Cornish,Thanks very much, followed your guide to do my 1st upper linkage service. The link to the video for frame bearing replacement, do you know if that tool fits the rise M series?
Rod such a detailed reply, thanks very much for your time. I think I’m ready to have a go now but do have a question ref the blind M rise bearings. I understand using the slide hammer for extraction but for installing a blind bearing does this need a special tool or will a press work as it does with the rest of the bearings on the M rise? Probably a really silly question but I’ve never tackled bearings at all.
Awesome detail again Rod, thank you very much ))Cornish, as you suspect, you will need to use a bearing press to install the upper and lower pivot axle bearings which are blind mounted in the frame. You can also use a bearing press to install the linkage arm and rear axle chain stay bearings.
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In order to use a bearing press for all of the Rise's pivot bearings, i.e. rear axle, linkage arm and upper/lower pivot axles, you need to make sure that the "All Thread" diameter of the bearing press that you purchase is the correct size. The smallest inner bore diameter for the Rise M series is the linkage arm's seat stay bearing which is 10mm. Make sure the bearing press you purchase has an "All Thread" diameter of less than 10mm.
Note: I use a Wheels Manufacturing bearing press which has a 1/2 inch (12.7mm) all thread rod. Unfortunately, it's not ideally suited for the Rise since it won't work on the small seat stay bearings. It's ideally suited for bottom bracket and headset bearings. I bought the press years ago and make do with it. If I were to purchase a new press, I would buy a press with a smaller diameter all thread rod to accommodate smaller inner bore diameter pivot bearings.
I would suggest looking at the bearing press offered by BearingProTools.com. They sell a bare bones T-Handle bearing press that has a 8mm diameter threaded rod, 144mm in length, for £17.00. You can buy individual adapters for specific bearings at £12.00 a set.
Bearing Press (with T-bar Handles)
Buy one, get one 30% off any mix of individual presses and pullers! Bearing press and puller tools for mountain bike and road bike hubs, wheels, bottom brackets and MTB frame pivots. Fast and free shipping in the UK, low cost international shippingwww.bearingprotools.com
Bearing Press (drifts only)
Buy one, get one 30% off any mix of individual presses and pullers! Bearing press and puller tools for mountain bike and road bike hubs, wheels, bottom brackets and MTB frame pivots. Fast and free shipping in the UK, low cost international shippingwww.bearingprotools.com
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If your budget does not allow the purchase of specialized tools such as a bearing press, you can make your own. Simply go down to your local hardware store and purchase a length of 8mm threaded rod, several thick washers and nuts. Cut the threaded rod to length and you have a do it yourself (DIY) bearing press.
If you go the DIY route, you need to be very careful during the installation. The pressing force must be applied to the outer bearing race and not solely to the inner race. If you apply pressing force only to the inner bearing race, if may damage the ball bearings by denting them. This can occur if the DIY washer bends/flexes inwards and applies pressure to the inner bearing race. Also, DIY washers will not offer an exact fit on the bearing. The sloppiness can cause the bearing to cock at an off angle. If the bearing is pressed off angle, it will damage the bore and can lead to serious issues. Always insure the bearing is going in straight while turning the handles to press the bearings into place.
When you purchase a bearing press, it's not the press itself that is important, you can easily make a threaded press. It's the adapters/drifts that are the most important part. The adapters insure that an equal force is applied across all of the bearing face. Because the adapters are machined to fit the bearing, the chance of a cocked bearing is much reduced. However......you still need to make absolutely sure the bearing is being pressed in straight and true. The trick is to align the bearing with the bore hole. Slowly take up tension with the press. Once tension has been reached, check the bearing(s) once again to make sure they are true. After one final check, begin turning the handle to press the bearing(s) into place.
One last bit of advice. When the bearing has bottomed out in the bore and is fully seated, do not crank on the press to give the bearing a final seat. This can damage the ball bearings. When you press a bearing, you will feel the resistance in the handles when the bearing has been fully seated. I like to lightly apply tension the press to insure the bearing is fully seated and then I back off the press and remove it. I then do a visual inspection with my Mark One eyeball to insure the bearing is where it should be in the bore.
Let me know how you do.
Cheers,
Rod
Dave,I have an Occam and am currently servicing my suspension.
