Front wheel Bearings
Thread Starter
|
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 3,159
Likes: 1,079
From: Brandon, Mississippi
Front wheel Bearings
Had my tire changed on my 2014 FLX. Bad wheel bearings at 16K miles! Makes one wonder! Anyone else feel this is a bit pre-mature on such an important part of your bike? I do, anyone else have premature front bearing failure on a low mile well cared for bike?
Just had both front wheel bearings replaced under warranty on my 16 Road Glide Ultra with 14k miles. if you search the forums is a common issue. A lot of people replace them with each new tire to try and avoid issues on the road.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 5,542
Likes: 6,217
From: In your head rent free
113k on my 2010 Road King.
Trending Topics
Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 45,429
Likes: 2,898
From: Bedford UK
Jack the bike up and rotate the wheel by hand. If the bearings are on their way out they will grumble and not run smoothly.
This is a long-running problem, my '07 Firebolt needed new bearings with it's first tyres at less than 5k miles. Fortunately for that bike the bearings are common across many brands and my local Yamaha dealer had them in stock.
This is a long-running problem, my '07 Firebolt needed new bearings with it's first tyres at less than 5k miles. Fortunately for that bike the bearings are common across many brands and my local Yamaha dealer had them in stock.
HD Forum Stories
The Best of Harley-Davidson for Lifelong Riders
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Verdad Gallardo
8 Best Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Worst Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
Killer Custom's Jail Break Is The Breakout That Refused to Blend In
Verdad Gallardo
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Verdad Gallardo
Harley-Davidson Reveals Super Cool Cafe Racer Concept
Verdad Gallardo
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Verdad Gallardo
10 Motorcycles You Should Never Buy
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Harley-Davidson Needs to Fix in 2026
Verdad Gallardo
Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 14,731
Likes: 2,536
From: Mountain Top, Alabama
I believe the culprit is usually poor seals, lack of enough quality grease inside, or both.
My 2011 RKC is still rolling along just fine, never been pressure washed either.
I also ride a full suspension mountain bike a lot in wet muddy conditions. Original suspension bearings played out early. Replaced with Enduro Bearings with a good triple lip seal and good grease, no more failures. The seals on the original bearings were cheap, loose, and hardly a decent seal. When I compare what my mountain bike's bearings deal with, and consider what our motorcycle bearings are exposed to, it MUST be a lack of consistent quality control on these motorcycle bearings. I would not declare the motorcycle bearings environment to be all that bad, really.
Man, really, what else could it be? I wash off the gritty, nasty mud off my mountain bike suspension bearings all the time, our motorcycle bearings stay relatively clean.
It is not rocket science. It's just a straight axle bearing set up. Jeez, the MoCo needs to get this right!
My 2011 RKC is still rolling along just fine, never been pressure washed either.
I also ride a full suspension mountain bike a lot in wet muddy conditions. Original suspension bearings played out early. Replaced with Enduro Bearings with a good triple lip seal and good grease, no more failures. The seals on the original bearings were cheap, loose, and hardly a decent seal. When I compare what my mountain bike's bearings deal with, and consider what our motorcycle bearings are exposed to, it MUST be a lack of consistent quality control on these motorcycle bearings. I would not declare the motorcycle bearings environment to be all that bad, really.
Man, really, what else could it be? I wash off the gritty, nasty mud off my mountain bike suspension bearings all the time, our motorcycle bearings stay relatively clean.
It is not rocket science. It's just a straight axle bearing set up. Jeez, the MoCo needs to get this right!