Aside from the drive shaft U-joint bearings, one of the other weak links in the paralever drive train is the final drive pivot bearings.  These bearings are composed of four basic parts:

1) Outer race that installs in the final drive housing
2) 20ish needle bearings
3) A plastic ring that holds the needle bearings in place - this is the part that usually fails and is the weak link
4) Inner race that holds 2 & 3 in place

None of these "sub-parts" are available individually from BMW but, if you're a packrat like me, you have saved some of these little parts and have them lying around for some day when you might need them.  (Usually you need to buy part 33172311091 - a complete pivot bearing.)

Here's a final drive pivot bearing where only the outer race was present:



I had a good plastic retainer ring and enough needle bearings to assemble this.  The needle bearings are held in place in the plastic retainer ring using Mobil 1 synthetic bearing grease.



Then I pushed it into the outer bearing race followed by an inner bearing race and, voila, a rebuilt pivot bearing.  (Only moderate thumb pressure is required to install these.)

Is there a substitute for the pivot bearing, to your knowledge?

robmack wrote:Is there a substitute for the pivot bearing, to your knowledge?

There isn't a sub for that bearing in the known bearing universe that I've ever found, and I haven't given my all in a search. They measure 32x17x10 and they cost about $45 from US dealers, each, but there is this guy selling these:

http://www.rubberchickenracinggarage.com/bushings.html

The jury is still out on whether these are a definite longterm replacement, though some folks have used them with success. I like Duck's idea. However, they are worn parts, and not worn in concert with one another. A bit like a rocky marriage, but if your Paralever bearings are stuffed, and you have access to the various pieces, it'll do since they technically aren't spinning and having to take the same load as a typical wheel bearing does.

Yeah, ideally you'd want to get new bearings from either BMW or Rubber Chicken but I had the stuff on hand and want to get this K75 turbo up and running ASAP.  Not to mention saving me the trouble of tapping the races out and buying another $150 worth of parts.

The last time I pulled the FD on my K11LT to do a spline lube I found that the plastic ring had failed on one of the FD pivots. (needle bearings all over the place when I pulled it apart, LOL)  I similarly rebuilt that bearing and it seems to be holding up well.

I don't want things to be perfect. I just want them to work.

I have heard that the rubber chicken bushes had worn a bit oval and my thoughts on that were that if they did were oval then even a temporary adjustment would not be possible but with the roller races they would be more likely to wear evenly (maybe get grooves all the way round) but evenly which would at least make it more likely to get a better chance of a good adjustment that would serve to get you home or where ever you are going without being slack in one spot.
The main thing is that those bearings are too small for the load they get but putting bigger bearings would make the joint even more bulky.

I was considering the Rubber Chicken bushes as I read this thread but might hold off.  I am refurbishing my K1100 final drive and noticed one roller is missing from one side of the FD.  I guess this means the bearing is toast and I'll have to get another, right? 

Otherwise, the needle bearings look to be in great shape.  I'm thinking that I'll first check with a bearing supply house to see if they can supply one roller to replace the missing one.  Anyone want to mail me a spare roller??

EDIT: Well, forget replacing just one roller; I'll have to replace the whole bearing.  Seems I'm missing the inner race from my parts pile.

I have just recently stumbled upon these replacement Paralever final drive bearing replacement bushings in a grease-able kit from Ted Porter's Beemer Shop in Calithumpia.

Now that the exclusive to BMW, OEM bearings are pushing a hunnerd US greenbacks each(!) and the only other option had been Rubber Chicken Racing's oil impregnated bronze bearings, these jobbies might be worth a squiz.

Here's a link Ted Porter's bushing kit

Now, the bearings specifically are all the same part number from BMW, so the rest of this kit's components, which is listed for R1150 Oilheads/R1100S, K1200RS/GT/LT, might not be compatible with early K100-16V/K11/Airhead Paralevers. I continue my research on those models.

Yes, those OEM bearings REALLY suck!  I did a spline lube for a 93 LT last September and they fell apart when I took the guy's final drive off.  He was lucky that I had some extra, only slightly screwed up, ones on hand that I could kind of rebuild or he would have been stuck at my place on Hood Canal and he lives in North Seattle. (2 hours away)

I have a set of these in the cupboard ready to fit when I next have my K1100 final drive off. A friend has fitted one of these kits in a R100R and was very happy with the job.

Bush Kit available from Munich Motorcycles in Oz.

Cheers

I'm really looking forward to the results of your research TWB. I will pick up a set or two if they do prove compatible with K1100 paralever.

The units from Munich Motorcycles are required as a pair?? and how do you know they need doing??

This vendor may be of interest to those of us with thin wallets. 
http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/bmw-paralever-pivot-bushing-replacements-nylager-nushings.1149024/

http://nushings.com/

TWB,

I started to snoop around Ted Porter's Beemershop site and found the bushing set for the K1004V / K1 / K1100

http://www.beemershop.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=TRA11092

This part, TRA11092, is different than the one you linked to above, TRA11094.  I ordered a set today and with shipping, it came to $200.00 Canadian; a bit dear for the postage but cheaper than a ride to the US border and the hassle crossing to pick them up.

I also think this is the same kit that Gaz posted above, from Munich Motorcycles.

G'day all, I have recently installed new final drive pivot bushes in my R100R, After removing the final drive to replace the busted driveshaft, I found that the original needle/roller bearings were short of a few rollers. It also would have been very difficult to replace the FD pivots into new needle/roller bearings.
I suppose when a FD is removed for a spline lube, check the pivot bearings for any rumbling or missing rollers. These bushes make the job so much easier and these bushes are able to be greased.

I received the bearing set yesterday. It was well packaged. Pictured below:



Duty and taxes to the tune of $30.00 came in addition when it arrived. Total cost to Canada was therefore $230.00 CDN.

K75cster wrote:The units from Munich Motorcycles are required as a pair?? and how do you know they need doing??

I would not bother doing only one of these prone-to-failure bearings if I had taken the time and trouble to tear into it.

Grab the rear wheel of your Paralever-equipped 'bike and feel for side-to-side movement. Keep in mind that the large internal bearing could be failing if you do feel movement but you will likely also get some grinding noises as the wheel rotates, if this is the case.

brickrider2 wrote:This vendor may be of interest to those of us with thin wallets. 
http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/bmw-paralever-pivot-bushing-replacements-nylager-nushings.1149024/

http://nushings.com/

A good find, Bricky! There are some creative folk out there. Some people think nothing much happens in Arkansas - there are some fantastic riding roads and scenery in that undersung state!

And one more reminder of our options, the original replacement bushing guy (link) Rubber Chicken Racing

robmack wrote:TWB,
I started to snoop around Ted Porter's Beemershop site and found the bushing set for the K1004V / K1 / K1100
http://www.beemershop.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=TRA11092
This part, TRA11092, is different than the one you linked to above, TRA11094.  I ordered a set today and with shipping, it came to $200.00 Canadian; a bit dear for the postage but cheaper than a ride to the US border and the hassle crossing to pick them up.
I also think this is the same kit that Gaz posted above, from Munich Motorcycles.

Glad you looked more closely. I was on the east coast last week and had no time for further research. These are all great options, as I have a spare FD unit that needs repair.