headbearings

[neatbik]

The time has come to replace the headbearings on my cb1, ive tried to adjust them but whatever i do the steering is crap and im getting knocks when hitting bumps/going off kerbs etc etc.
Im fairly competent with the spanners, so im guessing it shouldnt be too hard to replace them myself? And where's best (i.e cheapest) to buy a set from?
Cheers, nick

[Jamie S]

If I were you I would just strip them down , clean all the bearings in petrol and re built it with plenty of new grease.

Done it to my bike about 6 weeks ago and the steering is so nice now.

That is of course if they are not taper roller bearings ?

[Robby]

They will be taper rollers. You'll get a set off ebay or mandp for about 30 quid, which is the going rate for them.

There are a few parts during fitting which will be difficult:

Knocking out the old races. If you're lucky you'll be able to get an old screwdriver or chisel onto the lip of the old race to knock it out. If, as on some bikes, they go in blind with no lip or rear access, you'll need to resort to a dremel to cut through the race, and lots of swearing when it goes wrong and you butcher the frame.

Pull the the old bearing off the steering stem. You either need a very long bearing puller, or an angle grinder. Once again its a case of grinding a slice out of the bearing to it will pop off. This bearing will be on very tight.

Fitting the new bottom bearing onto the steering stem. Not as hard as the other jobs, just make you get some copper grease on the stem first, and have a length of pipe the right size to drive the new bearing on.