Best replacement guides for Grizzly G0514X2 bandsaw?

[Van Huskey]

The stock bearings are 6202zz (i.e. shielded both sides). I suspect they choose shielded over sealed because sealed will have higher friction.

Whatever you do, though, don't buy them from VXB. If you simply type in 6202zz, the first links that come up are VXB links, and they seem to get lots of positive reviews. I bought 10, and every single one is an absolute piece of junk. They're actually worse than the trashed ones I was replacing. Pitiful. For some reason, the bad review I left seems to have disappeared.

I have had good luck with VXB but it could vary widely lot by lot, that in and of itself is enough to look to a company like Accurate.

I always use sealed bearings on guides, it is true they offer a bit more friction over shielded but you don't need them to spin that freely and they will last longer in the dust heavy environment.

[John Coloccia]

Maybe it's just this model. It they felt like they came preloaded with sand in them! Maybe their sealed bearings are better.

[Michael Heffernan]

Van,
Any idea where you can buy Accurate bearings? I checked the VXB bearings on their site. Surprised to find that the sealed bearings 6202-2RS are over 7 bucks a piece (I'll need 6 bearings for the saw) and the shielded 6202-zz are under 2 bucks each. As John hasn't had a good experience with the VXB ones for this saw, I figured I'd try the Accurate ones.

I have had good luck with VXB but it could vary widely lot by lot, that in and of itself is enough to look to a company like Accurate.

I always use sealed bearings on guides, it is true they offer a bit more friction over shielded but you don't need them to spin that freely and they will last longer in the dust heavy environment.

[Mikail Khan]

6202 2RS should be available from any automove parts store. I paid about $3 ea.

MK

[Van Huskey]

First you can buy those bearings just about anywhere. The sealed ones are going to be more expensive but I feel like they are a better buy in the long run, I had been paying about $4 each for the ones I needed for my saws. $6 each should be for something like an SKF brand not a "generic" bearing...

Accurate is a seller of bearings not a brand, they are an excellent company to deal with, when you call make sure you know what you want, they are very good about dealing with hobbyists especially with unusual and bizarre bearings and we want to keep their time on the phone to a minimum when dealing with our very low volume orders.

http://www.accuratebearing.com/

As you may have guessed the bearings aren't really ruined they just have sawdust packed up in them, you can try this http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...hlight=bearing to extend the life. Without repacking them with grease they won't last as long as they initially did but sometimes you can get decent life back out of them. I have soaked them before but never thought of Hank's trick, it may be worth a try on such a low speed, low load application.

[Michael Broz]

Hi all. My first post here. Just picked up a G0514X2 off of CL this past weekend and am in the process of setting it up. First up is new guide bearings. The info in this thread (among others) has been helpful so I thought I would add a little more info I have found.

Here is a link to the Grizzly page that shows all part numbers for the G0514X2:
http://www.grizzly.com/products/G0514X2/parts

From that you will see there are 2 sizes of bearings:
- 6202 (2 left and 2 right bearings for upper and lower, plus 1 for the upper thrust bearing - 9 of them total I believe)
- 6000 (lower thrust bearing - 1 of them)
As mentioned above the stock bearings are shielded (eg. 6202 ZZ) but the recommendation is to get sealed (eg. 6202 2RS)

Also note VBX has the double rubber sealed 6202 for $2.37 each (http://www.vxb.com/6202-2RS-Bearing-...FYRnfgoduKALeQ)

Note: if I have violated rules by posting URLs, I apologize for that. I can see how the VBX link might be considered an advertisement but that is not my intent. I ordered from them and will report back my impressions of the bearings once I get them installed.

[Michael Broz]

FWIW: the bearings fit great and I am happy with them. Much better than the old ones in that they actually spin :-) and are double sealed so hopefully they will last a long time. Even when I get them adjusted a little too close to the blade for the wood I'm pushing through (and they spin a lot) they do not heat up or impact the saw as far as I can tell.

[glenn bradley]

Great to hear. I bought a tube of each when I got my saw. I think I have swapped the whole set twice in many years. Cheap and easy to swap. Like supplied blades, the supplied bearings work but, not real well.

[lee cox]

If you don't like the guides why not sell the saw and buy one with the guides you like?