SKF bearings - worth the extra?

[Manbearpig]

I was just wondering if SKF were THE bearing dudes these days, or whether like Draper et al they were just a "named" conduit for chinese crap?

 

The faithful Volvo needs a front wheel bearing kit...price from Volvo an eye watering £200, best cheapest "name" is SKF at £100, then assorted Ebay whatnots everything from £30 upwards.

 

Compromise on Ebay appears to be one that says "made in Germany" for £60 (so assume TUV thingy approval). Opinions gratefully received

[Bren]

SKF were always among the best - not like the shite that GSF sell that lasts about as long as an ITV sitcom.

 

You get what you pay for - buy cheap, buy twice. Replacing bearings is like meeting your local tory councillor - not something you want to do often.

[Junkman]

I find 30 quid for a wheel bearing excessive, but 200? Is it made from platinum then gold plated? Flawless diamond bearing balls?

[Rusty Pelican]

Weve just gone back to using SKF at work ( electric motor rebuilds ) as others seem to last 10 minutes , time will tell if they are as good as they used to be i guess 

Is the bearing unique to Volvo , they all have a number on them , try searching using these numbers , you might get a result

[hairnet]

Weve just gone back to using SKF at work ( electric motor rebuilds ) as others seem to last 10 minutes , time will tell if they are as good as they used to be i guess 

Is the bearing unique to Volvo , they all have a number on them , try searching using these numbers , you might get a result

^^ this

 

for the bike the front bearings were a small odd special size straight to bearing factor and instead of 25+ quid off kawasaki they were 4 quid from the bearing gadge

 

even if you dont have the number (it should be there) they measure them and know straight what youll want

[Mike D]

We tend to only use SKF stuff in all the pumps at work as other stuff doesn't seem to last anywhere near as long..Hairnet has the right idea, get the bearing number and ring your local bearings shop

[brickwall]

Most bearing I buy are SKF. They have a very good rep and if someone on ebay is selling bearings and they are SKF then they will make sure you know it.

 

I got mine from Germany if that's any help.

[Sigmund Fraud]

I also use SKF whenever I can afford to. If it's being fitted to a Volvo, it's also the historically correct thing to do !

 

+1 on searching by part number rather than application, some impressive savings can be made (and that doesn't only apply to bearings !).

[Skizzer]

SKF is an old client of mine. I'm sure they won't mind me betraying the confidence that they do make stuff properly, in Sweden, Germany and northern Italy for the European market.

 

They make bearings for all sorts of interesting things, as well as more types of car than is probably healthy for them. Wind turbines, supertanker propellers, trailers for moving space rockets around, that sort of thing. If you're into bearings, these chaps are rock'n'roll.

[twosmoke300]

I use FAG car bearings which I believe is part of skf and are so much better quality than other brands. The kits come with all the little extras that make the job easy and proper .

[willswitchengage]

The faithful Volvo needs a front wheel bearing kit...price from Volvo an eye watering £200, best cheapest "name" is SKF at £100, then assorted Ebay whatnots everything from £30 upwards.

 

 

Volvo was founded as SKF's car making division. Fact of the day!

[derskine]

I rate them highly too.

I think renault might have used them too as my 18 was fitted with them and has been replaced by them.

[Minimad5]

I approve of the following:

SKF
FAG
INA

As mentioned by others, get the numbers off the bearing in question and do some googling.
Not the cheapest, but you may have a stockist nearby a company called Brammer, may be able to help you.
Also worth noting simple stuff like '2rs' and other numbers / letters like 'C3' , as these tell you what type of shielding and tolerance etc.

[Manbearpig]

There was a company called Bearing Traders locally (don't know if that is a chain) that got some expensive (Lotus) SKF bearings for me at a fraction of the price a while back. Will try and find them tomorrow..

 

Thought I was sure of the part number, now it seems there is a change just before my model year (99) so will tread carefully

 

Don't really want to skimp on the old bus, I love it dearly . The Volvo price really does take the piss though; it's one of those all-in-one hub units, very wasteful IMHO, and still a twat to fit!

[michael1703]

http://www.brammer.co.uk/branch-locator.htm?loc=Durham

 

Even if you can't get the number off, you can do it off the dimensions

 

Bore x o.d. x depth, sealed or open

[twosmoke300]

You won't get fuck all cheap out of brammer.

Bearing boys online are a better bet. Most car applications are cheaper from the factors due to quantity of production etc .

[Waderider]

Well, I use SKF in 'my' day job hydro electric power generation turbine and generators, so if they are good enough for that, they are good enough for anything (think water and neglect).

 

Plus, as a fellow Volvo driver I can tell you Volvo parts are overpriced, and that Volvos are lovely

[mat_the_cat]

Not got any direct back to back comparison of SKF versus other brands, but I used to work in a company that used to do quite a bit of bearing heat treatment. There are *plenty* of places where cost/corners could be cut if price was the only concern, so I'd steer clear of anything which seems too cheap unless it's to scrape through one last MOT.

[Manbearpig]

All points taken, SKF on order. Just a momentary lapse as a result of the missus twisting about being overdrawn.

 

Incidentally is it OK to post tech queries anywhere on here?

 

For a forum full of (by default) dirty-fingernailed spanner-flingers most of the posts seems to be of the buying & selling, "spotted" and nostalgia variety

[tooSavvy]

My PROTON SAVVY has a front bearing that (for years) only existed as a Proton Part Number - £Gold plated!!

 

I did, however, get a dealer [on Mudah site, Malaysia] to give the game away - SKF 309726DA.

 

I just got two, for a Vauxhall/chevy AVEO, equivalent [sNR - GB10884] £20 each, from my local Partco 

 

 

DealerStealer, M8

 

TS

[brickwall]

 

 

Incidentally is it OK to post tech queries anywhere on here?

 

 

 

 

Just do a Help! thread. i don't think we have a tech thread or section yet.

[wackywacerwill]

Used to use SKF for my dirt bike wheel bearings and they lasted well. I now get Allballs ones so cheap that it's worth putting up with changing the regular. The set just fitted to the dominator had the 2rs (two rubber seals) plucked and I packed them mofos with marine grease in the hope they will last a bit longer. Time will tell.