So i get a box of bearings and seals from RMATV today. Super fast shipping and good prices, but upon inspection of my order, I find one of my balancer bearings has been opened up and cleaned off at some point, and then popped back in a bag without any protectant and taped shut with Scotch Invisible Tape. I ordered OEM Kawasaki parts to get exactly the right parts and OEM quality because I dont want to have to do this again any time soon. I call RMATV and explain the situation to the cusomer service guy. He talks to two different techs that both say this is common and that letting bearings sit like this is fine. I have no idea how long this bearing has set unprotected, and I disagree that letting them sit like that is "fine" . Every bearing manufacturer i looked at tonight contradicted what the techs told my customer service guy tonight. I also dont like the way the water pump seal looks, It has two chips in the ceramic sealing surface close to each other. I told RMATV about this too, and was told that that is common too. They did say I could send a pic of this damage and if it was bad enough they would send a new one.
What do you guys think of all this????


From TIMKEN
Bearing storage

Most bearings are not manufactured from corrosion resistant materials.
When handling and storing bearings, care must be taken
to ensure that they will not rust or corrode. Even a small amount of
moisture or chemical left on an unprotected bearing by a glove or
hand can result in a small etched area, which may initiate bearing
fatigue.
New and remanufactured Timken bearings are shipped with a protective
coating, are typically covered in a protective paper or other
wrapping, and are shipped in a carton or crate. When receiving a
new or remanufactured bearing, do not remove it from its packaging
until ready to install in the application.
Do not store bearings directly on concrete floors, where water
can condense and collect on the bearing. Store the bearings on a
pallet or shelf, in an area where the bearings will not be subjected
to high humidity or sudden and severe temperature changes that
may result in condensation forming.
Always put oiled paper or, if not available, plastic sheets between
rollers and cup races of tapered roller bearings.

See page 11
http://www.timken.com/en-us/products...nce-Manual.pdf

 

Water pump seal from RMATV. They may replace this after seeing pictures.

 

Dan, can you see any corrosion or even the tiniest sign of negative issues on any part of the bearing? I suppose there could be something at the microscopic level, but I'd tend to think you might be able to see something with the naked eye to the level of any concern...but maybe not. I certainly understand the desire to have total confidence in something so inaccessible inside the engine...and a critical part to boot.

On the ceramic portion of the waterpump seal, a picture would help.

Edit: I see your pic. Man, how do these guys store their parts?...in a polishing tumbler machine?

 

Maybe the bearing is fine......maybe not. It looks OK and spins smoothly, but so did some of the bearings I had to bang out of the case, and I certainly wouldn't re-use them.
Yeah, it's too far into the engine for me to doubt any part I install.
RMATV is usually pretty good, we'll see how they do with this.

 

Just for reference...

At the steel mill within the maintenance day shop we order massive amounts of bearings (if you care to know; we hands down prefer Timken for it's superior quality, even though its pricey it's not as cosltly as the down time for critical equipment, SKF is used as a second option when the lead time for Timken is too great).

The bearings are always shipped oiled and wrapped in that oily paper. A few of our cross roller bearings are custom order and cost around 30k a piece, they come vacuum sealed in foam bags filled with oil.

 

You're totally right to question that bearing, Dan. There is a lot to rolling element bearings that most people just have no idea about. Bearing storage and handling is one of them.
Just because that bearing seems to roll fine and you can't see obvious flaws does not mean it isn't already damaged. There are a number of flaws that can exist in a bearing right off the shelf - even though it looks good - that you'd never know about until they manifest over time in operation. On the other hand it is possible that the bearing is fine and would be perfect in service.
Rocky Mountain should go good on it and get you a bearing that is in the original, unopened OEM container. That still doesn't guarantee you that the bearing was stored and handled properly, but it's the best you can probably get.

 

I think it's bs. Poor customer service. If you were standing at a parts counter and they handed you those would you buy them? They are trying to get you to keep them as it costs them nothing. I would not spend my time installing known inferior parts and then hope nothing bad happens. If they don't want to replace them (not that I would really trust the quality of the replacements), tell them they are the wrong parts and you want a refund. They are "wrong parts" because they are "crap parts" and you paid for "new parts".

 

I'm with Lotrat on this one. I don't know what their return policy is, but if they won't replace them, I'd be trying to return them and buy somewhere else. It isn't like you're complaining that someone opened the packaging on a set of levers, or a piece of plastic. This is a lot more serious.

 

I'm pretty particular about stuff like that. The last thing I would want is a product that was returned by someone else.

 

I called RMATV today to see what was going on with the two items I was questioning. ( they were supposed to call me yesterday) The same guy I talked to Wed. told me today, that they were going to replace or refund both items, whichever way I wanted it. ( the seal they sent me was their last, and the new one would be back ordered ) I told him to go ahead and order me some new parts, I can wait.
I have always had good experiences with RMATV so the initial refusal to cover the questionable parts threw me off. After today's phone call I think they have redeemed themselves.
Dan