Wheel bearing sizes, front and rear. [unknown year]

[belome]

Hi all, new to forum.

I am looking at picking up a set of GS500 rims and want to know the size of the wheel bearings.  I did some searching and it appears the bearing OD is 42 and the ID is 15 for front and 17 for rear.  I am however, unaware of what year the rims are and if that could have changed.  Can anyone confirm the numbers, I need to buy new bearings to make them fit on a different bike.  Also, how many wheel bearings front and rear? 

Here is a pic of the wheels, anybody have a clue what year range they are?



Thanks for all the help.

[3imo]

http://home.bellsouth.net/p/s/community.dll?ep=16&groupid=41309&ck=

Ask Starwalt,  I would guess that he would know.

[Cal Amari]

Let's see... vomit-inducing white wheels = early '90s paint

Therefore, I'd say you're safe ordering parts for the 89-96 models, so look here for details:

Front wheel parts / price list and diagram from www.mrcycles.com:

http://tinyurl.com/ehow9  ;  link to front wheel parts list

http://tinyurl.com/e5tqm  ;  link to front wheel diagram

Rear wheel parts / price list and diagram:

http://tinyurl.com/k4d6l  ;  link to rear wheel parts list

http://tinyurl.com/fjsek  ;  link to rear wheel diagram

Those breakdowns should answer all your questions about bearing sizes for the stock wheels and axles; check #3 for the front wheel, then #14 and #15 for the rear wheel to see the sizes. Looks like you need two of #3, two of #14, but only one #15; I don't know if you'll need #16 for that rear wheel or not (or any other parts, for that matter), I guess that will depend on what parts you have on hand, and what you're missing...

[belome]

Sweet, I had no idea what year they were.  The fische is a great idea.

As for the puke color, if I can get them to fit on my bike, I see some powdercoating in their future.   

[sledge]

Front wheel has 2 bearings, both size 6302 2RS, dims 15x42x13
Rear wheel has 2 bearings, both size 6303 2RS, dims 17x47x14
Cush-drive has 1 bearing, size 6305 2RS, dims 25x62x17.
Dont pay daft Suzuki OEM prices for replacements, get them from a specialist bearing supplier, they are industry standard items and are widely available. There is nothing in my service manuals to say that these sizes have ever changed during the production of the GS500E.

http://www.midlandbearings.com/Popular%20metric.htm

[belome]

Cush-drive has 1 bearing, size 6305 2RS, dims 25x62x17.

Wow, thanks.

Does the cush drive bearing ride on the axle?  Since its ID is larger than the other bearings I'm guessing it doesn't?

[Cal Amari]

If you look at the exploded drawing for the rear wheel:

http://www.psndealer.com/fiche/images/Suzuki/1989/Motorcycles/2103_50.gif

you'll see that the cush drive bearing sits on part #9, which is the drum retainer, Suzuki part number 64733-01D00.

[Trwhouse]

Hi there,
My GS500 is a 1991 model and has the same white wheels.
I hope this helps.
Best wishes,
Todd

[belome]

Crud, that means I'm going to have to machine #9 out to 20mm to fit the new axle... hope there is enough material left after machining.

[sledge]

Boring out part no 9 to 20mm ID will reduce the wall thickness from 4mm to 2.5mm. Thats a reduction of almost 50%  but if the axlebolt you are planning to use is 20mm dia, you must have overlooked the fact that the 2 rear wheel bearings have an ID of only 17mm and the 20mm bolt wont fit. I think the best and easiest option is to make a new bolt to suit the existing bearings and modify the chain tensioner arrangement to fit the new bolt. You will also have to consider the horizontal distance between the 2 innermost faces of the other swingarm as it may be different to that of the GS and you will have to include spacers on the axlebolt to get the correct wheel alignment. Then when thats all sorted out there is the sprocket alignment to consider.

[belome]

I'm swapping the wheel bearings out with bearings that have the 20mm ID needed for the axle.  I also plan to machine new spacers.  I'm hoping that when the wheel is centered the sprocket will be very close to lined up.  If not, then there will be more machining.

I'm willing to dump several hundred dollars into the project.  Since, if I can get it to work, I'll have saved a ton of money.

This is the outcome I'm hoping for...  (Obvoiusly somone before me was able to do it.)

[sledge]

Ahhhhh I see it know, and what you are preposing, looks tidy. I take it the axlebolt on the DR is 20mm dia. Stock GS rear wheel bearings are 6303`s,  (17x47x14). You want an ID of 20 to accomodate the axle, so that means using 6204`s (20x47x14). Use the 2RS type with rubber shields to keep grit out of them. Shame you cant find out who did the original mod and find out exactly how it was done to avoid all the trial and error. Got any pics of the chain side so we can see how he got over the possible chain alignment issue??

[belome]

Nope, I have a goal, one pic showing someone was able to do it... and few hundred to blow on beer for my freind who owns a machine shop.

My goal is to have it swappable out with knobbies in under 30 minutes.

[starwalt]

I see my caliper endowed friend Sledge has reinforced my suspicions regarding the axle/spacer problem!  He speaks wisely so heed his advice.

That's a nifty looking mod for the bike.

Is there a tactical reasons for going with GS wheels? Are they lighter than stock? Are they quicker for tire change?

[belome]

My bike is a dual sport bike.  The problem with a dual sport bike is that if you put really good dirt tires on it, it really stinks on the road.  If you put tires that handle well on the street, you end up wtih a horrid dirt bike.

My goal is to be able to switch the rims in less than 30 minutes.  Putting street tires on a dirt bike (called Motarding) turns it into the ultimate canyon carver.  It will be less than 300 pounds with about 40hp and basically unlimited lean angle.  This will also allow me to put very agressive dirt tires on my dirt rims since I won't be riding it on the street as much with the knobbies.

The reason I chose the GS wheels was simply because I found them cheap and they are about the right dimensions for the swap.  There are several companies that are producing kits to motard your dirt bike, but you will be looking in the nieghborhood of 1,500 dollars to do it.  My goal is to have these put in place for around 300 dollars total.

Oh, and the best part... I will easily make that cost up in the cost of tires, since most knobbies are only good for about 2k miles on the street.