alex yates said:wasz said:The mountain bike bearings is an interesting one.
They fit ball bearings to remove any stiction in the movement of the suspension. This gives the best ride out of the box, and in the shop floor bounce test, but of course they wear out quick and rust up. This means they can sell you another one in a couple of years.
Why don't they just use rubber like on motor bikes and cars? Surely that'd give the best ride :dont know:
Problem with ball bearings in a static position with a load on them creates pitting in the bearing race (seen in the photo below) and thus creates stiction........and ultimately failure. As for the mega poor quality bearings I see fit on these bikes - no comment.
Totally agree with this... the bearings in the headset (the bit that attaches the forks to the frame) of road bikes constantly wear, corrode and pit. The movement is quite low, most of the time its straight ahead, or minimal left-right. Doesn't need a bearing race.
Interestingly the Function First shift-right kit uses ball bearings.