Swing Arm Bearings

I hope your bearings are in better condition than mine were, because they are a pain in the @ss to change. I had to put a socket in the hole against the race and pound them out. As far as the shock linkage, grease that too. Take a day and tear it apart and do all of the bearings for peace of mind.

I just got done taking mine out and puttign new ones in. It is fairly easy to do. If you must replace them I would recommend using a PRESS to get them out or have a shop take them out and put new ones in. Some of them might just slide out easlily while others might not. If they don't come with a few nudges of a hammer, use the press. Ohh, and one more thing, yes it does work to put your bearings in the freezer before putting them in the swingarm. This helps them contract. As for the squeak, Just use WD-40, I have been for over a year now.HEHE:p

swingarm: If it hasn't been maintained regularly, you might well encounter some trouble. It's not uncommon for the shaft to stick..and getting it out can be a big pain.

Shock bearings: Be prepared to replace some stuff! The bottom shock mount bearing is probably bad. They fail often. The top shock mount is just a bushing..don't try to 'remove' any bearing!

Once you get through the hassle, you'll want to service all this stuff REGULARLY!!

Signed: Rider with bike sitting in the garage 'cuz I was servicing my bearings..and found the shock mount bad...again!!

..but my swingarm bearings are great!!!

Take it one step at time. Disassemble the linkage, remove the swingarm and clean out the old grease. Inspect the bearings (and the seals). If they look OK, liberally apply some fresh grease and put everything back together. If there is bearing damage, then you'll have to install new bearings. The small one at the bottom of the shock is the one most likely to go.

To push the bearings in & out use a spacer & a press (you can warm the housing up a little to help). Due to the design of the sw you can substitute a garden variety vice to press them in, & with a external spacer to press them out.

Which is good ‘cause everybody has a vice (I mean how else would you,. . . well anything).