Wheel bearings.

toglhot

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I wonder what the longevity of wheel bearings is, sealed as compared with open, hub packed with grease.
 
Dunno. But I'd be inclined to suggest the open should last just as long, provided they are kept packed with grease. Maybe an old-timer - that's most of us lot - would say the open might last longer 'coz a fastidious owner could re-pack with fresh grease, while the sealed bearings would rely on the grease put in by the factory?
 
Correct me if I’m wrong, but even the sealed units can be repacked with grease. There is merely a thin cover that can be removed with a small pick or similar tool, right?
 
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Yup sealed aren't sealed just have covers to keep the grease where it needs to be.
Don't go GONZO on topping up a sealed bearing. Did a bit of looking and found a "no more than 25-35% of the cavity grease filled" reference. Excessive grease increases heat, friction and can ultimately reduce the grease's lubrication properties. Industrial bearing users get REALLY serious about details.
A major pitfall would be incompatible grease. If you feel the need to repack you are going to have to remove all the old grease first, cuz you have no way of knowing what grease the OEM used.
My experience with these 40-50 year old bikes is the original factory installed wheel bearings are STILL just fine.
Bikes operated in extreme heat, dirt, dust may be more prone to failure. But I don't recall an XS650 wheel bearing failure that WASN'T due to a PO's improper work/abuse. All bets are off if a wheel has been previously disassembled for paint, powdercoat.................
Or an owner with a pressure washer addiction.........
 
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You find sealed bearings in the majority of modern bikes nowadays. I normally replace the old unsealed bearings with the sealed type since I usually need to disassemble the wheel for repairs. I agree with Gary that most of the 40 year old bearing were just fine if properly cared for. When I was working in the HVAC field we always came across customers whose maintenance guys would overpack the machine bearings(with a grease gun)which would destroy many. From what I understand the balls(once overpacked) scoot across the surface rather than roll
 
Decent bearings last for 60K miles and more, from direct experience.
In the past 30 years I've had to replace about two sets that felt dodgy, and they were in wheels I'd bought used, so no clue as to how they'd been treated before I got them.
I wasn't impressed with the factory bearings, unsealed as they were, so I've always bought sealed ones, with no trouble from any of them.
 
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