Fireteam Problem with wheel bearings! Is it just mine or are they poop?

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jeff37311

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Arrma RC's
  1. Kraton 6s
  2. Kraton EXB
My daughter bought me a fireteam for Christmas and since then I've been able to play with it 15 minutes at the most 1st time I run it 5 minutes and the wheel bearing come out Called Horizon they sent me new ones put the one in and went to drive 10 minutes later the other side wheel bearing come out, Is anyone else having this problem?
 
I had one break apart after only a handful of packs through the car. I have some bearings from Jimsbearings to swap in (at some point). I've heard the stock bearings are not so great.
 
Mine was both inner
It’s a good idea to upgrade all the wheel bearings. The rest of the stock bearings are poor quality as well so I tend to replace them within the first 10 packs or so.
 
My daughter bought me a fireteam for Christmas and since then I've been able to play with it 15 minutes at the most 1st time I run it 5 minutes and the wheel bearing come out Called Horizon they sent me new ones put the one in and went to drive 10 minutes later the other side wheel bearing come out, Is anyone else having this problem?

The vets said it right. Even if HH sends you the replacement, they are cheap. Get some Fast Eddies, Jim, Avid, etc, and they have the kits for a good price.

The answer is yes! It has happened to me on new 6S rigs.
 
Thanks for the info, and sources for them. Would you recommend buying additional spares of certain bearings, if also buying a kit? Like wheel bearings, which presumably take a beating? Is it worth getting motor bearings at the same time?

I was thinking to use a drop of Tri-Flow oil (which I already have) on bearings, unless there is a better recommendation.
 
Thanks for the info, and sources for them. Would you recommend buying additional spares of certain bearings, if also buying a kit? Like wheel bearings, which presumably take a beating? Is it worth getting motor bearings at the same time?

I was thinking to use a drop of Tri-Flow oil (which I already have) on bearings, unless there is a better recommendation.

Exactly what I do...

I buy a set of 10 for the inner/outer wheels bearings since they go so fast. I replace about every 3-5 bashes in the dirt
 
I replaced the wheel bearings in my Infraction 3s and my Kraton 6s with TRB RC ceramic bearings.

My Kraton has Hot Racing rear axle carriers and steering blocks, which have larger bearings than the stock composite hubs, but TRB offers ceramic wheel bearings that fit the Kraton with HR rear axle carriers and steering blocks.

My Infraction 3s still has stock suspension parts, and I bought the wheel bearings as a set from TRB. If I ever upgrade to HR parts, I will buy larger bearings to fit the HR parts.
 
Exactly what I do...

I buy a set of 10 for the inner/outer wheels bearings since they go so fast. I replace about every 3-5 bashes in the dirt
wow I don't replace my bearings nearly as often. Only when I notice a problem! you guys make me feel so lazy :eek: :ROFLMAO:
 
Thanks for the info, and sources for them. Would you recommend buying additional spares of certain bearings, if also buying a kit? Like wheel bearings, which presumably take a beating? Is it worth getting motor bearings at the same time?

I was thinking to use a drop of Tri-Flow oil (which I already have) on bearings, unless there is a better recommendation.
I am constantly on the lookout for bearing kits on the sale so I have quite a few. I always make sure that I have extra wheel bearings for sure. Buy a full kit or two so that you have all of them together, but then look on Jim’s website and you can get a bulk wheel bearings.

On my cars, the outer wheel bearings go fairly quickly due to all the fiddlesticking fishing line around my park lake, so I have many of those 🙄 I also save all my old bearings. I either use them on a spare parts ‘mud’ car, or pull the seals and clean them out in a sonic cleaner than re-grease and reuse.
 
Aluminum hubs allow an increase in outer bearing race diameters, balancing off-road tires is critical when spinning wheels 2000+ RPM.

52EF265E-CCAB-46C8-B63F-99819B4C73E8.jpeg
 
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wow I don't replace my bearings nearly as often. Only when I notice a problem! you guys make me feel so lazy :eek: :ROFLMAO:
IKR....I am always in the dirt, and after a few bashing and checking it on the bench... that deep crunchy sound develops when I turn the wheels. Dirt is killing me for sure and there is some small amount of sand in there.

