Here is my situation, 2004 Road Glide 16,575 miles, first time rear wheel has been off the bike. I needed a new rear tire. The dealer had quite a wait to get me on the schedule, but said he could do the tire in a day if I brought it to him off the bike.

I lifted the bike onto my dolly and supported the weight of the rear wheel with my jack. I took everything apart and went to remove the axle and it was seized up pretty good. I covered the end of the axle with a block of wood and hit it a few times with a large rubber mallet, the axle started out but would not pull free by hand. I sprayed penetrating oil everywhere I could, between spacers etc, but I still had to use necessary force to remove the axle from the wheel and swingarm.

Once the axle was free I lightly went over the shaft with some very fine sandpaper to remove any corrosion or buildup. I cleaned up the axle and the inside of the bearings and wheel spacer with penetrating oil on a rag, everything looks fine and the bearings turn freely by hand as the service manual states so I take the wheel to the dealer and have the tire mounted and balanced. Bring it home and install wheel back on the bike using plenty of anti-seize both inside the bearings and spacers and on the axle shaft. Everything went together very smooth.

My question is how much side force can the wheel bearings stand from me having to beat on the axle? All of the spacers were in place when I knocked the axle through, so I believe the sides of the bearings had support. Everything is back together and I have ridden the bike about 150 miles so far with no problems, but I am wondering about possible bearing damage that may appear down the road. Will the sealed bearings make any noise if they are failing? How common is it to have to beat on an axle to remove it from the wheel?

I would appreciate any input from those in the know. Thanks!

 

That bearing is not designed to be side impacted. I believe HD recommends repacing it if true side impact force was required to remove it.

 

With the wheel spacers backing it up, there would be little side impact. I have seen this many times, especially on the newer bikes. The axles build up corrosion and are hard to remove. Just lightly sand them and cover with anti-seize as you stated. I haven't seen any bearings go bad yet from the same procedure you did.

 

If the inner race of the bearings are supported when using a BFH to remove the axle then they should be OK.
If they were damaged the bearings would feel rough when turning them.
MY 2 cents.

 

Thanks for the input everyone. I think I will pull it apart one more time to double check everything just for piece of mind.

 

If it was me I would replace them when you go back in.

Dang bearings don't cost that much.

 

Yep, replace em. Those bearings are not designed for any side load. The races and bearings are extremely hard, which means they are also extremely brittle. Chances are that they will be fine and not fail, but if they do, they could cause greater damage. I think wl hit it on the head, they ain't that expensive. If they fail, you are going to have to replace either the axle or the wheel.