How long do front wheel bearings last?
Club Member
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,559
Likes: 1,936
From: NE Florida
Depends on when they were made. It never used to be a maintenance item years ago. Then HD cheaped out and went with a shitty vendor and now there are failures. When I had my 2015 SGS I heard it was an issue with the Rushmore bikes and when I powder coated the wheels, I installed a good set of MADE IN USA bearings.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 4,816
Likes: 1,320
From: Good roads, cold beer
Read many 'horror stories' on here, seems many experienced guys state its due to folks using powerwashers when cleaning their bike which gets water into the bearing etc.
From reading HDF I have learned....overpacking a new bearing w/ too much grease can be worse then not having enough grease.
Also, 'mixing' greases can a bad idea as the compounds may be incompatible.
The horror stories got me to purchase the Pit Posse bearing tool and swap mine out some time back. One bike had 40-50k-ish and the bearings were ok.
Now will plan to do every other tire change or so. multihdrider (sp?) is a good source for bearing info if you search for his posts. Haven't seen him on here in awhile.
From reading HDF I have learned....overpacking a new bearing w/ too much grease can be worse then not having enough grease.
Also, 'mixing' greases can a bad idea as the compounds may be incompatible.
The horror stories got me to purchase the Pit Posse bearing tool and swap mine out some time back. One bike had 40-50k-ish and the bearings were ok.
Now will plan to do every other tire change or so. multihdrider (sp?) is a good source for bearing info if you search for his posts. Haven't seen him on here in awhile.
Thread Starter
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Cruiser
Joined: Jan 2022
Posts: 103
Likes: 19
From: INDIANA
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 11,226
Likes: 3,049
From: St.Louis Mo.
My front 25mm bearings lasted a whopping 2500 miles. My youngest brothers lasted about 12,000. So it's a crap shoot.
Every time my wheels come off for anything i inspect and pop off the grease seals and add some good grease. I am going to replace them at every tire change and keep myself safe.
Every time my wheels come off for anything i inspect and pop off the grease seals and add some good grease. I am going to replace them at every tire change and keep myself safe.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 5,474
Likes: 6,344
From: pacific northwest
Had a rear one fail on the low rider at 23k, installed a set of timkens to replace them with, on the Road Glide I changed them at 12k even though they were still good, installed a set of World wides in the wheels, Timkens in the rear sprocket.
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Banned
Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 14,866
Likes: 31,162
From: Whiskey Falls, Texas
I install my own tires and bearings. Wheel bearings will last a long time IF they are properly installed. When I change tires I always check my bearings. If I don't think there's an issue I don't worry about it.
For those that have a tech install them, if you have the ability to jack your bike up and pull your front wheel, spend an hour and double check their work. Most likely all is well but that front wheel is pretty damn important to trust your life to someone else's wrench.
