Hi all! The noob chiming in about the bearings here. I sometimes feel like a wuzz, nitpicking about all sorts of minor things, being nervous to get my hands dirty. Well - this time I’m pondering on the bearings!!
First, a little background to defend myself against possible accusations that I don’t want to order form Ryan. I did get the electronics and some hardware from him, but the rest I have sourced locally and from chinese online retailers. The reason for this is that every order that is below 40 USD is exempt from VAT and tax! So if I’m able to split my orders in many small shipments, then they will come quite cheap. To compensate a little, I’m going to send Ryan a donation in the end, for this fantastic project.
Well - about the bearings:
First I ordered this one(the red type): https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32826813943.html?channel=twinner The order never seemed to go through, so I cancelled, and got this one(the black type): https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32797489318.html?channel=twinner
Well - it turned out that both orders went through, so now I have a big bunch of (cheap and shitty) bearings,.
The red ones are supposed to be 2RS, but only have a very thin plastic cover. It’s not even a tight fit, you can see through the inner side of the plastic shield and the inner ring. The product page says 2RS, but the bearing itself says 608RS only. They seem very prone to gather dirt. BUUUT - it rolls soo smooth, silent and quite firmly on the steel pipe.
The black ones are listed as 2RS and they have 2RS printed on their sides, and they have a shield made of both plastic and metal. The fit is very tight, and you can’t see through it. They seem much better shielded against dirt. Buuut - they rattle like hell when they move on the pipes!!
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So the big question, to be or not to be:
Should I use the smooth and firm rolling bearings, or the rattling noisy ones? The first are not shielded very well, but the last seem to have proper protection.
Or - should I just get new ones? I still have to wait for new pulleys, since the chinese shops somehow have messed up this order as well.
If I end up with ordering new bearings, I still want to try to keep it below 40 USD. The Amazon link from the parts pages are out of stock. Ryan - can you get us an Amazon alternative, so that you get a referall bonus? I’d easily go for Ryans shop, if it weren’t for the shipping alone almost exceedes the VAT limit…
