MG-Cars.net

Welcome to our resource for MG Car Information.

Recommendations

Parts

MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Follow up to new front wheel bearings

Hi, I remember a while back that there was hope for quality replacement front wheel bearings and I seem to remember that samples were sent out to various people on the forum.

It has gone a bit quiet regarding the possible price and sale of these and I may be needing a set when I come to MOT the car so was wondering if anyone had heard anything?

I have emailed Chris Buckenham over a week ago but so far haven't received a response.

Thank
Mark
Mark Whitmore

Some NOS on ebay...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121592270528
Dave O'Neill 2

Crikey, they are expensive, I'd be looking elsewhere !
J L HEAP

I had a one of the free sample sets of bearings Chris Buckenden supplied.

They have been fitted since Christmas with no detectable play and are still are performing well after at least 1500 miles.

Tom Ward

159 quid? Nice of him to provide 'free' posting ;). Are they gold plated? Will he sell any at those prices?

Why has Chris B gone quiet? Update required, customers awaiting.
Lawrence Slater

Two sets sold on ebay recently for £123 and £134.
Dave O'Neill 2

Is that per side, or a complete front set?
Lawrence Slater

This quote is from : http://www.midgetregister.com/forums/technical/front-wheel-bearings/

"There are two updates that should be added:
Moss claims they are now selling face adjusted bearings with the R2 on the inner bearing inner race. If so, that solves our dilemma. Although I haven't seen them, Peter Caldwell, the Armstrong Damper specialist (NOSImports, Madison, Wisconsin, USA,http://www.nosimport.com) vouches for them that they are the real deal.

I think this refers to the states, so are Moss UK able to supply I wonder?"

Norm? Anybody else know about this?
Lawrence Slater

This 2 days ago from Norm.

"It is my understanding that Moss has heard and understood and now only sells the proper shaped bearings, but I have not confirmed it personally. Perhaps the fitting issues were with bearings supplied before the correction, which was, like, middle of last year?
Norm"

http://www.mgexp.com/phorum/read.php?3,2938754

You been holding out on us Norm? ;).

I've just looked at the US Moss site, and can't find a reference to new faced adjusted fwbs.


Lawrence Slater

Mark,

Without getting technical... you can just gobwith the "taper bearing" theres pros and cons, but id think you would easily get 25,000 miles on a street.car

There common, cheap, and easy as stsndard to install....google something like mg midget taper wheel bearings ... and youbwill get everything you can want to read

Prop
Prop and the Blackhole Midget

That link, Lawrence, is the first indication I've seen which suggests that Meditech are up and running with the bearings. £100 per vehicle set doesn't seem unreasonable.
Has anyone bought a set from him?
Graeme Williams

Graeme

That was five months ago.

The trail appears to have gone cold.
Dave O'Neill 2

'Please note the auction is per side'

The eBay item is £159 per side!!

Richard
Richard Wale

From a conversation I had with the chap, he had been talking to various retailers. Perhaps he has decided to sell through Moss? After all, from his point of view it would be a case of running off a bulk order and a single delivery rather than having to hold stock and deal with "one offs" to individual customers.
Since the price is pretty flexible I am sure he could charge Moss the same price as he had in mind to sell to the public. Moss put on their margin and the end users just has to pay up if he needs the correct items.
But not £160 per side!
At that rate,we won't see complete cars stolen, just the wheel bearings!
Graeme Williams

Well since you've revealed that Graeme, I'll repeat it. He indeed was he said to me too, in talks with Moss and others with a view to supply. I can only assume that either production has hit a snag, or talks are stalled for some commercial or legal, or other reason.

The product is right. We know that if they have R2 on the inner of the inner, they will work.

So where are they?

How much are they?

The 159 quid ebay items are still for sale. I wonder why?
Lawrence Slater

Think way in excess of 25,000 miles Prop.
J L HEAP

And think over 100,000 miles on angular contact bearings, -- WITH ZERO MAINTENANCE/ADJUSTMENT AND FARTING ABOUT WITH SHIMS IN-BETWEEN. :).
Lawrence Slater

Yep, and they are so easy to buy too, and so cheap :)
J L HEAP

At these prices I can retire sooner rather than later!!
Bob Beaumont

Maybe me too Bob.

