Metabo Bandsaw 316

[Smithy]

I am replacing the lower wheel and spindle on my bandsaw. The old wheel had cracked and the spindle was slightly bent. I am struggling to fit the wheel/bearing over the spindle. I have the spindle in the freezer at the moment and intend to heat the bearing with a hot air Blower, going down the contraction/expansion route. I wonder if anybody has any other ideas.

Thanks in advance.

 

[RichardG]

You're doing exactly the right thing but expect the heat to have more impact than the cooling. I had a bearing fitted some years ago and they used a temperature controlled hotplate for the bearing, the temperature is specified by the manufacturer, just dropped on once heated to 180C IIRC.

If you have a calliper double check the sizes just in case there's any manufacturer issues.

The other key is making sure the bearing is exactly square to the spindle, use a drift on the inner only.

 

[Adam W.]

You could try heating the bearing in oil, it will probably be more sucessfull than a blower.

 

[Smithy]

Thanks for your replies. I heated the bearing up with a hot air gun and it slipped on easily. A lesson learnt. Thanks once again.