Crank rebuild question

[Vintagetz]

I know chuck quenzler had good luck getting bearings from vxb, and if memory serves correct he could get them w the clip groove, but we had that conversation maybe 10? yrs ago. I know he got some for me when i did my crank (since he had them on hand) just .02

https://www.vxb.com/

Thanks for the heads up I avoid cheap Chinese bearings......... I will check with them.  on a couple of my race motors and the wheels I am going to try out the ceramic bearings (BUT DAMN ARE THEY PROUD OF THEM!!!!)

[sav0r]

VXB is my go to. If you need something truly special, World Wide Bearings can often help.

https://www.worldwidebearings.com

Full disclosure, when we built engines Dave at WWB sponsored me, but we only crossed paths because he was able to get me stuff nobody else could. And I'll be honest, we absolutely smoked some of his bearings. The ceramic main bearings turned to powder and we put a piston through the read valves. Not even recyclable that engine. Not pretty. Nothing we are talking about here is on that level of performance though.

[SoCal250]

I've had VXB bookmarked for quite a while. I believe I saved it because of a discussion and recommendation here years ago, (may have been Chuck?). In any case, I just noticed they're in Anaheim, not too far from me!

[bitzz]

For what it's worth: Way back when I was sponsored by a bearing company you've never heard of. The primary of the company was a nice guy that worked at Canada Bearing, till he was made redundant, when the internet took over and you didn't need an engineer on site to sell bearings, so he and his sons opened a bearing house and  even had their own trade name.
When I asked him about the quality and durability of asian bearing he told me that with the tolerances necessary to BUILD a bearing: if you can build a bearing to spec, it's easy to make it go round and round. Building the bearing is the hard part.
I used his bearings in gen sets, alternators and electric motors, which is one of the worst environments for a bearing (roller bearings don't like an electrical charge, it does weird things to the lubricant and changes the base metals), for years and years without issue. 
... but I'll still pay more for a "name brand"....

[bitzz]

A few years ago I was was looking for some 7305 roller bearings for a TZ crank. $200 CDN from Yamaha... IF they have stock. They didn't
Some of the banshee sites sell that bearing as an "up grade" (it's not) and I found a site in the south west states that was advertising a SKF 7305N... so I called SKF Canada to get some, and was told SKF doesn't do that bearing.
HUH?? There is picture on this guy's website of a SKF 7305N, so I sent a link of the picture to the guy at SKF.
The guy at SKF looked into it and IF they made that bearing it would be made in their plant in Northern Italy, and he checked the computer files that went back to 1986 or '87 and that plant hasn't made any 7305N bearings.

[bitzz]

In the 50 years I have been screwing with 2T bikes, I have installed the cheapest bearing or the bearing that was  available at the time, many, many times and I have seldom seen a spun bearing that wasn't run without oil. The issue is oil, not the bearing...(almost) every time
A dry $65 SKF explorer will burn up  just as fast as a dry $13 Nachi

[Vintagetz]

A few years ago I was was looking for some 7305 roller bearings for a TZ crank. $200 CDN from Yamaha... IF they have stock. They didn't
Some of the banshee sites sell that bearing as an "up grade" (it's not) and I found a site in the south west states that was advertising a SKF 7305N... so I called SKF Canada to get some, and was told SKF doesn't do that bearing.
HUH?? There is picture on this guy's website of a SKF 7305N, so I sent a link of the picture to the guy at SKF.
The guy at SKF looked into it and IF they made that bearing it would be made in their plant in Northern Italy, and he checked the computer files that went back to 1986 or '87 and that plant hasn't made any 7305N bearings.

I am completely shocked, I would never has guessed that a Chinese company would pirate the SKF logo and stamp it on their bearings and ship them in branded SKF boxes.

[m in sc]

the bearings int he 70s were no better than what we can get today at a mid level, so im ok with vxb bearings, havent killed one yet.

[bitzz]

[I am completely shocked, I would never has guessed that a Chinese company would pirate the SKF logo and stamp it on their bearings and ship them in branded SKF boxes.

SHOCKED... well not that shocked.
Like... I get the counterfeit market, don't like it, but I get it. They're making and selling counterfeit drugs and surgical equipment  so why not bearings too?
... but WHY some obscure bearing that isn't very popular?  SKF hasn't sold one in 35 years... but some asian company is gonna magically make money? Cmon... do some market research
I bought some of those bearings from Roger at WickedATV. They said "TZ350" on them. That is all. Now THAT'S a counterfeit bearing I can use.

[1976RD400C]

Here's what Yambits sells for a center crank bearing. It says Koyo, made in Japan, no groove but the center bearings don't use a groove, and somehow they drilled the race and installed a roll pin. $18.04

[busa1300]

Yambits got me the main bearings I needed, and Yamaha had both rod bearings for my RZV. Bill Bune did the rebuild. Genuine Koyo, not Chinese...There were some newly made RZ cranks being built at the time I did mine, for almost the same price as I had in my rebuild. But questionable crank material quality and Chinese bearings, were not going into something I planned on using as intended.

Fondseca got me my TZ 4DP/3XV2 center main bearings for two cranks , that they machined to fit the center crank seal.

Before


After

[Vintagetz]

Beautiful parts. 

[old-man]

If it helps, I sent a RD400 crank for an estimate. Labor is $375 to rebuild, but the estimate is much less. To rebuild with 4 new roller bearings, both rod bearings, rod thrust washers and both solid pins, it is $651. Crank Works is busy and wait time might be long.