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unit bearing

userbmx1315

userbmx1315

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Dallas, NC
were is the cheapest place to buy unit bearings? mine are practically got after i put on 35s
 
I go to the junkyard and take the bearing and axle as an assembly for between $20-40 a side.
 
I have bought some (one for each side/1 pair) off of eBay that were brand new and the were about the pirice of one new one from the parts store. I am not sure of the quality difference, but these have over 40K on them and they have not caused and problems.
 
I found Timken for $75 on rockauto.com. Can also get 5% off that with the discount code. If they dont show for your year, check other compatible model years, I had to order a 00 for my 99, but they're the same. Dont know what year you have but make sure they will fit with your rotor.
 
The OES bearing on that website claims to have a limited lifetime warranty (whatever that means). I guess it would be a lot easier to return something to advance than worry about dealing with that website or OES.
 
these are the specs for each rotor, they're pretty close, but is it too far off?

1990
Diameter:11.2"
Height:3.19"
Maximum Lateral Runout:.004"
Thickness When New:.95"
Discard Thickness:.89"
Vented / Solid:Vented
Center Hole Diameter:2.84"

1987
Diameter:11.03"
Height:3.04"
Maximum Lateral Runout:.004"
Thickness When New:.88"
Discard Thickness:.82"
Vented / Solid:Vented
Center Hole Diameter:2.84"
 
Most of the bearings that cost $50 are like wal-mart products. They suck. I went through many of them so quickly and decided to put the money into a REAL bearing from rockauto.com. This bearing lasted almost 2 years.
 
I used $60 AutoXtra unit bearings with 35s.

You HAVE to torque the nut to the correct spec (~175 lb ft) or else the bearings WILL wear out prematurely. I had those bearings on there for about 6-7 months and they were JUST starting to develop some play when I pulled the D30 out.
 
Yeah I got the $100 ones from Napa and I just return them for new ones before the one year warranty is up. Its motivation to go through them in less than a year. Plus my 3.5" backspacing and 35's help.
 
Hey, just a quick question, What the hell are you guys doing to these bearings..I know they are bearing but, you guys talk about them like they were oil changes..LOL I have never had to replace the unit bearings in any of my recent Jeeps.. Is the issue from wheel offset? I have never had an XJ on 35's so I can't speak for that situation, but it just seems a lil crazy how you guys are wearing them so quickly...
 
After 200k on the clock my passenger side bearing has some play. I assume if I wheeled more often and had tires bigger than 31s and less backspacing they probably won't last that long. It sounds like amadeus3 is the only one talking about changing them frequently.
 
OkieXJ said:
After 200k on the clock my passenger side bearing has some play. I assume if I wheeled more often and had tires bigger than 31s and less backspacing they probably won't last that long. It sounds like amadeus3 is the only one talking about changing them frequently.
Click to expand...

I ran 33's on my old rig, and crawled all over the rocks of nevada... and never had any unit bearing issues. I have always stayed on the skinnier side of the tires though, and had 8" inch wide rims. I just never wanted to deal with the law, and tires hanging out to far, been there and done that, it sux. I am just kinda wondering when you tip the scales of backspacing the rim, Does it become NON bearing load free? I guess I should have clarified, there are already a lot of posts here and Jeepforum, about front unit bearings...
 
Yeah, I haven't read all the bearing threads on here so I don't know if they give a good idea of what factors make bearing fail when. Really I think the backspacing and wheel width matter the most though because tire size alone doesn't affect the direction of the force on the bearing. So I would expect 33x10.50s and 15x8s to last longer than someone with 15x10s and 33x12.50s.

Edit: Not sure what "NON bearing load free" means.
 
Last edited:
MoparManiac said:
I used $60 AutoXtra unit bearings with 35s.

You HAVE to torque the nut to the correct spec (~175 lb ft) or else the bearings WILL wear out prematurely. I had those bearings on there for about 6-7 months and they were JUST starting to develop some play when I pulled the D30 out.
Click to expand...

Hallo. Absolute true.
The both halfs of the hubs are easy to split.
The torque/pressure of 175 lb ft is necessary to adjust the inner bearing and to give the exact play.

'92 XJ wim
 
OkieXJ said:
Yeah, I haven't read all the bearing threads on here so I don't know if they give a good idea of what factors make bearing fail when. Really I think the backspacing and wheel width matter the most though because tire size alone doesn't affect the direction of the force on the bearing. So I would expect 33x10.50s and 15x8s to last longer than someone with 15x10s and 33x12.50s.

Edit: Not sure what "NON bearing load free" means.
Click to expand...

When wheels are made, they are made bearing load free, meaning they are balanced side to side, if you would, from the factory to minimize the stresses on the wheel bearings. When you apply things such as wheel spacers, which look cool, they stress the unit bearings, I know this from my quad. Long story, but I just know..
 
It sounds to me like anything other than stock BS and wheel width is not 'bearing load free' and will detract from bearing life.
 
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