scot

My isospeed bearings are seized, making the system rigid, so it is time to replace them. Issue is that the local stores can't seem to get a kit from trek. They have a boone kit available with all of the parts for that version of isospeed, but nothing that specifically lists the Domane in its compatible list. No one seems to know if that kit uses the same parts as my bike or different ones... Gotta love it.

Anyone know what the actual bearing sizes are or where I can go to get a replacement pair? The bike is together right now and I don't want to pull the bearings out only to discover they are some weird size that is hard to replace, and won't go back in to let me ride for the time being. So your help would be really appreciated.

2014 domane 5.2

Andrew R Stewart 

Rarely a properly removed cartridge bearing won't be able to be reinstalled, not that one wants to continue using them... Trek makes available to their dealers an on line list of the parts used on their bikes. Is the assumption that you have been told of the proper bearing but can't source them via that shop? If so did they at least inform you of the bearing part number of other spec? If not is that shop a Trek dealer? Andy

scot

While you say rarely, I have seen bearing races pop off and become trash fodder before. This bearing is completely siezed, so I don't know the state of the balls in it or the races. It is extremely unlikely to fall apart, but... I want to ride tomorrow and not worry about being stuck off the bike for a few days.

I actually called the local trek dealers trying to find parts. Unfortunately they just know how to search the trek website and get the same lack of clarity I found. There is a kit, but it says trek boone, nothing that specifically calls out being for a 2014 domane. I know the kit is supposed to be 40 bucks, and an easy replacement job from a few random posts, but I need to be sure it is the right part list.

Worst case I wait till Monday and call trek to see what they say.

Troul 

that should be covered under warranty for the life of the bicycle. If they are unable to source the needed parts, then they should be offering to upgrade you to a newer frame at a prorated cost.

Andrew R Stewart 

I think one will find that suspension parts are not considered the same as the frame WRT to a warranty (just like the industry move to calling a suspension fork a component instead of a frame member). Pretty much all the many warranties I have read make mention of wear being not covered. Additionally without proof of routine maintenance I can see a company rejecting a wear item from coverage, a 7 year old bike... No where in the warranties that I have read have I seen a time dependent reference. So the claim that a company owes one a complete bike/frame because the parts are currently unavailable is just wrong IME.

I haven't pulled one apart myself but our shop has done various servicings on various versions of IsoSpeed. Pre pandemic I don't recall any issues with part availability, these days a lot of brand specific parts are hens teeth though. Not knowing the exact design of the 2014 Domane's version I can't say for sure but often if one can expose the bearing sides/seals one can see that bearing's spec #. I believe on some versions this is a simple removal of the through bolt. It may be that the bearings are available outside of the bike industry.

I do agree with others mentioning that a rolling element bearing can be a poor choice for a design that only rotates a few degrees. Headsets are an apt comparison, although they can and do rotate many more degrees. Perhaps rear suspension pivots (as in dually MtBs) is another comparison, and it's well known that these bearings suffer and get rough faster then bearings that see complete revolutions.

The shop that seems to be unable to find the needed info really should up their game. Trek is one of the better companies in making as much info available on line and they have a back up tech department to call M-F.

The last bit I'll add here is unrelated to the problem- when one has only one bike that they are willing to ride then one should understand the risk of down time to maintenance or servicing. More so for brand/model specific designs. I tell my customers that if they have only one bike that they need to heed preventative maintenance even more so. There is a cost for using anything and all the costs are not money or magic related. Andy

Troul 

the owners manual iirc covers the maintenance expected of the OP parts.

Andrew R Stewart 

Yes many do ro some degree. But we were talking about another aspect of the manual, the warranty. One could make a stronger case for a maintenance item not being covered by a warranty (and certainly not after 7 years) if the company also directs the owner to do the maintenance, in writing in the manual. Andy

scot

All of the concerns being brought up are tangential. I don't need to talk about warranty, whether the parts are ideal or incorrectly specified by trek due to lack of range of motion, or any discussion around the overall functionality. I just need to know which is the right bearing kit or the sizes. Please, don't concern yourself with any other aspects of this request. If you don't know the details, and/or you don't have good advice on how to get them, please leave the comments elsewhere as it dissuades people with actual feedback from posting as they think the question is answered.

As for looking at them, they have regular unlabeled dust shields on the sealed bearings. Might have lettering/numbering on the other sides, but that requires removal to check out. Which brings me back to my original issue of not wanting to be without my bike while repairing this.

scot

If anyone needs the info, the bearings are enduro 6800 LLU MAX bearings. The first bearing is easily removed by removing the fixing plates slightly, then tapping on it to force the opposite side out. The remaining side is more difficult. I tried to get something that would expand inside like a concrete anchor, but nothing was quite the right size. In the end I used a longish socket that had a tip smaller than the bearing, but the main part of the shaft was too large to go through. Tapped that through no problem. Then grabbed a long but narrow bolt with some washers to squeeze it all back together.

Nice and smooth again. Not a HUGE difference, but hey it is done.

Andrew R Stewart 

Good job! Andy