Mechanics and Fixing Any Questions Answered

@Chak thankyou. I moved the chainring and that seems to have done the trick.

I need to replace the bearings on a Goldtec rear hub. I've done it once in the passed but managed to mess up the axle and destroy one of the new bearings, so I'd like to do a better job this time.

The main issue I had was pressing the new bearing in, the tolerances seem tighter than I'm used for bearings and the method I've used in the passed for my phil woods won't work as the axles are solid with the Goldtecs.

I'd like to get a cheap bearing driver kit £20/£25 tops but what should I get ? the concern I have is all the examples I've seen of a bearing driver being used are for hubs which don't need the axel in place when your fitting the second new bearing. So the driver needs to be able to clear the axel end and allow you to apply the pressure required to drive the bearing into place. Hopefully that makes sense ?

Does anybody have any advise / suggest of the best tools to buy ?

You can use the old bearing and a hammer to tap very carefully the new one in place.

Or you can buy some form of press and just use the correct size bit and a suitable cilinder that clears the axle to wack it in place

Soon to be sticking an 11-40T cassette on a GRX 2 x 11 drivetrain. Up from 34T (technically outside Shimano's suggested range) Will be using a goat link.

Is it best practice to up the chain length when increasing cassette size?

Yeah I did end up using the old bearing but as I say the tolerances meant that it didn't really work. even with the second bearing on top you couldn't hit the face squarely because of the axle being in the way. Its one of those jobs where you need 3 set of hands to hold everything in place, hold the wheel and hit all with a hammer.

As I remember I ended on the with the opposite side of the wheel bottled in to the bike frame on the wrong side of the rear tringle and 3/4 other bearing on top of the new bearing to clear the axle and then using the hub bolt to tighten it down to seat the new bearing in place.

Stack it up, hub shell, new bearing, old bearing, old bearing from the other side if necessary, suitably sized socket from a socket set, preferably drive end up so you can hammer on it and get reasonably even drive.

Yeah I don't currently have a socket set but I did wonder if that would be a better bet than a proper bearing driver kit because there more likely to be able to clear the axle and have a hole that would allow them to go over the axle. That sounds like the way forward, thanks

Almost certainly with that kind of a jump, yeah

You can use a hammer and punch, but just be sure to only hit the outer race of the bearing, if you have a washer that goes over the axle and covers the seal area that helps.

Bee sure to keep it "square" by tapping all sides evenly.

Bee sure to keep it "square" by tapping all sides evenly.

Yeah, I've had success with that method in the pasted with other hubs but it just wouldn't work with the Goldtec it was just too tight.

Spark plug sockets are usually good and deep to get over a long axle.

Goldtec keeping things TIGHT I see still, those guys know their way around a tolerance sheet!

Before you struggle any further, push axle back out and proper examine the inside cut face of the hub for damage. Any misaligned bearing smacked into their in the past will leave a scar and this scar will prevent the bearing going in correctly full stop, or if you do get it in, will put a stress point on the cartridge causing it to grind/fail super quick.

As MV if all is well, make yourself a stack and tappy tap it home, or find a mate with a proper bearing press (hydraulic car sized or fly press style) and wind it in. Even a jumbo vice can be used.
Have even had success with Irwin vice grips large/heavy duty, it generates a good 150-200 kg of compressive force, half made of plastic too so allows some flex/out of line goodness where it won't destroy your hub if you get things slightly wrong.

I replace my Hope BB bearings by putting the BB in the freezer over night and then popping it in a cup of boiling water. The old bearing just drops out as obvs the Alu cup expands quicker than the steel bearing. I then just push the new bearing in. Can you do something similar with the wheel? Poor boiling water on the hub, or warm it with a hot air gun so it expands a bit?

Have you tried freezing the bearing cartridge, and heating the hub shell up with a heat gun / hair dryer?

Edit - someone said similar as I was writing ^

I'm glad I wasn't imagining the tight tolerance thing with the Goldtecs.

Irwin vice grips large

I've just had to google that, are they what I would have called monkey grips back in the day ? I'm struggling to understand how I could use those with a built up wheel.

This hub was factory fresh when I got it so hopefully there wouldn't be any damage, yet! (my passed experience was on a different hub)

I use 11-40 2x GRX, no need for goats but always size the chain properly, so big to big plus one full link in this case, you're better off with a new chain on a new cassette anyway.

I figured as much but seen a few examples of people not changing the chain length. I'll size using the same method as fitting the first time.

Is the B limit screw causing any more damage to the original link thing than it other wise would?

seen a few examples of people not changing the chain length

They've either done it too long for the smaller cassette or to short for the bigger one, the latter is worse. Limit screw doesn't damage anything, unless you spend all day turning it in and out.

Skipping to 4:38 on this video, albeit with a 11-42T cassette, the limit screw is not great.

5:43 with the 11-40T is a lot better but the guy goes on to explain that that screw does dig in to the bracket (after a few hundred miles) as its not flush.

The goat link 10 spd is the same length but with a better surface area for the limit screw. I've basically taken the plan for my set up from this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRgLG1uP_uo

Got you, all seems OK on mine, if you've already got a goat then it's not going to hurt though.

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Aye will see how it is. Cheers for that pic for reference :)

Whilst there's bearing chat going on I need to replace the bearings on my Novatec A291SB-SL and F482SB-SL hubs.

The front states it needs 2x689 and the rear 1x6902 and 1x15267. Where's the best play to buy bearings and what ones make most sense to buy in terms of quality and finish?

I found decent prices, even after £3 postage, with Bearing King.

Always looks a bit funky a single ring spider woth the ring on the wrong side. If it works it works I suppose