Well yes JL. I agree. £159 is a piss take. But SKF face adjusted aren't that expensive, and all they need is an R2 put in them. CH Buckenham has already done this.

So what's the hold up?

And if I had to, I'd take a dremel or the like to an skf bearing and make my own radius.

But I don't have to :).

Lawrence Slater

Good Evening Everybody,

I must apologise for the time that it has taken to get these bearings available. I appreciate that a number of people have called the office and asked as to the progress. Principally we manufacture medical equipment and we have never seen a period of business like the last 4 months , unbelievably busy.

The first batch of face adjusted SKF bearings came in to us last week and we will be in a position to supply kits including the seal in about a weeks time. Large quantities of quality branded bearings are usually on a 3 to 4 month lead time.

I will post again shortly.
Price per wheel , £40.00, pair £ 75.00.

Best regards,

Chris Buckenham
C H Buckenham

Chris...I hope it was a big batch :-) The silent lurking majority are watching.
Dean Smith ('73 RWA)

"Specking of the devil"...is chris really the almighty great Lucifer, the devil himself??

Its like saying candyman 3 times into a mirror of a darkened room with only a candle ... and just like that the candyman shows up and cuts your throat

Chris Buckenham, Chris Buckenham, Chris Buckenham!!!

Hmmm

Very canny

Prop
Prop and the Blackhole Midget

Thanks for the replies.
Chris, I wait eagerly!!

Thanks
Mark
Mark Whitmore

"Price per wheel £40.00, pair £ 75.00."

Great prices Chris.

Those prices should kill stone dead the sale of cheap non 2mm radius, non face adjusted fwb kits.

It won't do a lot for taper conversions either. :-).





Lawrence Slater

Chris.
You can put me down for a pair when they're available.
(no doubt others will join the list.)

Graeme
graeme jackson

given the good reports from the free trial sets distributed, I'm in.
David Smith

Please form an orderly queue!

Bob: hope you didn't book a world cruise on the anticipated profits!
Graeme Williams

Me too, thanks.
Roly Alcock

21h 37m 47s (17 Mar, 2015 16:01:56 GMT) to go.

The price is still £159.95, and there are still 2 available.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121592270528

Better be quick.
Lawrence Slater

I am pleased there is a sensibly priced solution I'll just have to postbone the retirement!!
Bob Beaumont

They're back again

Only £134.45 per side now.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MG-Midget-Austin-Healey-AH-Sprite-front-wheel-bearing-kit-genuine-RHP-NOS-/121598548193?
Lawrence Slater

Good Evening Everybody,

Well at last , SKF face adjusted wheel bearing kits available for delivery.

We are in the process of setting up an ecommerce site which will allow people to order online and pay by credit or debit card, only the one product to start with. Should hopefully be up and running this week.

In the meantime if you require kits then please call the office or email us.

Telephone : +44 (0)1787 479475

Email : sales@meditech.uk.com

When we get the web shop up and running there is a more car part oriented name and email address.

The kits consist of the inner and outer bearings and the oil/ grease seal. We've left the grease up to the user , those sachets that are sometimes supplied don't ever quite seem to be enough in my opinion. £40.00 per kit , £75.00 for a front pair of kits at present.

Unfortunately it has taken a long time to get here but we really needed to rely on the feedback of the trial users. There is no doubt that face adjusted bearings which do cost quite a lot more money in the first instance are required.

Thank you for your patience everybody who has been in contact.

Looking forwards to hearing from people,

Best regards,

Chris Buckenham.
C H Buckenham

Great news! I have sent email.
Roly
Roly Alcock

email from me too
Gary
G Lazarus

Great new Chris. Excellent.

Now we need you to gear up to replace all the other essentials, that are only being sold as poor quality or incorrectly spec copies.
Lawrence Slater

A couple of questions from a relatively inexperienced owner. Would these front wheel bearings fit all models of Sprite - I'm not sure what is fitted to my IOW Frogeye? Could someone explain what is meant by 'face adjusted'? Also, is there any preference for the make of grease ?
Sorry for these rather simplistic questions, but its a gradual learning curve!
regards,
Nick
J.N. Williams

Hi Nick
Long time no see.
If you e mail me I can put you in touch with a couple of IOW owners in Kent who can give you a definitive answer rather than a should have.
Alan
Mail to in front of Mascot.
Alan Anstead

JN.

