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Mine are creaking and i think they need replacing but wondering if its easy to DIY?
I'd have to buy the bearing press and the two bearing removal tools which would be £88, but i think last time i had it done the LBS labour was about £70 as they said it was a 2-3 hour job
so anyone bought the tools and do their own? Is it easy?
before you go to the expense , have you used the santa cruz specific grease gun to lube em ?
yeah have greased them a few times, its the upper link i think though and this doesnt have grease nipples
Have an LT2, really struggled until I got the bearing tools, dead easy as long as you have some sort of a bench vice to hold the linkage.
Also have an LT2 and another option might be to buy the complete link - I have done this before and you might want to check but they come with bearings already in place. I also bought the extractors and have a mate who makes these look easy to use however one time I left it too long and the bearing disintegrated in the link and the extraction became a right pig - hence the new link purchase. Good luck
I've just sold my LT2 but I changed the bearings myself a few times. The open faced bearings in the lower linkage really aren't that great so I decided to replace them with better quality sealed numbers. Remove the linkage and gently tap the backside of the bearing with a large flat bladed screw driver- your replacing them do it doesn't matter if you damage the old bearing, I did this with a mate holding the linkage supported on a wooden pallet. Take removed bearing/s and pop to your local bearing supplier and purchase some new ones. Use the old bearing as a drift to insert the new bearings, as they are the same size they won't damage the new ones and will allow the new ones to sit home in the linkage nicely. Jobs a good un. It's not the most technical way of doing things but it works and is a darn sight cheaper. Also if you don't want to buy new bearings and you are the original owner, contact jungle the SC importers and get some warranty replacements as the bearings have a lifetime warranty.
its not that hard unless there really seized. ive just last week changed all the bearings on top and bottom links. i just knocked the bearings out 6 inch nail. the only ones i struggled with was one of the small bearings on the carbon top link as it was seized. i have however ordered the bearing press of santa cruz for fitting new ones allthough it just looks like a bit of threaded rod and some washers. as said you could buy a new link but you may as well get used to changing them. im my experience they dont last long.
allso blur lt2 i should add