1997 max II bearings and wheel seal replacement for a newbie

[mudd]

I'm as new as they come to the whole 6x6 thing, but I did some work on my just purchased max II today and figured alot of syuff out about them.

Anyway, I took all the wheels off today in order to grease the fittings right behind them and realized that a couple of the axles would wiggle around slightly if I shook them. So I figured I would need some new bearings.

So, My question is:

How much money and time am I looking at spending on changing all the wheel bearings? Also, do I just change the bearings, or are there many parts that should be changed while I'm in there? The max took on some water today on my first ever ride in the pond, so I assume the spots where the axles come out of the body must be leaking, so I should replace that too?

Thanks, and remember, this is the only the 3rd day of owning this max, and mine is the only one i've ever seen, so the "obvious" to you is probably not obvious to me,

[Mike]

Hi mudd. You can typically get a quality 72mm triple sealed outer bearing for your max for around $20. The part number for it is HC207-20 TRL or HC207-20 R3 depending on what brand you go with. Just make sure it is triple sealed. The factory uses a Peer brand bearing and while it is made in China, it is probably one of the best Chinese manufactured bearings I have seen. They are also some of the highest priced. I recently priced some and the cheapest place I could find was in the $40 range. Some members are using a decent Chinese bearing from Buffalo bearings that costs around $12 a piece. I am actually in the process of changing mine out and decided to go with PTI brand for around $22 a piece.

Outside of that you will also want to replace the inner bearings (part number SA206-20) while you are in there. They should be about $10 a piece. It's not a bad idea to replace the outer bearing flanges too, especially on the front axles. If they have taken a beating, they can be grooved and allow the bearings to spin within the flanges. They are only about $5 a pair. They are expensive from the factory but they are just standard 72mm 3 bolt flangettes. The same ones are used on tractors. I ordered some Tisco brand, part number F3Z72.

For the bearing numbers I am going from memory. They are listed in other threads here on the site so search for the numbers before you order to make sure I told you correctly.

That is really all you need. Get some 3M strip caulk, silicone, anti-seize and some thread locking lock tight to help you finish the job. You can read through the complete how-to article here to get a better idea what you will need: How to replace bearings in your Max II

While you are in there, consider also replacing the chain. I also recently purchased PTI brand #50 chain. I bought 50 feet of it for somewhere in the $100 range. I don't remember exactly. For the length of time it will take you, that really depends on how easy everything comes apart. If it has been neglected at all, expect to have a hard time getting the sprocket tubes off the axles. Sometimes you even have to cut the axles out and buy new ones if that are rusted together really bad.

[mudd]

Thanks mike. How quickly should I get into all that? I mean, can I ride it awhile without causing alot more damage to the machine since only about 3 of the axles wiggle? And when I say wiggle, I mean just a very small amount of play. And also, are max's ever 100% water tight when floating, even when brand new?

[Mike]

You can run it for a while if you just have a small amount of play. It's not going to hurt anything. It's more annoying than anything since water and mud will get inside your tub.

After you change all of your bearings and flanges, it will be water tight for many hours of use.

[thebuggyman1]

You may be leaking around the bearings more than thru them. R.I. now uses rope caulk to seal between the bearing carrier and tub. The old rubber gaskets didn't last.

[bierbower37]

Also its not a bad idea to replace the carriage bolts holding on the flanges. I changed mine out to help limit any future problems and used nylon lock nuts instead of just lock washers.(it's a '98 figured couldn't hurt) In the article on bearing replacement do like Mike suggests with coating the axle with never-seez. I had a lock collar slip and it made removing the axle super easy. And if you plan on keeping the machine future fixes will be much easier. As for time in changing the bearings that impossible to answer my one axle took all of 2 hours while the other side took 2 days of fighting with it and using choice language. Depends on how your machine was treated.