Go to Midget Tech Archive and search 'Oh no, not......Front Hub Brgs! Wohoo'.

Enjoy.
Gavin Rowlesx

Face adjusted means, --

-- the visual expression your face makes make after reading the long threads on the subject of front wheel bearings and engine breather/oil sucking. LOL.

Ditto. See the archives.
Lawrence Slater

Well we can't believe the response to these wheel bearings today.

Really very pleased ,

Thank you to all of those who have ordered , big despatch day tomorrow .

Best regards,

Chris.
C H Buckenham

Hi Chris, will be placing an order once the new site is up and running.

One quick question, when using your kit, I fit my existing spacer in between the bearings as standard right?

Many thanks
Mark
Mark Whitmore

Hello Mark ,

Yes , use the original spacer in between the bearings as per original fitment.

If you give me your email address then we can send you the email we have been using for people who contact us directly. The web shop was running this afternoon but needs further work and might be a day or two.

Best regards,

Chris
C H Buckenham

Can't wait to hear from people who have fitted Chris's wheel bearing kit. Please comment on the fit, how they went on and the end result, if you could take some photo's as you were replacing them that would be just brilliant :-)
Dave Warren

Hi Dave.
They fit identically to the way the OE RHP bearings fit. That's the whole point about them. There is no visible difference and hence nothing to show that's different. The only difference is that they are 40 degree instead of 20 degree angular contact, which is what moderns are.
Lawrence Slater

Oh no, the end of "Front wheel Bearing" threads as we know it :-(
Graeme Williams

Hi Chris, my email is: mwhitmore 1976 at gmail dot com

Thanks
Mark
Mark Whitmore

Chris,

Is the new online website up and running as I want to order some bearings.

Regards,

Doug
Doug Plumb

Doug. I emailed the sales @ meditech address, paid by paypal and had the bearings in 2 days. Planning to fit them this weekend if my new discs arrive as quickly.
graeme jackson

Finally got round to fitting the set I ordered from Chris at the end of march and I have to say they went on with no issues whatsoever. Hubs are now rock solid. Unfortunately this has highlighted a need for shims in one of my kingpins.
graeme jackson

Good Evening Everybody,

Really pleased to hear about the bearings , we've had a few good reports from people now. I've been away from the office on export business for the medical side now for exactly one month. In Singapore tonight heading home tomorrow. Followed a pristine MGA through the city today just after a big thunderstorm.

Best regards,

Chris.
C H Buckenham

Hi Chris,

Is the webstore up and running please?
Regards,

Andrew
aj robinson

Please put me on your list for a set please

I have fitted an inferior set from Echo Bay

I need a good set to pass the mot (mg midget 1275 1974)

James Stephenson

ssnjimb@aol.com or james_60@hotmail.com
D G Stephenson

James.
I'd suggest you follow Chris's instructions from further up the thread and email him.....

"
In the meantime if you require kits then please call the office or email us.

Telephone : +44 (0)1787 479475

Email : sales@meditech.uk.com

When we get the web shop up and running there is a more car part oriented name and email address.

The kits consist of the inner and outer bearings and the oil/ grease seal. We've left the grease up to the user , those sachets that are sometimes supplied don't ever quite seem to be enough in my opinion. £40.00 per kit , £75.00 for a front pair of kits at present.

"

graeme jackson

Found this site on Google that may be of help.

http://www.spridgetguru.com/TA0069.html


K Hughes

You're a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG way, behind the curve K Hughes. ;).
Lawrence Slater

I hesitate to tickle this particular dragon but..

