Posted by Desoto61 [68.10.214.249] on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 at 22:07:21 :
In Reply to: Dod wheel bearing races wear out? posted by Sterling [99.58.180.94] on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 at 18:37:13 :
Bearings wear due to fatigue, the compression and release as the roller moves across the cup under the load eventually work harden the metal in both and then they start to flake and pit.
There are calculations that can be done to determine expected rotational life, but in the real world (especially on vehicles) there are lots of other variables that usually intervene.
End result is that it's kind of like a light bulb. If one bulb in a fixture burns out that doesn't mean you have to replace the rest of them, just that more than likely the others are just as close to failure. If it's worth replacing all of them usually depends on how easy they are to change and how critical it is that they not burn out.