:LOL:
 
balancing off-road tires is critical
Very true. I use a small balancer I got off eBay and lead tape meant for weighting golf clubs. Works great and makes a huge difference.
 
Mine was both inner
Those Inner Hub BB's are notorious. They are technically undersized for this application. Been that way for years with the Arrma 6s rigs. But as of late and with the FT, these inner hub BB's are dropping like flies just a few minutes to a pack new out the box. A common complaint since the FT was released like a year ago. They are simply garbage. I Repacked all of my FT BB's before even running them brand new out the box. . Many were dry of lube. One had a rubber seal popping out. Some did have lube in them. Just cheap Arrma stuff to be honest. Get a replacement set to have on hand. I even get 10 packs of the Inner Hub BB's as they wear out the fastest. Second to fail IMHO, are the Differential Input cup Outer BB's. They are so small and take alot of abuse/ High RPM's . When they fail, they can take out your $whole differential$. Been there. Even melted a whole Bulkhead because of that failed small outer BB. BB's are inexpensive. And need to have them on hand. :cool: If you like to run in the wet all the time or use water/ hose to clean your rig, all your BB's won't last long at all. They will rust out fast. You will be a slave to replacing them much more often. While replacing related parts along the way.
 
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I am constantly on the lookout for bearing kits on the sale so I have quite a few. I always make sure that I have extra wheel bearings for sure. Buy a full kit or two so that you have all of them together, but then look on Jim’s website and you can get a bulk wheel bearings.

On my cars, the outer wheel bearings go fairly quickly due to all the fiddlesticking fishing line around my park lake, so I have many of those 🙄 I also save all my old bearings. I either use them on a spare parts ‘mud’ car, or pull the seals and clean them out in a sonic cleaner than re-grease and reuse.

Thank you. Hopefully I won't be running through too much debris. I do have an ultrasonic cleaner, it's interesting to consider using that.

I'll have to try removing seals from an old bearing, I guess, to see how that goes. I think the bearings I have for my helicopters use metal shields, since dirt & water should not be a concern for those.

For checking new bearings, I presume that's talking about removing their shields? And not, for instance, just soaking them in a little container of oil for a bit, to let some oil soak in past the shields?

Very true. I use a small balancer I got off eBay and lead tape meant for weighting golf clubs. Works great and makes a huge difference.

Hmm, maybe another thing to add to the shopping list. I do have some clay that I might be able to use. I saw a video about wheel balancing (on 4WD, I'm pretty sure) where the person removed the driveshaft, I think, and spun the wheel, to check for heavy spots. Is something like that a viable approach? It does seem like balancing them is probably a good idea, given how fast everything spins, and the amount of abuse involved already.
 
Aluminum hubs allow an increase in outer bearing race diameters, balancing off-road tires is critical when spinning wheels 2000+ RPM.

View attachment 266774
Totally agree. I just balanced my new fireteam wheels and one shook so hard before balancing the other tires on the table shook too. I rebalance them after they've worn in a bit since they are never perfectly round out of the box.
IMG_20230101_023336.jpg

Tried to take a video of it but it's a bit hard to show just how much it was shaking the table. If you look close you see the other wheels wobbling.
 
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Thank you. Hopefully I won't be running through too much debris. I do have an ultrasonic cleaner, it's interesting to consider using that.

I'll have to try removing seals from an old bearing, I guess, to see how that goes. I think the bearings I have for my helicopters use metal shields, since dirt & water should not be a concern for those.

For checking new bearings, I presume that's talking about removing their shields? And not, for instance, just soaking them in a little container of oil for a bit, to let some oil soak in past the shields?



Hmm, maybe another thing to add to the shopping list. I do have some clay that I might be able to use. I saw a video about wheel balancing (on 4WD, I'm pretty sure) where the person removed the driveshaft, I think, and spun the wheel, to check for heavy spots. Is something like that a viable approach? It does seem like balancing them is probably a good idea, given how fast everything spins, and the amount of abuse involved already.

It should probably work using a rear tire. Just remove the dog bone. I’ve heard of clay being used. This lead tape stuff is just so convenient.

