lotus54 Posted April 1, 2016 Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 Almost my only compliant about my Explorer is the rear linkage. It is probably just fine for most trials- but I ride it a lot and in a lot of mud and water. Those bushings are ok if you take the thing apart a lot- but I'd rather have something a little more robust and with zerk fittings. Anyone looked at coming up with something else? Or no issue for anyone else? Bearings and zerks would be nice. Even just zerks would be ok, since I could hit it every ride. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tsiklonaut Posted April 1, 2016 Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 They are fine as they are IMHO, they serve the same function as bearings but save a lot of weight. With the right tools the singarm+linkage opening is relatively easy to clean and re-lube: There's actually a "lube collection" groove in almost every bore, you can feel them with finger - I filled them up, this will make the lube last longer. Clean off the excess lube after putting together. Now it's like new again: I think the trick is to use a lot of lube, so the water and mud cannot go inbetween. I'd open them once a year, but if lot of water and mud then maybe every 20 to 60 hours riding or so depending how extreme the conditions. Certainly I wouldn't worry too much about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotus54 Posted April 1, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 (edited) Where I ride water and mud will get in there no matter what. I've serviced them loads of times- every time they are full of gunk. (Just did it again today) I've had to replace pin and parts due to wear, the bushings a bunch of times. (I bought a box of them). I'm sure fine for trials- but it is very common for my typical ride to be many, many hours- and quite often. I don't really want or pull it apart every ride or two. It is also pretty rare to not get Into loads of mud. That has been my experience anyway. Edited April 1, 2016 by lotus54 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tsiklonaut Posted April 1, 2016 Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 There is not enough room for needle bearings, but I guess when you bore out the holes it is possible to convert into bearings. That being said it is pointless conversion unless you somehow seal the open ends. Maybe using custom cut rubber caps on shafts helps? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotus54 Posted April 1, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 Yes, someone did fit needle bearings, but unless it has zerks for greasing every ride or figure out a good seal setup- that doesn't seem to do much good. Everything is pretty tight for clearance, so getting a permanent mount zerk could be a challenge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcrhino Posted April 1, 2016 Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 I drilled two 1,5 mm. holes in the spindles that go into the swingarm. That made it possible to grease the spindles by removing the M6 bolts on both sides and replace temporarily with M6 grease nipples. And refit the original M6 bolts after greasing... Advantage: very easy to grease these bearings. Disadvantage: grease came out on the backside (close to the rear shock) and as we all know: grease is a big dirt collector... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotus54 Posted April 1, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 (edited) So you drilled holes that go in the middle of the steel pivot- that goes into the hole that the retaining bolts screw into? (dogbones) I would think a grease fitting could be left to retain the dogbone that way also. (Assuming I could find a straight thread fitting with long enough threads) But maybe you Are talking about the lower pivot? Edited April 1, 2016 by lotus54 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canada280i Posted April 1, 2016 Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 pics! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcrhino Posted April 1, 2016 Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 Sorry, no pics available; did the mod on the 280i and the 280 was replaced by a TR250i. I used part of the pic posted by tsiklonaut (no Copyright I hope ). I cross-drilled (perpendicular) the steel shafts that are part of the two dogbones (?) shown left and right in the picture below. Drilling was done slowly because I didn't want to damage the M6 thread inside the shaft. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotus54 Posted April 1, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2016 That makes sense to me. I found some 6mm zerk fittings with a long straight thread, I think I'll try those and just leave them in place. At least that part will be easy! Thanks for the info Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tsiklonaut Posted April 2, 2016 Report Share Posted April 2, 2016 Sounds interesting guys. Let us know how the upgrade goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcrhino Posted April 2, 2016 Report Share Posted April 2, 2016 (edited) That makes sense to me. I found some 6mm zerk fittings with a long straight thread, I think I'll try those and just leave them in place. At least that part will be easy! Thanks for the info Mark The thread on the zerks should not overlap the hole in the spindle... I drilled the 1,5 mm. holes to align with the groove in the bearing. Edited April 2, 2016 by tcrhino Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotus54 Posted April 2, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 2, 2016 Dang- I was out riding today with buddies, hopped a gully and promptly broke the 'rocker' of the linkage. The front broke the bottom part right off. (Pics after I dismantle) No fun- Fortunatly it wasn't too far from a road, so I could out a stick between the swingarm and muffler. That way the bike would roll. I thought I had another, but I sent it back since I didn't need it (dumb). I think. Lewissport has some (mine is a 2014, but an early one so the middle pin is smaller than the later ones that have a 20mm pin. But that is not the place it broke, rather the front pivot of rocker- which I don't think changed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotus54 Posted April 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2016 I have all the replacement parts, but I'm working on a new design that will allow zerk greasing and (hopefully) needle bearings. Plus I'm looking into more robust material since I've broken two dogbones and a rocker. (The Explorer is a bit heavier, plus I wear a pack, plus I need to loose 15lbs). If you have any interest - PM me and I'll keep you in the loop. No clue on cost or weight at this point, (I guess with enough $$ weight could go down). I don't hear many people complaining, so it must be the use I give it. I keep the bushings well lubed and replaced. (Ok- the first broken dogbone probably was my fault) Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tsiklonaut Posted April 20, 2016 Report Share Posted April 20, 2016 Sounds interesting, keep us posted if you have the design and build done. Might be a good update for anyone looking for more robust linkage setup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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