Seized drop links

[Paultech87uk 3]

Hi all, 

Just had my bike taken to local dealer with a squeeking rear suspension. They've just called back and found that the rear drop links are siezed and need replacing along with a bolt. All together coming in at three hundred and sixty pound.. Does this sound reasonable? Very new to motorcycle world any help would be appreciated. Thank you

[wingrider.steve 943]

9 minutes ago, Paultech87uk said:

Hi all, 

Just had my bike taken to local dealer with a squeeking rear suspension. They've just called back and found that the rear drop links are siezed and need replacing along with a bolt. All together coming in at three hundred and sixty pound.. Does this sound reasonable? Very new to motorcycle world any help would be appreciated. Thank you

What bike are we talking about?

[Paultech87uk 3]

2014 honda nc750x abs

[wingrider.steve 943]

The drop links are basically just steel bars with a hole in each end, changing them will not in itself stop the squeaking. If they are actually taking about replacing any of the bearings then even if they were replacing all six bearings (unlikely) it would amount to about £95 for the bearings.

I'd ask for clarification on which parts they are actually changing.

[Paultech87uk 3]

Ok thank you, I'm sure they said drop links maybe that was just a simple version, they stated 90 ish plus vat for each "drop link" but I'll email them for exactly what the parts are. 

[wingrider.steve 943]

The drop links are only £22 - £23 each!

[Paultech87uk 3]

Ok thanks I'll keep that in mind when I speak to them next week. Maybe they meant something other than the drop links as that's a huge price difference. Thanks for your help I'll keep you posted

[Bessdogs 27]

I would have thought remove links repack roller bearings with grease job done less than a hours work

[trisaki 2,029]

Would have thought  they mean links off press out bearings  press in new, grease and replace  , very time consuming  , could  be worse if the one in the swing arm needs doing as you  probably  have to take the arm off , , greasing should ideally be done  every year  

[Bessdogs 27]

Bearings aren’t pressed in just push out with your fingers unless they’re seized in

[trisaki 2,029]

 You can guarantee at least one set if not all will  be seized  , had to use a 4 tonne  press to get one of my customers  bikes bearings  out 

[shiggsy 529]

My bike developed a squeaky suspension last week. With the bike on it side stand I rocked it and if I put my fingers on the shock body I could feel the resonance there.  I sprayed some ACF50 on the lower shock joint and the drop links \ dog bones join points. After the next ride, no more squeaks.

 

The lower suspension bearing are susceptible to the elements though and need a bit of annual care, as I found out...

 

 

Edited May 25, 2019 by shiggsy

[Mark8arker 527]

Removed my lowering kit. Two of the needle bearing were seized on a 2017 NC  (2 winters riding). Managed to clean and free them. No sign of grease on them. Told my dealer about them. They siad i most have jet washed the grease out of them lol. Havent tried to replace them yet. Covered in waterproof grease. Intend to replace them this summer.

Think it would take me  3+ hrs to replace mine. Thats if they come out with the extraction tools i have. Was thinking about putting   2x grease nipple in? The price you have been quoted may be right. 

 

 

Edited May 25, 2019 by Mark8arker

[rjp996 1,091]

Sounds a bit like the needle bearings have gone. One of mine seized. 

Agree with trisaki can be stuck in hard, I tried for ages to hammer them out, use a puller etc, in the end I simply cut them out - i got a die grinder on a dremil, only took 5 mins to get out (wish I had tried that method earlier) . Just grinded one part down until it was very thin, but not through and then bearing broke up with a screwdriver and came out. I also had to replace the bolt as was corroded. Think parts were in the region of 20£ for bearing and £12 for bolt from memory 

If that's not your type of job, taking the unit off is only 15 mins work, buy the parts and take it to a local machine shop to swap the bearings out. 

Edited May 26, 2019 by rjp996

[Paultech87uk 3]

Really helpful info thanks all. Looking at the oem catalogue I can't see any parts there that are £90+ each and £360 final bill seems expensive. I know they have just ordered in these parts so I'll try and find out exactly what it is that amounts to £200 in parts alone

[embee 7,288]

10 hours ago, Mark8arker said:

……. Was thinking about putting   2x grease nipple in? …….

 

Not really necessary, just fully pack them with suitable grease and repeat every year or two. It's not a big job to drop the links off if you have a centrestand, if you don't it's more difficult, you have to support the weight of the bike somehow. The biggest problem is the minimal amount of grease applied when they are built, and no lube is ever present on the outside area where the seals live and the links rub on the bosses. The seals run dry, wear, and let water in. Grease is your friend.

I don't bother to clean the existing grease out of mine, just squeeze some more into the rollers with a suitably sized digit. If yours are rusty they need replacing, otherwise just grease.