Yeah, I know - it's not an eMTB. But my understanding is that the suspension linkage is pretty much identical to the Rise, so this thread has been very useful. A huge thank you to all the contributors, and in particular Rob!
As reported here by a few other folks also, my linkage pivot bearings were very crunchy after moderate use in dry conditions, even after repacking them with fresh grease.
I removed them yesterday, and the bearing seats look... interesting...
View attachment 100662
This looks like it's been machined by a 5 year old with a rusty fondue fork on a Dremel... There are voids in the middle section, and chips on the lip of the bearing seat.
I also suspect the hole is undersized, and that this is what results in crunchy bearings, rather than water or dirt ingress. The bearings spun freely after removal with none of the clickiness or grinding noise as when they were installed. I measured the hole with a caliper at ~31.8 mm; my understanding is that the correct dimension for a press fit would be somewhere around 31.96?! I'm happy to be corrected on this, and know measuring a bore with a caliper isn't particularly accurate, but I tried hard to get the largest measurement I could.
The 6803 on the chainstay around the axle nut was also very crunchy, and the axle nut could barely be removed. Again, after removal the bearing spins freely and the axle nut slides through it no problem, so I suspect an undersized hole crushing the bearing was the problem here, too.
How does this compare to other folks' frames? Is this what I should expect? Should I attempt to clean this up somehow, just live with it and replace my bearings once a year, or attempt a warranty replacement with Orbea? Am I freaking out over nothing?
Cheers,
- Dave.
So I'm not crazy... Disappointing though that Orbea can't make holes in the right size.I've encountered multiple Rises with rear axle chainstay bearings which I could hardly rotate while inserted in their chainstay bore. They had a "Crunchy" feel. As soon as I removed them, they spun freely.
Yeah... This is what I'm considering doing (for both the chainstay and linkage pivot bores). I'm paranoid about ending up with a rounded or angled or "unround" hole, or chewing up the lip more than it already is. But I guess if done very slowly and carefully it can be done - glad to hear it worked for you!To fix the problem, I ended up taking a piece of emery cloth sandpaper and carefully cleaned out/enlarged the bores slightly so that the bearings were still tight in the bore, but not overly compressed in the bore.
I don't think the edge of the outer race is sharp enough to cut the carbon, the bevel will just push it out of the way (and in the worst case result in cracked carbon...). Too-tight bottom brackets shredding bearings is a common complaint, and I think this is what happened here, too.OK the bearing seat may be undersized but if that was the case I would have expected the process of pressing in the bearing to have displaced surface material
But if it doesn't spin smoothly even without load it's probably shot... When installed, the bearings were hard to turn and notchy with no load other than my finger touching the inner race, and made enough noise to elicit a snarky comment from my wife (who knows nothing about bearings other than that's not what they're supposed to sound like). These are definitely toast and going in the trash.That wear, and resulting roughness of rotation will only be apparent when the bearing is under load.
Dave,Thanks for the responses!
To clarify, the hole in the picture is the bearing seat/bore for the linkage axle.
So I'm not crazy... Disappointing though that Orbea can't make holes in the right size.
Yeah... This is what I'm considering doing (for both the chainstay and linkage pivot bores). I'm paranoid about ending up with a rounded or angled or "unround" hole, or chewing up the lip more than it already is. But I guess if done very slowly and carefully it can be done - glad to hear it worked for you!
I'm also worried about the several large voids visible in the picture. That "filler" part between the bearing lips probably isn't that structurally relevant (?), but if this is what the visible parts of the carbon look like, it's not very confidence inspiring. I (carefully) used a dental pick as a depth gauge, and those holes are pretty deep (>1 mm).
I've talked to my LBS and sent them some pictures, and am currently awaiting their response. If I can get this fixed through the proper channels, I'm not going to touch it, although I do fear sending off my frame somewhere and waiting for a return for weeks or months.
I don't think the edge of the outer race is sharp enough to cut the carbon, the bevel will just push it out of the way (and in the worst case result in cracked carbon...). Too-tight bottom brackets shredding bearings is a common complaint, and I think this is what happened here, too.