Later this month I have the opportunity to either play with the wheel bearings before the MOT and just tighten the nuts out of the bearings which I know won't cure anything

Or

Buy Moss, MGOC, Leacey GKH1142s(etc) or Moss's Taper set GKH1142H and hope I can fettle the inner radius's to clear the silly minimum radius problem


or

Search for Chris's New Website with its more motor oriented and thus I hope searchable name for some of the new wave of bearings

I have just had fun at the Marham Track day (you should have come along, Gary and I had a blast, he almost emptied the tank on Gaps I wasn't much behind) with no more movement than at last years MOT when he gave me the advisory

What to do huh?
Bill sdgpM

if it's no worse than last year then stick it in for an MOT, should get the identical advisory.
David Smith

My understanding is chis bearings are very good quality

My thought would be to just tighten and get it mot;ed then replace the bearing in a couple months when the snow and ice start flying

Thats an area, once you start it can get extensively involved into a can of worms rather quickly
Prop and the Blackhole Midget

Advised of a noisy wheel bearing in 2008 I decided to replace it before going to “Midget 50”. The new bearing had more play than the one on the other side that had done thousands of miles. It wasn’t turned down on subsequent MOT’s, but I decided to change it for one of Chris’s, problem cured.
L Langley

MGOC are advertising bearings that are face adjusted with the correct radius. I assumed, rightly or wrongly, they were supplied to MGOC by Chris Buckingham.
Peter Blockley

Useful info Peter thanks

Might be an option, after I give the nuts a tweak first ;)
Bill sdgpM

Pretty sure Chris said on here somewhere that he was supplying MGOC and one other, possibly Beech Hill Garage.

Trev
Trevor Mason

Bill,
As I recall Chris has them advertised under his company name: Meditech. That should lead you to his website.
PN Sellen

google will (eventually) lead one to www.meditech.uk.com but can't find any reference to the bearing kits.
However IF they are still selling direct, then from a previous thread orders can be made by phone or email:

Telephone : +44 (0)1787 479475
Email : sales@meditech.uk.com
David Smith

Think this is the site Chris is selling car bits on :-

http://heritagecarparts.com/manufacturer/mg/

richard boobier

thanks Richard, well remembered
David Smith

Thanks Richard

Sadly no fiver discount for two now then :(

But as I'm going to tighten a tad and see it might not matter

And my mate has a small internal three jaw in his lathe if I need to give some attention to some new 'uns
Bill sdgpM

I have decided to have the new ones

Thanks Chris
Bill sdgpM

Well my bearings have arrived

Nice looking work too but no "THRUST" etching on either set, does the old exhortation to having THRUST facing itself not matter with these new ones
Bill sdgpM

Hi Bill,

Yes the thrust faces still need to face each other,
The outer ring should have a thin side and a thick side.
make sure you have the thick sides facing each other.

And double check length of your spacers match exactly the distance between the two abutment faces in the hub.

Had to get a spacer made for one of mine.

Andy
Andy Phillips (frankenfrog)

Thanks Andy, confirms what I thought

Fit n forget tomorrow, too busy today
Bill sdgpM

Blimey, you're up early.

What Andy said.
Dave O'Neill 2

The length of the spacer is critical as it controls the preload (or otherwise!) on the bearing.
Graeme W

I was off on a jolly to see the USAF this morning

It's OK

They were in

I'll deal with the bearings tomorrow
Bill sdgpM

Good Evening Bill,

If you get a chance please give me a ring tomorrow on 01787 479475 and tell the receptionist that it's Midget wheel bearing call and they'll put you through to me.

The spacer is ultra- key we have this new fashionable term for it because it's so important.

Earlier this year Prop had this brilliant description of me literally coming out of the woodwork after some time just at the point at which bearings were being discussed.

MGOC are roaring them out and we are getting a little low . Within the next month to six weeks we will be ordering the next batch of SKF bearings, but goodness knows where they are going. We understand that they fit a variety of models but I'm astonished at the number that has been sold thus far.

Any technical questions please call.

Best regards ,

Chris Buckenham
C H Buckenham

And it's all because of the lengthy discussions on here.

