question about replacement rod end/heim joint for suspension hoop

[Rudemouthsky]

Hello

I've just purchased a pair of stainless rod ends. All the dimensions match up to the OE however I have a concern; these do not have a bronze race or a grease fitting..they are described as "2 piece bearings with Teflon self lubricating liner"

http://www.mcmaster.com/#2988k141/=thswq3

I'm a little concerned that these are meant for more of a static load than what our swingarms call for and the life of these will wind up being ridiculously short once the Teflon is chewed up.



Any opinions on these? I can't seem to find stainless metric rod ends with copper races and grease fittings anywhere. And at almost $40 each these were too expensive to try out if they aren't suitable.

[Rudemouthsky]

Never mind. ..got my answer I believe. Spoke to the head engineer at FK Bearings who manufacturers this part and he *emphatically* recommends this self lubricating rod end over a 3 piece greasable design. Kinda funny tho, I had to pretend to be an employee of McMaster Carr in order to speak with him. I told them I was an outside sales rep who wanted to put together a large order of these for a major motorcycle manufacturer,  hehe.

[oldndumb]

Can't say specifically regarding those, not having them in hand to examine, but similar have been used on aircraft for at least thirty years.

You should be able to position the ball to allow an edge of the liner to show. If they are the same type the liner will have a woven texture similar to phenolic. It is actually a Teflon impregnated material. Works good, lasts a long time.

Or I could be wrong, and they are not acft type.  

Okay, I see you got the answer while I was keying mine. Nothing like getting an authoritative answer. Good onya. 

[koko64]

Good to know. I got some like that for a customer bike from a good bearing/bolt shop. They swore by the quality, but its good to have confirmation.

[Rudemouthsky]

Can't say specifically regarding those, not having them in hand to examine, but similar have been used on aircraft for at least thirty years.

You should be able to position the ball to allow an edge of the liner to show. If they are the same type the liner will have a woven texture similar to phenolic. It is actually a Teflon impregnated material. Works good, lasts a long time.

Or I could be wrong, and they are not acft type.  

Okay, I see you got the answer while I was keying mine. Nothing like getting an authoritative answer. Good onya. 

That's the one! I was actually wondering/worried about that woven-ish stuff. These weren't cheap, and the guy at FK basically said they were the $hit (in tech speak)

[Rudemouthsky]

Also OND, the pic I posted is super high res, you should be able to right click and zoom in on the woven material,  it's a 3500dpi image.

[brad black]

is there much reduction in thickness at the end of the thread?