But if it doesn't spin smoothly even without load it's probably shot... When installed, the bearings were hard to turn and notchy with no load other than my finger touching the inner race, and made enough noise to elicit a snarky comment from my wife (who knows nothing about bearings other than that's not what they're supposed to sound like). These are definitely toast and going in the trash.
My understanding is that machining is actually superior if done properly. It's lighter than bonding in metal parts as you describe, and can achieve tighter tolerances than molding it directly in carbon because carbon parts shrink during the curing process. Of course, this requires properly calibrated and maintained tooling. I'm guessing when my frame was machined, the cutting tool was worn far beyond its useful life.I cannot believe the seats for the bearings were "machined". In a carbon layup surely the position for the insertion of bearings would be layered up on a former. In fact I would have thought that former would stay in place to act as the seating shell for the bearing.
Jene,Hi guys, do you recommend to put wd40 or C3 ceramic lube in the upper linkeage from time to time or after washing the bike?
The point is that after two months, linkeage sounds againJene,
I typically ride in extremely dry conditions, i.e. it rains once a year whether it needs to or not. The ground is either hard as a rock or has soil the consistency of flour. If you ride in similar conditions, I would not spray any lubrication on the linkage. My thought is it will attract dirt. The linkage has no seals which would prevent dirt from working between the axle and bearings.
Hopefully somebody from a wet climate can respond regarding how they treat their Rise's linkage for protection against moisture and corrosion.
Jene, my linkage would do the exact same thing. I would lubricate the pivot axles (Both upper and Lower and the creaking/clicking noise would eventually return after only a month or so.The point is that after two months, linkeage sounds again
Haha not really, it's about putting that seal on the 2022 rise.. But not sure how is covered the hidden part of the arm because the hole is wider there and most of the dust or water comes from there...Jene, my linkage would do the exact same thing. I would lubricate the pivot axles (Both upper and Lower and the creaking/clicking noise would eventually return after only a month or so.
I eventually realized the noise was cause by the linkage arms slipping on the upper pivot axle spline. Once the linkage arms loosened on the axle splines, free play and excessive "Pre-Load" would occur in the upper linkage assembly. The free play creates sloppiness in the rear end and allows the axle to shift side to side across the steel bearings. This creates the noise you are hearing.
Note: Correct linkage arm "Pre-Load" is critical on the Rise. This is the reason Orbea provides the purple "Pre-Load" tool with the bike when it is purchased. If the correct "Pre-Load" is not maintained, noise will occur and the rear end on the bike will become loose and sloppy.
The only way to stop the linkage arms from shifting on the upper pivot axle splines is to use a cylindrical retaining compound such as Loctite 638. The next time you take the linkage arms off of the upper pivot to set the correct pre-load, apply a small amount of Loctite 638 to the axle's splines and the splined linkage arm interface. This will eliminate the noise.
View attachment 102439
It looks like Orbea was aware of the issues with the upper pivot axle loosening up on the axle splines. From the picture, it looks like the 2023 model linkage arm assembly and axle have been redesigned and also feature a small tool carrier. From the picture, it also looks like Orbea may possibly be using seals on the upper pivot axle. I hope this is so.
It does make you wonder if it's possible to retro fit a 2022 model with the 2023 linkage arms and axle?
View attachment 102440
MAster,Hi,
another question, probably wrong here, is the gap on the left side of the main pivot normal? Bike is new, but already dust in the gap.
Cheers
View attachment 102779
Cookie,So my rear end is loose again.. I looked a back through this thread and I did the loctite service back in mid june. I hope that the updated axle and arms from the new model fit the old bike and solves this for good! Any word on that?
A longer Travel dropper did Not put more Stress on the linkeage. It produces less Stress. More Travel dropper is longer, reaches deeper into the seat tube.I realized that the cracking sound is louder while pedaling with the seat and dropper in highest position and in fact, I have a 210mm dropper so it might produce more strength and leverage into the linkeage and so that on bearings. Perhaps it's the main cause that the cracking sound comes as soon after revision...
I think it might be the same as the Rallon linkage - but different non asymetric jokeCookie,
I have not heard anything. The 2023 Rise Blue Paper hasn't been released yet. I also checked the "Spare Parts" section on Orbea's website to get a look at the 2023 axle and linkage arms, to see if it might work. The 2023 Rise parts haven't been posted yet.
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