I wonder if the usual suppliers are still selling the non-spec items?
Lawrence Slater

Chris, can you export?
Paul Walbran

Yes they are Lawrence

I don't think there is much interest in second guessing the original design even though the 'newer' bearings on the specs are not as they used to be

I had an interesting call with Chris today before I got on with changing the bearings, much of our discussion covered this incidentally

Anyway, Chris's bearings have the essential larger radius on the inner bearing where it sits on the stub axle

The second bearing in the set is simply a fresh unopened face angle ground set to match as the outer bearing using the standard 1.5" long spacer block

Both of mine are to standard spec as needed for the new bearings

I fitted the offside set first and apart from needeing a dribble of loctite stud'n'bearing fit due to a wear pattern round the outside that indicated some moving around under load, a shiny band isnt ideal on the outer of the bearing, it all went together very smoothly and I consider it fixed

Not having the same fortune with the nearside

With the inner radiussed (meditech bearing) properly located and the spacer inside and the outer bearing fitted properly the inner part of the outer bearing has visible and very tangible movement and can even be heard to 'chunk' when it's lifted against the spindle

I have even tried packing out the rear radiussed face just to eliminate any possibility of a problem

With the entire unit screwed up tight the knocking still happens

Now I will repeat that this isn't the bearing that Meditech alter, this is the brand new from the SKF box one that is supplied to make up the set

I'm certain there's no lost motion from front to back along the spindle but when it is all tight the inner part of the race has play that allows this motion

Has anyone had such a situation with new outer bearing sets, or can anyone suggest a fix before I call Chris on Monday?

I stress that I'm very pleased with the mod Meditech made, just a bit miffed that I cant get the MOT done for a few more days
Bill sdgpM

Bill

Is the movement in the bearing itself, or is the bearing loose on the spindle, or even in the hub?
Dave O'Neill 2

It seems to be in the actual bearing

There is a little bit of movement as I lift or rock the hub

The outer is well seated (Popped down with a nice suddenly solid sound, if you know what I mean. I know you do) and the inner part is firm under the nut and washer

I suspect SKF have let me, and of course Chris, down with an off-spec unit

Tomorrow, given a dry enough morning I will try to swap the hubs across the car which will test the spindle assemblies

If the problem migrates with the hub it will indicate the hub/bearing unit

If it doesnt it will suggest a bad axle unit, when I will have to hunt round for another to go on the car

Without tapping the hub apart again and breaking the new bearing I cant see what else I can do

:(
Bill sdgpM

What number is on the 'suspect' bearing Bill?
Lawrence Slater

The same number on both unopened when delivered SKF boxes Lawrence

SKF Explorer 156K (top line)

7303BECBP PK12 (second line)

These were factory sealed as delivered
Bill sdgpM

Assuming it's on the bearings as well as on the box, yup, that's the magic number. Sounds like a dodgy one slipped past SKF quality control then.

PS. Not seen the 156K or PK12 before. I Wonder what they mean.
Lawrence Slater

Probably just stock control info

I dont think it's relevant, same numbers on both little blue boxes

I will expect to know a bit more when I swap the hubs tomorrow, at least find out if it's a hub or axle problem that way

:(
Bill sdgpM

I might have a spare stub axle, if you need one.
Dave O'Neill 2

Cheers Dave, I'll keep you advised 'cos that could be good news

The inner, radiussed bit looks abit/quite/bleeeming manky on the n/s but I can't see how it would cause the wibbles inside the bearing casing

The radiusses feel very positively engaged

for the present I've gently (very gently) eased the oil seal off so I can make it go to ground proper like
Bill sdgpM

Your spacer isn't too long? That will prevent the bearings preloading correctly and will leave them "opened up", preventing the inners pushing the balls home on their seat on the outer races. This would show up as play.
Graeme W

I spoke to Chris Buckenham today and he told me the spec called for exactly one and a half inches

I have calibrated my calliper gauge against my 2"- 3" Moore And Wright micrometer

and the reading on the calliper was 1.500" on both spacers so I'm happy with that for now

About the only thing I am happy with at the moment :(
Bill sdgpM

But is your outer hub precise, Bill? If the steps that locate the outer races have worn or been re-machined that will allow the outer races to be too close together and introduce play.
Graeme W

Well as today is a wet day and tomorrow said to be dry I'll be finding out then Graeme

