can you buy ceramic wheel bearings ? if so what would be the advantages/disadvantages etc ? im not fitting them more just curious ,if they were so good moto gp etc would be using them.
MotoGP probably do use them. Higher speed loadings Ceramic ball have a smoother finish than steel, so the vibration and spindle deflection is reduced allowing higher speeds and better performance. Ceramic (silicon nitride) ball have a 50% higher modulus of elasticity (resistant to deformation) than steel, which means a 15 to 20% increase in rigidity, improving stiffness. Ceramic bearings have good damping capability because of the nice smooth finish of the ceramic balls. Hardness and strength of silicon nitride do not deteriorate at high temperatures when compared to those of bearing steel, silicon nitride holds a lot of promise as bearing material for high temperatures Ceramic bearings take small space as general steel bearings Ceramic ball is 60% lighter than a steel ball. cost used to be the massive prohibiting factor, but probably the costs have come down due to volumes and manufacturing methods. Do you need it? - probably not as it probably never bothered you until you heard about them!
Yes you can buy them, I got some from woodcraft (Ceramic Bearingsallwww.woodcraft-cfm.com took me a long time to track down everything I wanted but got a full engine set in the end from a mate of a mate of a etc who works for WSBK team, cost me a few beers however the wheel bearings were £300 per wheel, doubt I'll ever notice the difference, had no real reason for wanting them other than I thought it was a good idea at the time
don't need them and really wont fit them but was just curious......if I was going too make my all time perfect bike though.....
A fellow 696 owner fitted ceramic coated wheel bearings - I asked him about them last time I needed new wheel bearings. (My Monster eats wheel bearings - I'm currently on the 4th set of front wheel bearings and 3rd set of rears in 5 1/2 years and 41,600 miles). His comments were: "The hybrid ceramic bearings are horrendously expensive, ten times the cost of normal bearings ... The bike does seem easier to push with them in and seems to accelerate better but that could be from the weight loss in my wallet."
As I said they are quite big in cycling where wattage is key. I can't imagine I'd notice any drag reduction on my 1098R.
