# possible bearing problem on my Rayco 1635... AGAIN. pic included.



## MillerTreeMN (Jun 15, 2010)

i had the cutter wheel bearing crack on my Rayco 1635 Super Jr. around December 2008. i had the shop, where i bought the machine put the new bearings in, but.... they did something wrong. the wheel was off center a bit, brand new teeth had to be ground down a tad to make clearance. 

now, before you jump on me for running it like this.........

i took the machine back 2-3 times and they couldnt figure out what they did wrong. this summer, i just had enough. i took it back, and a new mechanic fixed it right this time. 

all is fine and dandy, right ?? so, today, get to the job, and go to grease the bearings. the same one that cracked before, will not take any grease. simple, ill just replace the grease fitting. when i took that off, i noticed something sticking out of the hole.... and pulled this out...... i put it next to the penny just for size reference. 







great way to start the day huh ? the machine makes a slight hum sound when the wheel is running, but stump grinders make SO much noise its tough to tell what is good or bad sounds... cant pin point it to where its coming from. 

is this a piece of bearing ? or a roll pin ? is that bearing going to an early grave ?

next, could a guy replace JUST that bearing side ? if so, what holds that bearing to the shaft ? do i just unbolt the 2 hanger bolts that hold the bearing to the frame, and pop that outside / vertical bolt off to remove the bearing from the shaft ?


thanks...


and heres the pics of what happened before... i was grinding a 75-80" maple on a slope, and sweeping left when it must have caught too big of a bite. 






i think this machine is cursed.... from day 1 it refused to drive up a steep hill. my Vermeer 252 could go up hills my 4WD truck wouldnt... but this Rayco 1635 just stops trying to spin the wheels like you let go of the hydraulic lever. at one point, it wouldnt STOP rolling down hill... 3 trips to the shop, then finally they put an all new drive motor on it. my Vermeer 252... was about 10 years old, never went through any bearings, only a set of belts, spark plugs, fuel and stumper teeth. but the Rayco grinds twice as fast...


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## gr8scott72 (Jun 16, 2010)

Is that piece solid? Could it be a chunk of dried, burned grease?

You could replace just one side but it's not recommended. You would have to get the exact same bearing as the other side. How many hours are on these bearings?

The bearings are pressed onto the shaft so you are correct on how to replace except that both times I've had to do bearings I had to have the old bearing torched off and then the new one pressed on. You will at least have to take that whole shaft-wheel-pulley assembly off to do it which means taking the polycog pulley off to get that belt off first.

If that shop couldn't get the wheel to not hit the housing I'd hate to think of what it was doing to your polycog belt as it was probably also not aligned. Those belts are pricey, be carefull.

If 35 hp grinds twice as fast as 25, just think what 60 hp and some better teeth (Greenteeth or even better, Sandvik teeth) would do. 





I really don't miss my Rayco 1625.


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## MOE (Jun 16, 2010)

MillerTreeMN said:


> i had the cutter wheel bearing crack on my Rayco 1635 Super Jr. around December 2008. i had the shop, where i bought the machine put the new bearings in, but.... they did something wrong. the wheel was off center a bit, brand new teeth had to be ground down a tad to make clearance.
> 
> now, before you jump on me for running it like this.........
> 
> ...



Was the dealer in Burnseville?


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## MillerTreeMN (Jun 16, 2010)

Moe- yes- Burnsville. 

i just paid it off this spring, i believe it was a 3 year loan. im not ahead of the game by any means, cause i just bought a new JD tractor and a new custom 18 foot long x 8 foot wide deck over dump trailer... so buying a new stump grinder is probably out of the question... 

if i find any free time ill drive to the dealer and show them the piece that came out. 

and yes, its metal. not dried grease.


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## Oly's Stump (Jun 16, 2010)

I'm not really familiar with the 1635 but I did once have a 1625. Is that the stock Rayco wheel that came with the machine? I didn't think Rayco put a thick wheel on the smaller machines.


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## MillerTreeMN (Jun 16, 2010)

Oly's Stump said:


> I'm not really familiar with the 1635 but I did once have a 1625. Is that the stock Rayco wheel that came with the machine? I didn't think Rayco put a thick wheel on the smaller machines.



yep, stock wheel on here.


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## pipehead (Jun 16, 2010)

Hello,
You're not _over_ greasing the bearings, are you? That can cause just as much trouble as under-greasing, due to the heat that can build up.


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## MillerTreeMN (Jun 16, 2010)

pipehead said:


> Hello,
> You're not _over_ greasing the bearings, are you? That can cause just as much trouble as under-greasing, due to the heat that can build up.




well, i definitely dont grease them every day. maybe once a week, right before a big stump job. just enough grease pumps to see a little clean grease come out. the machine doesnt run 8 hours a day every day...


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## Mowingman (Jun 16, 2010)

I would be real tempted to load that thing up, and make a trip to the factory in Ohio. That is a problem that needs to be solved. Something is not right, and fixing it time and time again is not the answer.
Jeff


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## Afmedstubben (Jun 17, 2010)

when i changed the same bearing as yours on my 1631, i didn't't get the bolts tightened enough, so when i started grinding, the bearing slided back and that made the cutter wheel grinding in the machine - sounded pretty bad....and could probably cause what happened to your machine, if one of the tooth's hit the metal plate directly on the edge, so if the bearing is slided back that could be the reason. The cutter wheel can also slide sideways if it isn't tightened enough.