I am not squatting on a wet foam pad in the rain so it has to wait til its dry

I hope swapping sides will give me the clues to deal with it

Really feeling fed up with the whole blooming thing today :(
Bill sdgpM

I wish I knew what the correct spacing between the shoulders should be. I don't know that is is necessarily 1.500 (ie same as spacer) because I am not sure that when the bearing are correctly axially loaded the faces are exactly in line although in the absence of any other data that probably as good assumption as any.
I would have thought it unlikely that if you have an SKF bearing it would be outside spec.
Graeme W

It's not an assumption Graeme. 1.5 inches spacing, is the design spec for the original RHP angular contact bearings. They are unavailable now, and the closest thing you can get to them, are the face adjusted SKF bearings, the only real difference being that the SKF are 40 degrees and the RHP 20 degrees. If the hubs are still in spec, then with the SKF bearings, the spacer should be exactly 1.5 inches.
Lawrence Slater

I intend measuring the inset to the bearings from the outer edge on each hub and comparing them tomorrow when I have the hubs off

After measuring the hub itself, I hope this will give me some idea where the problem lies

I know that the inner and outer 'outer races' are down to the step inside, as Graeme intimated there might be a difference in the steps down

These hubs must have been with the car for forty nine years, I have no idea what happened to it during the time someone thought making it an Arkley (over rusty steel ferrgoddsake) was a good idea

I might need to find a decent steel wheel hub at this rate and see if I can separate the small bearing then repack it to use it on another hub

Can you tell I'm getting very anxious yet? :)
Bill sdgpM

IF the hubs are still in spec!!!

THAT is the point I'm making Lawrence. There is no point in having a spot-on spacer if the hub doesn't measure up.

The 1.500 is not dictated by the bearings but by the steps in the hub. Poor quality bearings might in theory require a gnat's adjustment, but the significant dimension is the hub.
Graeme W

Graeme. You said you wished you knew what the correct spacing between the shoulders should be. I said it should be 1.5 inches, because that's the size of all the spacers originally. Yup the hubs might be out of spec due to wear or someone altering them.

You can make the cheap non face adjusted bearings fit, by altering the spacer, which is what some people have done. You can always shim the hub, or shorten the spacer, but it's hassle. And if the money's been spent buying the correct fit bearings, I think it better to use in spec hubs, rather than alter the spacers or shim the hubs, because to do it, you have to fit and remove the bearings more than once to get it right. Mind you, since these won't need doing again for circa another 100K miles, it probably doesn't matter a whole lot how it's done, since by that time Spridget will probably be banned from the roads. ;).

Bill you can seperate the outer and the inner races. I've done it loads of times, without problems. So take the known 'good' one out, and put it in the suspect hub. Then you'll know for certain if the hubs bad, or if the bearing's out of spec.

Here's Norm Kerrs's drawing of the front hub setup, showing the distance between the outer races of the inner and outer bearings, and the length of the spacer.


Lawrence Slater

Thank for that Lawrence, I think I have it somewhere but now I have saved it under 'Midget hub and axle'

should sort out any further calls for help ta

I'll be on this in the morning cheers chaps
Bill sdgpM

Well then, now I have wheel bearings that don't have any wobble in them

The offside ones are as Chris and Meditech made them but the nearside hub allowed the outer race to sink 0.0045" too deep and which gave me the movement I felt

It MIGHT be a faulty SKF inner race but with the differences between the hubs I am giving it the benefit of the doubt

So I now have a spare Meditech bearing, just in case, but used the best of the outer and inner bearings I took out to give me a 'no-free-play' hub to take the MOT with

If necessary at a later date I will look for a better hub to fit my spare 40° set to

Fingers crossed huh ;)
Bill sdgpM

Bill: was that 4.5 thou compared with the 1.500 spacer or compared with the Norman Kerr drawing (which indeed does show a dimension of several thou less than the spacer?

I guess you could always save the day with the "worn hub" by shortening the spacer so it is 2 to 4 thou longer than the hub pitch between the locating steps.

