Source of mower spindles

[J_J]

Really dumb to sell/install sealed bearing, and then tell you the inner seal must be removed.

Manufacturers sell the bearing in about 4 to 5 different versions.

Some bearings are rubber sealed and some with steel on rubber seal.

Shielded bearings.

Both sides sealed

One side sealed

No seal

In a sealed bearing, they only fill to about 25 to 35% of free air space.

Some people use a grease injector to punch through the sealed bearing and lube it.

Interesting video.

How-to Lube Sealed Bearings - YouTube

It is interesting that some people grease the spindles ever time they use the machine or use, an 8 hr schedule or whatever. not knowing the bearings are sealed.

They make bearings with one side sealed for use in a spindle assembly, with the unsealed side toward the inside, with a grease zerk in the spindle wall.

 

[coolconnection]

It is interesting that some people grease the spindles ever time they use the machine or use, an 8 hr schedule or whatever. not knowing the bearings are sealed.
They make bearings with one side sealed for use in a spindle assembly, with the unsealed side toward the inside, with a grease zerk in the spindle wall.

Well it was interesting for me and I am glad I did, there wasn't to much grease in those bearings under the seal. From what I understand the seal was supposed to be removed but somewhere in Power-Tracs assembly process someone just didn't do it. I grease my spindles but not on an 8 hour schedule. That spindle shaft can hold a lot of grease now I know how it is assembled. It is a big void in there. I was skeptical on taking the spindle shaft apart just because I didn't know how but once the top bolt is removed it wasn't to hard. Just remember to keep things all clean.

 

[frischtr]

Cool, when you called PT, you just got the shaft part right? Not the whole assembly. I was trying to hold one of my spindle assemblies together for the rest of the season, but when mowing the other day, the upper bearing totally disintegrated. After disassembling, it didn't look good. Did yours look something like this:



I'll need a new shaft, a couple new bearings, and a new pulley (the keyway is beat to **** from all the rattling due to the failing bearing).

 

[coolconnection]

Yes it looked exactly like your picture. That's the part I ordered and received. Just make sure when you reassemble the spindle you use some Loctite on the top bolt.

 

[frischtr]

Thanks, $28.50 + shipping on the way. the whole assembly was $92, btw.

 

[MuncyBob]

That's a cool video JJ. I just may try this with the bearings in my wood boiler fan. So, if a PT has sealed bearing why do we have zerks?

 

[woodlandfarms]

My mower, after being told I had sealed bearings, did not.

 

[J_J]

That's a cool video JJ. I just may try this with the bearings in my wood boiler fan. So, if a PT has sealed bearing why do we have zerks?

Supposedly the zerk is to inject grease to fill the void to keep water out.

Any grease that leaks into the bearing is good, but water is not good.

I did a lot of bearing replacement on wheel bearings and spindle bearings on my Dixie Choppers.

They had a cast iron housing assembly with a 1 in spindle and sealed bearings at the top and bottom, with a 1 in DOM tube to keep the bearings separated and in place.

On some of the sealed bearings I removed the seal on one side and they faced to the inside/grease side of the spindle housing so grease could penetrate when greasing.

If you can see grease come out the top bearing, water can get in.

You need sealed bearings especially on the top bearing to help keep water and dirt out.

A water proof grease is recommend, such as boat trailer bearing grease.

 

[J_J]

My mower, after being told I had sealed bearings, did not.

Did you purchase the mower new or used.

If used, the other person might have replaced the bearings not knowing much about bearings.

Open faced bearings are cheaper.

 

[woodlandfarms]

So my mower bearings are open (having replaced them once). You are saying that I could get the same size as a sealed bearing? I do get rain in the top bearings.