Use the tip of a new exacto knife to very carefully life the edge of the seal and slowly remove. Be extremely careful not to bend it. You have to do it on both sides to clean. I don’t take apart new bearings. I’m sure it helps, I just get lazy. I simply put a single drop of superlube oil on one side and spin.

96A49758-41F9-4B42-9C56-863B6A4E38A0.png
 
Thank you. Hopefully I won't be running through too much debris. I do have an ultrasonic cleaner, it's interesting to consider using that.

I'll have to try removing seals from an old bearing, I guess, to see how that goes. I think the bearings I have for my helicopters use metal shields, since dirt & water should not be a concern for those.

For checking new bearings, I presume that's talking about removing their shields? And not, for instance, just soaking them in a little container of oil for a bit, to let some oil soak in past the shields?



Hmm, maybe another thing to add to the shopping list. I do have some clay that I might be able to use. I saw a video about wheel balancing (on 4WD, I'm pretty sure) where the person removed the driveshaft, I think, and spun the wheel, to check for heavy spots. Is something like that a viable approach? It does seem like balancing them is probably a good idea, given how fast everything spins, and the amount of abuse involved already.
You can always use a "free spinning hub" as a balancer of sorts. I use a TA balancer myself. In the past I was even using A prop balancer for my small 1/10 wheels. I always balance every single wheel that goes onto any of my Models. Just a routine of mine for the many years. It does matter. Sometimes you will discover that One wheel that is actually balanced out the package . Rare. Depends on the brand. Larger MT tires are very unbalanced, and makes the Chassis vibrate violently just sitting on a stand on the bench while throttling it. BB's and Tires will last much longer if balanced. Just like with our Scale cars we drive. Give it try. I usually break-in the wheels with a pack first then balance them. This allows the new Inner foams to settle in and spread out first. Balancing will be most accurate this way. I use Non- Hardening Model clay. Best IMHO. I tried the golfers tape etc. Larger MT wheels are balanced best with Clay IMHO. They take a lot of weight. Tape is hard to use with them effectively. Tape may only work better for very small wheels (On road 1/10 stuff, TC's etc)

I also have a Heated Ultrasonic Cleaner. Great for BB's. But yeah you have to carefully pop out the Rubber Seals. "Metal Shields" are NOT removable and technically are NOT Seals at all. I'll use an "RPM Bearing Blaster" for those types of BB's. But No one uses them. They are usually found inside of OE motors. Rubber Seals are easily removed with an Exacto #11 blade. Practice makes it easier, done a few times. Flatten the seals out if they got bent slightly. And Despite being Rubber sealed BB's, they are still subject to dirt and water ingress. Best solvent to use is Auto Brake cleaner. In the Ult. Son. Cleaner I will use a Citrus degreaser with a drop of dish soap. A wash, then separate rinse cycle. Heated to 140F. Followed by Brake cleaner spray to displace the moisture. Then I pack both sides of the BB with only 1/3 Automotive grease, no more, or the BB can even bind up. Pop the well cleaned rubber seals back in. I'll do this one or twice in the life of the BB. Then replace with new ones at some point. BB's need to be replaced/serviced more often than one thinks. Just Letting them fail first, can cause more damage elswhere in the drivetrain. Many just replace their BB's and don't fuss with them. That's a personal call.
I get more life out them if I service them once or twice.
I never use WD40. Not good for BB's at all. IMHO. It gums up the inner races. And is not any real lube.
My Motor BB's get High temp Synthetic oil. Not grease. Just ONE drop of oil is needed. Trust me on this. Ruined Motor BB's will ruin an Armature and the motor is simply $bricked$. Motors need to be serviced too. Many overlook this, and Motors are expensive. They should last for many years if cared for. I will usually replace my motor BB's with Ceramic Motor BB's. They last longer, And worth the few dollars more in a motor. For the rest of the chassis, I just run Chromium standard rubber sealed BB's. TRBRC, Jim's, FastEddy's, or DSM Offroad brands. TRBRC's are my first choice. But they are all similar in Quality. Check BB's when New closely, you can get a bad one here and there. Trust me on this. Never assume they are perfect out the package. TRBRC replaced a few new ones here and there. Great Cust Service. Have purchased Hundreds of BB's over the years.

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