Hi, my bearings on my Suntour Superbe Pro hubs are shot.
Does anyone know someone good in Sydney who would be able to service/replace bearings on Suntours?
Any help is much appreciated! Cheers
id try Peter Bundy, certified bestman and if he cant help im sure he can point you in the right direction
contact details here: http://www.peterbundycycles.com.au/contact/
Thanks mate! Just been to (usual price inflated) Clarence Str Cycles in CBD just because it’s around the corner from work. The guy in the workshop was really helpful and had a look at it straight away. Turned out the skewer over tightened itself somehow and there was not enough play for the bearings. 5 minutes and 10 bucks later it was all sorted! back on the road! stoked! 
I’m about to do this myself tomorrow - anyone got any tips?
Wondering about popping the seals in and out - they’re the semi-sealed 6001 type, as discussed here: Suntour Superbe Pro Hubs: a brief pictoral history
My seals just prize out (use a scriber or similar).
They seem to last forever if you look after them…
These ones weren’t looked after, unfortunately.
My dad raced on them years ago, but when I was a kid he laced them into some 20" inch track wheels for me to ride as a junior. He’d built me an awesome little aero tubing track frame, which I grew out of in a year or two… All I wanted at the time was a bmx. (insert facepalm). The wheels then kicked around in his shed/the garden for the last 10 years, til I dug them out of a pile of rusty junk.
Here’s some pics. In response to that guy’s thread about the differing types of Superbe Pro hubs, I can answer that the NJS stamped ones do indeed use the modified 6001 bearings, which makes them borderline-cheating as far as the NJS cup-and-cone rule goes. Nice work Suntour, tricky old dudes.
the reason they spin so well is that they’re actually cartridge bearings with the plastic ball retainer chopped down (fairly crudely) so that an adjustable cone can take the place of the inner race.
the bearing ‘cup’ is actually a pressed-in cartridge bearing race, so it’s removable if you have the right bearing puller.
PS. my front hub is retardedly rough, as the cones are cheap nasty pitted ones and not the suntour originals. if anyone knows where to find nice new cones for an 8mm axle…
so what’s required to change these to full cartridge bearing setup?
good question, i’ve been wondering the same.
because the 6001 cartridge has been pulled to pieces, it’s quite fragile - the inner ‘seal’ is just a very flimsy piece of metal that’s pressed in, and you need to draw it and the bearing race out carefully and squarely to not damage anything. you’d need a bearing puller of the right size and shape - could be made at home with the right nuts, bolts and washers i guess.
- pull out the existing half of the cartridge
- replace with same size cartridge. can you still get 6001? i assume so…
- replace the cones with the non-cone things that hold cartridges in place. for myself i’d need a pair of 8mm for the front and 10mm for the back.
that’s it i think. hey presto, pretty looking old hubs with sealed bearings for the street.
btw someone had the same idea in this Bike Forums thread, but got it completely wrong - you wouldn’t need to ream anything out - the cartridge used is a common size. diy cartridge bearing hubs?
haha Superbe Pro x Phil Wood!
F
T
W
!!!
PHIL WOOD SEALED CARTRIDGE BEARING at JensonUSA.com
just need to sort out those inside diameters.
sweet. guessing they’re are just compatible bearings, but who cares. can probably be had even cheap from some of the ebay bearing dealers.
step 3 is the part i’m a bit unclear on. perhaps some of the engineers can clarify. with sealed bearings, when you tighten the axle nut, what does it tighten against? with a cup and cone you have the two nuts that you use to set the play, is there something similar that buts against the sealed bearing?
if you figure this out, definitely do a write up with pics! would make for an awesome hubset.
frag could do this and he’d love it… right up his alley
yeah i’ll talk to frag about it tomorrow, if i make it to the pub.
i figured it can’t be that hard to find the right collet nut, or whatever it is, to suit 6001 bearings. i haven’t even talked to bob at stanmore yet, so haven’t got very far.
shouldn’t need to machine special bits but hey, i do like the sound of an indulgent, slightly unnecessary project.
a little thing i found
Back to the idea of pressing new sealed bearings into the Superbe Pro hub shells - I think Ben’s Cycles have the answer:
Ben’s Cycles - Suzue Pro Max Replacement Axle
I can’t see any reason why I couldn’t use these Suzue axles for this purpose. They’re designed to hold 6001 cartridge bearings, in a 100mm front and 120mm back hub. Perfect. Since the bearing holders are adjustable, like cones, I can’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work.
If I’ve missed something important, please message me in the next 16 seconds, before I place the order to Ben’s for a whole lot of parts.
(They also stock great cranks for polo, by the way).
Also by the way, for anyone interested, this site has a great explanation of cartridge bearing codes:
Gizomology - Notes on Ball Bearings
Eg. 6001RS means an extra light duty, 12mm bore, single-row ball bearing cartridge with a rubber seal on one side only. I feel enlightened.
sweet dude. post up your results!