I truly am sorry that no one replied to your post. I have been thinking
about your project, but have been fighting with plumbing a forklift we have
been building with the assistance of my father who is in the early stages of
Alzheimer's. It has been challenging to say the least. You have been on my
mind though, so I will take the time to talk you through it.
I haven't looked up the procedure in my Clymer's manual, but I am sure that
it will recommend specialized tools to do the task just like all service
manuals seem to do. This is not the case however. You can do the job with
common tools around the garage, just like most mechanics do. I seem to
spend as fair amount of time changing out bearings every fall as a
preventative measure. I'll be happy to talk you through it.
It really isn't much different than changing bearings and races on a trailer
hub. Once you have the forks and the triple clamps removed so you can see
the bearings plainly, wipe out as much of the grease as possible. All that
should be left in the head of the frame is the bearing races. You'll want
to get them as clean as possible to help prevent your drift punch from
slipping. It will probably still do so, but every little bit helps. I
would start on the bottom race since you can work on that one standing
normally and you can see it fairly well. Take a long drift punch and a
comfortable ball pein hammer and start tapping around the periphery of the
bearing. Some bearing races come easily, some are a real challenge. Usually
once they start moving they come out fairly easily. Keep working your way
around the bearing race trying to keep the race square in the bore as you
drive it out. Yes, your punch will slip occasionally and you will bang your
fingers a time or two, but that is normal. Trust me
. So, what do you
do if you don't have a drift punch long enough to reach? Improvise. A long
bolt will work just as well if you are careful. Try not to score the inner
surface where the bearing race resides with the punch. If you do, don't
panic; all is not lost. This is not a critical surface. It's only function
is to hold the bearing race securely on location. Smooth any scuffs or
gouges out with emery cloth or the like. It will be a bastard of a job
because of the long reach with the punch, but it can be done with a little
patience.
Installing the new race is a little tougher. When installing a new race it
is extremely important to get is started square with the bore. You do not
need a special bushing or race driver to do this. Instead, find a piece of
square scrap wood slightly larger than the bearing race. Make certain that
you are installing the bearing race in the correct orientation with the
narrow side down. Set the race in the bore and set your wood block over it.
Tap the wood in the CENTER until the race starts sliding into the bore.
Once you have it started, work slowly. IF it gets slightly cocked in the
bore, tap in the high side of the race until it is square again. Usually
once the race is halfway in it will self-center and you can pound away until
the race disappears in the bore and the block can't reach it any more.
Congratulations, you are halfway there.
The next step is a little more tricky. You will have to pound the race in
until the bottom of the race bottoms against the locating step in the
steering head tube. You DO want it firmly against this step. Using a
shorter, easier to handle drift punch, work around the race slowly driving
it in until it bottoms. This will be more difficult than removing the race
because you will have roughly half of the hammering surface to rest your
punch on. Try not to let the punch slip and mark the precision ground
interior of the race. Actually what most manuals and parts men won't tell
you is that the ground surface is hardened and difficult to score beyond
use, but it doesn't hurt to be careful. Work slowly and carefully and you
won't have any problems. This is after all the steering head bearing, and
not as critical as an engine or transmission bearing. It's hard to screw it
up. Repeat the process with the upper bearing race and you are good to go.
The hardest part of the entire operation is dealing with the lower bearing.
I can save you a tremendous amount of time, effort and frustration with this
very simple tip. Find someone with a hydraulic press. That is the only way
you will SAFELY remove and install the bearing. Many have tried to do it
without a press, including me, and failed. 5 minutes with a press will do
something you can spend all day at without making any headway. Go to an
auto mechanic or a shop that specializes in transmissions. Show up with all
the parts, be patient and helpful and slip them a few bucks even if they do
the job for free. You will be remembered fondly and they will usually jump
on the next project you bring in.
The rest of the reassembly should go smoothly for you. If you have any
questions feel free to contact me directly, although I may be gone most of
the weekend due to a death in the family. I WILL get back to you as soon as
possible.
Ross Lindberg
Fertile, MN
--- In
DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "hardyreels" wrote:
>
> This was a letdown. I posted a question regarding my steering column
> bearings a few days ago. While a heated debate raged on about exhaust
> pipes none of the experts who I was hoping to hear from could bother to
> respond to my post. Boo Hoo!
>
> You may now direct your Ire at this message because I fear that the
> noisy pipe battle is loosing steam. I had used this forum site in the
> past as a source for technical advise. This experience makes me dam
> glad that I have both a Clymer Manual and a better than room
> temperature IQ.
>
> Thanks For all your help,
>
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