It is very important that the bearing bolts is properly tightened, and also that the wheel is aligned well too.

I have had very few problems with my machine and is very happy with it

Johnny


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## Bigstumps (Jun 19, 2010)

Hard to get the scale on that piece of metal. Looks like a roller - but Rayco uses ball bearings on that machine. Plus the piece must have been small enough to come out of the Zerk fitting hole. 

Whatever it is, or happened, any bearing that had that inside of it is toast. There a couple of set screws on the collar that hold the bearing to the shaft. Since this bearing has only been on there a short time you might be able to get it off without a torch.

If there is any play in that wheel you will ruin the Polychain - then you will be mad.

Any decent mechanic can put a couple bearings on it.


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## Creeker (Jun 20, 2010)

*Strange piece of metal.*

At the risk of being totally wrong, and I hope I am, would any kind soul be a big enough fool to sabotage your gear MillertreeMN ?

I'm no expert on bearings but finding that piece of metal under the grease nipple seems pretty odd.

Once again hope I'm wrong and there is a logical answer to your problems, it sure cuts you up when the bloody machine plays up with things like this.

At least your bearing won't be $460 each.

Good luck with sorting this out.

At the end of those days I go home and say to my beloved....


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## MillerTreeMN (Jun 20, 2010)

Creeker said:


> At the risk of being totally wrong, and I hope I am, would any kind soul be a big enough fool to sabotage your gear MillertreeMN ?



unless the shop themselves sabotaged it... not very likely. its stored in my locked garage 90% of the time, the rest of the time someone would have to climb into my dump trailer and fool with it there, without alarming my neighbors or my dog- who barks at any sound...

i was hoping someone with more knowledge of these bearings go look at the metal piece and tell me what they think the chunk is ?


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## Creeker (Jun 20, 2010)

MillerTMN, thinking about this, (probably heard the noise over there.....) but would it be worth taking out the grease nipple on the other side and seeing whats under it.

Is that the remnant of a thread & screw driver slot on the end of the piece of metal pictured ?

Very pleased no foul play suspected.


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## Afmedstubben (Jun 21, 2010)

The bearing is made with a hole about 1/4", halfway trough the outer ring, and a very small hole the rest of the way to get the grease to the rollers, so it is not possible to put anything at that size under the grease fitting to sabotage the bearing - the only thing that would happens is that the grease will be difficult to press in.


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## Creeker (Jul 2, 2010)

MillerTMN,

How did you go with this, was the piece of steel identified ?

Wondered also if the mechanic thought the hole was for the grub screw and couldn't get it out ?

Hoping things going better with the machine now.


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## Plyscamp (Jul 9, 2010)

I have a little more torque on my 252 than you do and I break bearings like your picture every once in a while. Usually I hit something like a steel rod or wrap up a piece of re-bar around the cutter shaft when it happens. Did you hit something real hard when you broke the bearing?


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## MillerTreeMN (Jul 9, 2010)

i havent had time to go to the dealer and bring that piece in, been super busy with work and by the time i could get to them, their shop would be closed ( 5pm ) 

ive just been running the machine and hoping for the best. if the bearings start to squeal, ill replace them. until then, i cant afford to replace them just on a hunch.

plyscamp -im assuming you meant to say "352" not 252... ? my machine is a 35 horsepower. anyways i didnt hit anything at the time when i broke the bearing. it was about 30 degrees out, at best. i was grinding uphill on a HUGE maple stump, with the cutter head raised upward as far as it goes cause the stump was so tall, and too thick to bother cutting it down.


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## Creeker (Jul 9, 2010)

Hope everything goes well with the machine for you.


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## Plyscamp (Jul 10, 2010)

No I meant 252 mine has a 1,480CC 28 HP Air Cooled Diesel with 65 Ft Lbs. of Torque. 

With the ambient temperature being that cold the bearing housing could have been very brittle. If it was early in the grind prior to the bearing warming up through friction the temperature could have something to do with it. Just another observation hope it helps.


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## MillerTreeMN (Jul 10, 2010)

Plyscamp said:


> No I meant 252 mine has a 1,480CC 28 HP Air Cooled Diesel with 65 Ft Lbs. of Torque.
> 
> With the ambient temperature being that cold the bearing housing could have been very brittle. If it was early in the grind prior to the bearing warming up through friction the temperature could have something to do with it. Just another observation hope it helps.



i didnt know 252s had a diesel option ? learn something new every day. 

i honestly cant remember how long i was grinding before she cracked, but i do think it was quite early. i ground stumps until dark the night before and went back at it very early the next day. it may have been even colder than 30 degrees out, it was around November 20-22nd, and i live in the frozen tundra of Minnesota.


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## Plyscamp (Jul 11, 2010)

Diesel is only and option on the 252 if you convert it yourself. I also have a 252 with a 35 HP Briggs, again not and Option at Vermeer. 
Like water cast iron can be brittle when its frozen. I can appreciate your weather, I used to do factory service schools for the dealers back in that neck of the woods. The only time we could get there attention was in the Winter months when it was not busy. Dam cold for a Southern California boy.


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