86 250r bearing carrier?

[Brockey]

Any suggestions of which one to buy. Gotta order it tonite to be here on time. Dual row? Brand? I was leaning towards one with a grease fitting but noticed the lone star one on eBay didn't mention zerk fitting. Also important to get the adjusting wrench with it. Any help? Oh and search isn't working.

[82 250r]

Can't help much on the carrier but i have noticed the the searching function is hit and miss on this site.

Marc

[3wheelrider]

The Lonestar one should also have the grease fitting too.- However, if you ever need the bearings replaced- its ($90) vs. ($36) for the other dual row carriers. Lonestar carriers I've seen on EBAY for $130 free ship -(cheapest $ I've seen for it). I dont think you can go wrong at that price. They should contain the best bearings too vs. the others I imagine. The others unknown brands are roughly the same price for the complete carrier. I bought the RAD carrier for my '85 R way back. A complete OEM one is about $200 SERVICEHONDA .....I left out: ....It is kinda hard to suggest which one to go for - hope the info helps you decide.

[Marty]

If it was me rebuilding my ATC 250R again what I would do is rebuild the carrier again with OEM new bearings. That is if yours is still rebuildable, and it will be cheaper doing it that way and will last much longer than any aftermarket carrier would. I have done that process once but all you would need is a nice size hammer, a long punch, a socket that fits on the inner ring of the bearing and a soft piece of wood to put carrier on top of, and one more thing your wifes oven to place that clean bearing carrier in for a few minutes.

[Brockey]

Hmmmm... Ya my carrier is missing pieces and I'm replacing the swingarm too with a chrome one. Thxs for the info. Decisions

[3wheelrider]

What do you mean by "missing pieces?- the inside collar? Thats all that could be really missing-(besides bearings/seals). -Or is it missing "chunks?-lol.-Or do you just want to upgrade? All those carriers come preassembled with the bearings/collar/seals. But if you dont really need the whole new carrier- just rebuild your OEM- unless you can afford it & want to upgrade anyway........I guess the biggest difference between them all is mainly the quality/brand of the bearings but they dont tell you that info...If $ wasnt an issue I would go with the LONESTAR -just cause they been around a long time & make quality stuff. The RPM looks pretty good tho too. Tough decision I know...I hope many others chime in on this & give their past experiences/info with the different brands like BOSS/RAD/LONESTAR/ & the others.

[Brockey]

Ya the adjusting areas are busted right off from the previous owner. I would replace it all with an updated swinger setup if it wasn't so expensive and I didn't have to do any custom work. Ya the price for the carrier really doesn't matter either way tho, just trying to find from others what they would consider the best. I have to order this by the morning to get it here on time for my next ride.

Thxs for the advice, so far I believe it's gonna be the lonestar.

[RIDE-RED 250r]

I have a Lonestar twin row carrier in my R and I love it. The double width bearings are MUCH stronger and last MUCH longer than the single row setup OEM or otherwise. It's just physics, larger surface area to distribute the load will hold up better. And with high power applications like on a 250r, the superiority of the double width setup is clear.

Just be careful of any cheaper versions of twin row type carriers. After a little digging you will often find they are built from cast aluminum instead of billet aluminum, which is much stronger than cast. Granted, the OEM carriers were cast, but everyone knows they can't take too much abuse after a bearing failure if you don't happen to catch it in time. Can't tell you how many machines I have looked at over the years that had cracked/broken carriers... Plus, I have a BOSS cast twin row carrier that is supposed to work in an '85 that is useless to me. The outer carrier diameter is correct for the '85 swingarm, but the bearing spacing is incorrect. Just before you start to get the wiggle out of the axle, the brake rotor hub binds against the caliper mount. I have a little more checking to do with other axles to be sure, but it really looks like I have an improperly built carrier...The billet carriers often run a little more $$$. I have seen a few carriers on ebay advertised as billet when in fact they were cast, so buyer beware.

As to the adjuster wrench. I bought my R with the Lonestar billet twin row already in it and didn't get the adjuster wrench. So, I just started sticking drill bits in the holes till I found the perfect not too tight yet not to loose fit. Noted the size (which was 3/8" I believe) and went to my local hardware store and bought a foot of steel rod. Simply cut to desired length, bevel the edges with a file and presto, home-made adjuster tool...

[3wheelrider]

For future reference: The $90 Lonestar REPLACEMENT bearings/seals kit comes with a new collar (spacer) -so thats why they cost more to replace the bearings/seals- when needed. But if the collar is still in spec, (usually it is)- I believe you can use "any brand" dual row replacement bearing/seal kit- for less $ (minus the collar)- (when due for replacement). I dont think Lonestar gives you a choice. -not sure?

[RIDE-RED 250r]

I bought a set of double wide beqrings and seals from Dennis Kirk a few years ago for a 350x that I no longer have. I think both bearings and both seals ran right arounbf $65 of $70. It was about 5 years ago, so I could be a little off. But I do remember it was nowhere near $100 at that time anyway....

But one thing I can attest to. While double wide bearings are more expensive to replace than standards, they last 4 times longer in my experience. I have been running trikes with double bearing carriers for 7 or 8 years now.

[RIDE-RED 250r]

Here we go... Rocky Mountain offers a set of All Balls twin rows with seals http://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/p/43/53/209/911/1915/32851/All-Balls-Rear-Carrier-Bearing-Upgrade-Kit

I have had good luck with All Balls in other applications. Haven't tried their axle bearings yet