250-500cc Need new wheel bearings likely...oem or aftermarket?

Might be time to change out the original wheel bearings after only getting about 500-600 miles on them. Just took off my front time to swap out the michelin for a new kenda parker and was spinning the wheel bearings w/my finger and getting them to vibrate loudly when I pushed in inner race towards the hub. I did not detect any play in the wheel prior to removing it, but given that I had to use a dead blow hammer to push the axle out and the rust on the axle and the inner spacer I suspect the grease in the bearing may be compromised (I do ride a lot in the rain and in puddles).

So what's the word? Replace w/oem, or go with aftermarket like Pivot Works, All Balls, Moose or other, all of which are much less expensive than oem stuff.

Thanks!

these are off the shelf items at any bearing specialist, go good name brand eg skf stuff like swing arm bearings go oem, regrease everything with marine grease and get the bearings with seals both sides as these are cheaper and you can remove them easily if you want one side open etc.

take seals off & have a look. bung some grease in there & wait till you got sideways movement with wheel on bike & spinning on stand becomes notchy(ier) & noisy(ier). might get another 500 out of em but sounds like theyre on their way out. grease that axle too. just grease em up scotty! all balls cheap chinese bearings but handy cause you get everything(seals). better off to do what jo360 said-i just got both wheels done last week(cheers ausky) & better bearings slightly cheaper. all common bearings bar the one different sized bearing in rear hub(63005 2ns/rs not 6305-trust me i found out hard way, brake side i think). ausky's parts breakdown in 2T forum should have all the numbers there. or just get numbers off old bearings. waterproof grease both sides of bearing liberally before install-gently pick seal. check spacers, sponge & hub. clean & grease. heat gun handy too

ive been using allballs/moose (same thing). i like them just besause you get the seals and bearings all together.

a good investment would be a hardened wheel spacers. if they have any grooves in them you need to replace them too or the seal surface wont do its job and will let in dirt and water.

im getting some front & rear s/s spacers made up by a mate with a metal fab shop, mine are rooted. little bit heavier(marginally!) but should last a hell of a lot longer than alloy ones. worthy & cheap investment id reckon

I've been using ALL BALLS in my Huskys with great results since 2008. I just put a set in the front this week, replacing the OE stuff, and I figure from what I've seen with ALL BALLS, they'll be there a lot longer than the OE was.

Just fit the best, nothing worse then a set going bad during use, could ruin your days riding.

Rear bearings replaced at beginning of season with Enduro Engineering bearings..noticed play but also have about 1000k on these...decided to have shop replace them with better quality bearings...also noticed some play in the lower swingarm sooooo...too early to rip apart and dick around..letting my reputable shop Ktec Cycle in Kingston make it happen to get back out in this PERFECT riding weather

always repack new bearings with grease. they never put much in...oem is always higher priced than just buying that number bearing at a store or bearing house.

Indeed.

For what it's worth, if you're using a quality bearing (SKF, FAG, etc), I see no reason to open them up and repack them. I design/build industrial equipment for a living, and we use ball bearings by the hundreds (or thousands?). I have never heard of anyone repacking them, and I work with some guys who have been doing this for a LONG time.

It might be worth doing if you use a replacement bearing like the All Balls, MSR, type stuff, but I've had reasonably good luck with those too.

For me i prefer use FAG bearings these bearings outlast anything else ive used.

you are probably right about packing them, and i always get ina, skf, or fag bearings....i have opened plenty of them tho and found almost no grease..it only takes a few minutes and i pop out the seal on the outside edge so the sealing quality isnt hurt. pack em full and have not had problems with the seals or grease coming back out. it improves their life, no doubt. especially in this application..maybe a car or something would be okay but the hard life these bikes have, why not do it?

Good quality bearings last much longer in a good environment, but here are many counterfeit bearings out there with good name brand markings on them.
The highest quality bearing will rust if it gets wet and dirty. Packing new bearings full of water proof grease keeps much of the water and dirt out.
I pop the seals and check or repack at each tire or tire/wheel change.

Ive used All Balls on several bikes. They are good enough. Bearings go thru hell on a race bike and they have held up fine. From what I hear the Moose and Enduro Engineering bearings are from the same distributor/manufacturer as All Balls anyway.