Graeme W

Moss are listing these taper bearing for the front hubs. Cannot get my head round whether they will work or not, especially if you are using the bearing spacer.

http://www.moss-europe.co.uk/bearing-kit-hub-wheel-front-tapered-roller-ghk1142x.html?utm_source=email-21+October+Email+-+Product102015-21-10-2015&utm_medium=Improve+support+with+these+tapered+Front+Hub+Bearings&utm_campaign=21+October+Email+-+Product&emst=t1gJd5IZL9_10322_1065474_92
R Mcknight

I almost went for them but after due consideration decided to get the proper thing

I dont see how they have any chance of working with the spacer
Bill sdgpM

The instructions are there on the page to download. It uses the spacer and MGB shims(not supplied) if required. I wonder if the inner bearing inner radius is correct?
David Billington

They MIGHT have sold a shed load of those, if Chris hadn't stepped in to supply the original and better setup.

Who wants to fart about shimming to fit the wheel bearings, and then having to shim them again, to adjust them as they wear out? It defeats the point of having simply adjustable tapers.

Fit and forget angular contact fwbs are FAR the better , and proven over time option on Spridgets, since they last circa 100k miles, with ZERO attention.

Who'd have thought it huh? A fwb thread, can still generate plus 100 post discussion. lol.
Lawrence Slater

And lo

An MOT certificate came my way

Thanks to all for advice and help
Bill sdgpM

Taper Roller Bearings Fitted to Midgets and vehicles with the same/similar front stub axle arrangement.

Now please bear in mind that this is the result of our findings and I could be wrong.

Those that have been observant will notice that we do not yet offer a taper roller solution. Putting aside all the issues relating to the spacer etc there is a fundamental reason. It is my view that people want to be able to buy parts , whether standard or upgrade and fit them without fettling and if possible shimming. I'm talking about the average general enthusiast.

To keep costs reasonable it is generally understood that you need to use standard parts. The Midget front wheel bearings are a standard part other than the radius these days. They are of an off the shelf geometry. The geometry of the standard taper roller bearings of the correct dimensions is not compatible with the machining detail of the hub. All sorts of things will have to be done if you were to use the off the shelf bearings to correct the end position of the hub with respect to the stub axle/ seal , disc/caliper etc. We've got all sorts of standard taper roller bearings at the factory, and we've been round the houses on this.

As we see it , there's only two real solutions for front wheel bearings.

Buy either our SKF based kits or source some RHP originals, or buy the JL Heap taper roller conversion kit to do the taper roller job properly. As I understand it , the JL Heap kit uses a standard bearing with the geometry of the hub that they supply as part of the kit corrected to accept that bearing - this is the only proper way to do it , and it would appear has been successful for many years.

We have decided not to fettle a standard taper roller bearing because I'm not convinced that it is just a matter of the radius and shims, but of course I could be wrong.

Best regards,

Chris
C H Buckenham

Chris: The original factory fitted bearing setup did the job very well and probably lasted longer than many of the components fitted to 1960 vehicles. The detriment to the solution was caused by a termination in the supply of the correct bearings, coupled with a general lack of appreciation among spridget owners about why the subsequent offerings of bog-standard bearings differed from the originals.
I suspect that many of those offering the replacements didn't appreciate the subtleties either.
Eventually the problems came home to roost and after hundreds of posts here, we have the appropriate solution both in the understanding of the problem and in the supply, courtesy of your good self.
"All" you have done is reinstate the supply of correct factory spec parts. Why over-complicate the solution when the original solution of face-adjusted, correctly radiused components do the job.
Problem solved, although I suspect that another 100 post marathon will still pop up from time to time.

Now, what's happening on sucking up oil from the timing cover into the inlet manifold?
Graeme W

Bravo and amen to both the last posts. ;).

Well as you mention it, on engine breathing, if you happen to be interested. ;). -- I've just converted my Ford 1500GT pre-cross flow engine, that originally had an open draught tube crankcase breather, to a PCV valve system from a later 1300GT cross flow engine. It works a treat and I don't smell oil fumes anymore.
Lawrence Slater

Aaaaaaagh!

But beware....... it's nearly Halloween...... and rear axle nut torque is BACK! Wooooohhoooooooooo!
Graeme W

LOL.
Lawrence Slater

This thread was discussed between 14/03/2015 and 28/10/2015

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG Midget and Sprite Technical BBS is active now.