If you fit grease nipples you have to allow the excess grease to escape somewhere, it can simply force the seals out otherwise. Not saying it can't be done, just that it needs to be taken into consideration.

The top suspension mount is a metalastik bush so no lube required, the only issue there is whether the special bolt seizes in the housing. They are a special allen type bolt with a long head, the head is a close fit in the frame boss bore and this is what supports the load on that side, the lower rocker to frame bolt is the same design and needs to be greased to protect it from corrosion. The Deauville used one on the lower shock mount and they were notorious for corroding in place, the head effectively welds itself into the bore..

[Mark8arker 527]

1 hour ago, embee said:

Not really necessary, just fully pack them with suitable grease and repeat every year or two. It's not a big job to drop the links off if you have a centrestand, if you don't it's more difficult, you have to support the weight of the bike somehow. The biggest problem is the minimal amount of grease applied when they are built, and no lube is ever present on the outside area where the seals live and the links rub on the bosses. The seals run dry, wear, and let water in. Grease is your friend.

I don't bother to clean the existing grease out of mine, just squeeze some more into the rollers with a suitably sized digit. If yours are rusty they need replacing, otherwise just grease.

If you fit grease nipples you have to allow the excess grease to escape somewhere, it can simply force the seals out otherwise. Not saying it can't be done, just that it needs to be taken into consideration.

The top suspension mount is a metalastik bush so no lube required, the only issue there is whether the special bolt seizes in the housing. They are a special allen type bolt with a long head, the head is a close fit in the frame boss bore and this is what supports the load on that side, the lower rocker to frame bolt is the same design and needs to be greased to protect it from corrosion. The Deauville used one on the lower shock mount and they were notorious for corroding in place, the head effectively welds itself into the bore..

I removed it all when i replaced my rear shock. Got all the bearing moving and pack full of grease. Very time comsuming job. Dont have motorbike lift. So working laying on the floor. Have centre stand fitted. Thats why thought about fitting grease nipples. Have seen them on older bikes. Thanks for the advice. Have set of the allen keys you mentioned. Very handy to have. 

[motorbykcourier 293]

I changed mine once - they were rusted in solid and had to use heat to get the bearings out.

Nowadays I strip and clean them, then repack with grease - every now and then and YES grease nipple would be good !!

If you check out Fowlers parts - you find cost will be near £100 - the main cost being the bearings.

You could get the bearings from a local supplier and that would make it a bit cheaper (most likely!)

 

 

[Bart Stilgo 428]

After all this scare mongering talk about seized bearings, thought I better take a look at mine.  2016 model and little riding done in the wet season but still some signs things were not as they should be.  All now cleaned up and greased up and back together.  The coating on the silver arm piece had basically washed off with all the dirt and road filth spraying up on it.  As others have said not a difficult job but time consuming.  Spent most of the time diving into my tool kit and digging out tools I haven't used for years.  I had to strip and clean my 1/2 inch ratchet before I could use it

But a big thanks for raising this.

[outrunner 4,457]

When I removed the swingarm from my 2016X to get it powdercoated the bearing showed a lack of grease, taking the swingarm off is not a bad job so mine will be removed after every winter and re-greased. Having said that I have access to a bench and a centre stand which makes working on the bike easy.

 

 

Andy.

[Paultech87uk 3]

Well my bike is finally back.. Seems the "collar a and b cushion arms" were the culprit, siezed and causing the annoying squeaking. The original quote was way off and only came out at an hours labour and £30 ish in parts. Apparently very common and should be lubed every 1000 miles according to dealer. Thank you all for your input and advice on this. 

[Grumpy old man 4,670]

4 hours ago, Paultech87uk said:

Well my bike is finally back.. Seems the "collar a and b cushion arms" were the culprit, siezed and causing the annoying squeaking. The original quote was way off and only came out at an hours labour and £30 ish in parts. Apparently very common and should be lubed every 1000 miles according to dealer. Thank you all for your input and advice on this. 

Every 1000 miles and no grease nipple, somebody is taking the p**s

[trisaki 2,029]

If greased properly , once a year is fine 

[Grumpy old man 4,670]

14 hours ago, trisaki said:

If greased properly , once a year is fine 

So why have Honda not put it on the service schedule? 

[Tex 36,816]

1 hour ago, Grumpy old man said:

So why have Honda not put it on the service schedule? 

 

Ahh, one of the mysteries of the universe. Along with ‘why do Triumph sell some models with a radial rear and bias belt front tyre?’ Someone, somewhere might know. But for the rest of us? Impossible to guess.

 

An uncharitable answer might be ‘because some designers don’t know as much as they think they do..’.