-40 to get the inner bushing out, but it was impossible.
In the end, I got both -the bearing and the inner bushing of the bearing- out with the help of a bench vice, a hammer, and some personal frustrations.
The axle looks good and so does the thread.
I’ll now check the rest of my bike for any non-repairable issues, and if nothing appears to be wrong, I’ll buy two new bearings (the one I have left has “6000-2RS” on it) and go to my local repair café, because they way you all describe it, putting on the bearings is delicate business.
Here are also some photos of the hub and the spokes linked to it. I think everything looks okay with the wheel, which is why I found odd the full replacement. I want to believe it is simply because it is easier for them.
Metallworker Here.
Yes that piece at the top is the inner part of the former bearing so it needs to be removed before you can put on a new one.
The bearings probably have a slight interference fit on the axle so you would need to use a gear puller, heat them or cut them to remove them (tho the gear puller is to be prefered because it hast the least Chance of damaging the axle)
The axle still Looks fine to me, so if the bearings surfaces and the threads are in good condition you can continue to use it.
Before you press the new bearings on make sure to watch a Video or read about how to do it properly so you dont damage your new bearings and get the most runtime out of them.
Oh, and inspect the rest of the wheel, maybe the axle is OK but other parts are also failing and would be harder/Impossible to fix.
Ah. The main body of the bearing just flew off, didn’t it…
The heat helped get it out, and I’ll check the rest of the bike before I buy anything.
Hopefully we have many more years ahead of us.
Thanks for the help!
Looks like the inner bushing of the bearing, you might be able to tap it off with a flathead screwdriver and a hammer or such. If you do get it off as well as the other bearing (you should replace them both), check the numbers on the bearing or take it with you to a shop. There are a million different sizes and you need the exact one. You can try to use the old bearing as an installation tool to avoid breaking the new ones but it can be tricky as you need to get them sit straight on the hub. You may be able to assemble it by using the axle, old bearing, spacers that are the same diameter or larger than the bearing and axle nuts as a bearing press (put some grease in the cups first), but try to do it one side first and slowly because it’s easy to get it wrong.
Tried the screwdriver without any luck, but it was worth the shot!
In the end, bench vice and hammer did it.
I’ll make sure to note down the numbers on the bearing and bring it with me when I go find new ones.
Thank you!
The outer race of the bearing that fell apart is still stuck in the hub. The side without the reelight magnets
You are completely right! I noticed that when I was cleaning it.
Now that’s going to require more brute force…
Thank you for the help.
A new bearing (especially a cartridge, like you have) is absolutely not the end of your wheel unless there’s other issues you haven’t divulged!
Bearings are generally pretty cheap so you’re in luck there (and you have a full bearing totally off the axle so you can measure and ID it to make sure you get the correct ones to replace).
I won’t rehash what everyone else has said, but the leftover of the original bearing (the"race") might be a bit of a bitch to remove. With that said you don’t really need bearing pullers. If it’s causing issues then there’s a few things I’d try at home:
- If there’s any gaps you can work a skinny screwdriver in and wiggle against the ‘stop’ of the axle and one edge of the race.
- If that doesn’t work then get a vise or mole grips on the race, and see if you can wiggle it free, or if possible, try to smack the axle with a hammer - some penetrating fluid might help here
- If it’s still stuck, then a lighter and vise or mole grips - heat then clamp and twist. The bearings are brittle so this can cause it to crack and split so maybe wear glasses while doing this.
- If none of the above work, then I’d carefully use a small rotary cutter to gently cut into the axle which (again) might crack and split.
Worst case a shop with a friendly mechanic would probably do this for a small fee (or source you a new axle if it’s totally FUBAR).
Right…? I don’t see any other problems, so I want to believe the guy just wanted to make things easy for himself and not just overcharge my ignorant self.
Apart from that, I’m happy to report the bench vice did it! I got both bearing and the valiant surviving inner bushing out with heat, the vice, and a hammer.
Thank you!
Glad you made a start!
And good luck with the install of new bearings - best done with the right tools, but please know that even professional techs occasionally resort to a suitably sized socket and a hammer to install them in a pinch - they can be a pain but it’s hard to go dramatically wrong; you shouldn’t need to use massive force to install so if it feels like you need to take a beat to check alignment etc.
Recommend uploading some more pictures. A wheel bearing doesn’t have to be expensive and if the rims, spokes and hub are still rolling then a new wheel seems like an expensive fix
Can you take some pictures of the hub after you’ve removed the axle, and do you see any damage to the rims (cracking around the spokes?), spokes (loose and can’t tighten or snapped?) or the hub (damage around the failed bearing?)?
It should be repairable if everything else is OK and the front wheel is obviously way way simpler than the rear
I updated the post and added some more pictures.
I don’t see anything wrong apart from a blatant lack of maintenance, so now that I finally got both out, I’ll check the rest of the bike and go buy new ones if everything seems right.
Thank you for your help!
Sweet, looks like you’re on your way
The hub and spokes generally look in decent condition so I think once you get a replacement wheel bearing and give everything a clean and greasing etc you should be sorted!
Yeah that’s a bearing race stuck on the axle, heat and a small three arm bearing puller.
Thanks for the advice! The heat really helped and both are now out.
