Timken Wheel Bearings - USA manufacture.

[BackofBeyond]

7 hours ago, mountainoliver said:

I guess that you could just keep buying the Chinese no name bearings and just replace them every year. I just don’t like having to do it on the side of the road. Anyway, 

Ken,

After changing the out  left side in my garage, I totally agree. bearings are simple, replacing the races, is not so easy -  esp on the side of the road, or in a rv park. 

RB

[BackofBeyond]

This is my last post to this topic : here is the reply from  Timken, and it settles the issue. From the Timken rep:

"Russell-   thank you for submitting the photos. After reviewing the identification data shown in the photos I can confirm that the product shown in the photos is genuine Timken product manufactured in the USA in mid-late 2019 and appears to have been stored adequately. I would only be speculating as to how RBV Bearings sourced this product outside of normal procurement channels since RBV is an unauthorized distribution source. Going forward I would be cautious of any distribution source that does not clearly state they are an authorized Timken distributor."

RBV should be RDV, purchased through Amazon.

Edited March 16, 2020 by BackofBeyond

[John E Davies]

BoB, thanks for that info. I think that a local authorized bearing supplier, if you have easy access to one, is the way to go for real peace of mind. At least with a guy in a real brick and mortar store , you can go back and talk to him if there is ever an issue. These shops have a good reputation to maintain, unlike a shadow Amazon "store". Remember that Timken is a wholesaler, they never sell direct, so if an online store calls itself "Timken" be uber-suspicious. 

John Davies
Spokane WA

[Townesw]

From Timken regarding my bearings purchased through Amazon

”Thank you for the clear pictures.  I can confirm that all the markings line up with the packaging and everything appears to be genuine Timken product. In the future, please take the extra time to purchase from an authorized distributor.“

[theOrca]

It was interesting to talk to the Timken rep about seals. National receives the seals, in bulk, wrapped with a piece of plastic from their contract suppliers in Taiwan and other places. National then packages the seals into boxes that Timken provides. The Timken seal boxes do not have QR codes, but DO have the word "Timken" in the latitude and longitude lines on the rear of the box. The seals I had purchased from Amazon were clearly counterfeit as there was Chinese script in the lat/long lines. Returned them, got my money back and reordered from a different Amazon seller. Those were legit. Mission complete...

[Geronimo John]

On 3/6/2020 at 1:12 PM, BackofBeyond said:

Seems there is  a good amount of conversation concerning wheel bearing quality. I'm not gonna argue, for or against,  but I did manage to find USA made Timken bearings, on the WWW  site that sounds like Paragon...… but starts with an Amaz  ..... mine came from RDV bearings - set 4 - are the L44649/L44610 and set 17  - are the L6811/L68149. About $22 per wheel not including seals. With Prime shipping is free.

For what it's worth - they look to be visibly superior to the china bearings I purchased.

RB

RB:  Should your L6811 actually Be L68111?  Thanks

[Galway Girl]

Just for grins I ordered 4 "Timken" 477336 seals that are shipped directly from Amazon.

That I received was  this....one orange marked TIMKEN on the rubber but no stamps on metal (Box said Made in Taiwan) ...and 3 red stamped NATIONAL 477336. (Box Said Made in Mexico).

(All are going back to Amazon with a return note about counterfeit items they are shipping.)

I've also ordered from my local shop the same seals and I'll see what turns up.

CS

 

Edited April 22, 2023 by Galway Girl
comment update

[Ollie-Haus]

3 hours ago, Galway Girl said:

Just for grins I ordered 4 "Timken" 477336 seals that are shipped directly from Amazon.

That I received was  this....one orange marked TIMKEN on the rubber but no stamps on metal...and 3 red stamped NATIONAL 477336.

(All are going back to Amazon with a return note about counterfeit items they are shipping.)

I've also ordered from my local shop the same seals and I'll see what turns up.

CS

 

It's a confusing world these days with mergers, buy-outs and contract manufacturing. I'll muddy the water a little more with my first hand knowledge. My wife used to work for Federal Mogul as a buyer. Federal Mogul used to be National Seal. Even though Federal Mogul manufactures seals today, they can have several names on the packaging. They may be labeled National Seal, or Timken. Federal Mogul was acquired by Tenneco a few years ago and I believe changed the name of the Federal Mogul division to DRiV. For that reason their seals may also have this new name on them. To add to the confusion, Timken also contracts with other manufacturers to produce their products. The point of this is that you likely do have in your possession actual Timken parts. The problem is that it's well documented that Amazon is very unreliable in their sourcing and for that reason everyone has learned to be very cautious when there are discrepancies in packaging. If in doubt you can easily return. The problem is, unlike OEM manufacturers and OEM suppliers, Amazon has zero quality assurance process or supplier verification. Their buyers simply shop price and supply. 

[dewdev]

They are likely Chinese knock-off's

[MAX Burner]

20 hours ago, Galway Girl said:

I've also ordered from my local shop the same seals and I'll see what turns up.

Too bad Amazon played the "Bait and Switch" game - that sucks.  I found TIMKEN's at our local auto supply last week - they had two sets in stock and ordered the other 2 which came the next day.  

Wire brushed the drums real good yesterday, painted them high-temp silver, R&R'd the grease seals...  piece of mind - all good again!  HA!

[MAX Burner]

Well... not so fast, MAX!  FULL DISCLOSURE:  After some thought on this thread, I pulled the TIMKEN packaging from the trash bin and learned that these are in fact, made in Taiwan after all.  I really thought that TIMKENs were still made here.  Oh, well....

[CRM]

7 hours ago, MAX Burner said:

Well... not so fast, MAX!  FULL DISCLOSURE:  After some thought on this thread, I pulled the TIMKEN packaging from the trash bin and learned that these are in fact, made in Taiwan after all.  I really thought that TIMKENs were still made here.  Oh, well....

Yep, they're made in several countries these days, but are supposed to be to the exact same standards. Spoke to a Timken rep a while back when I was concerned that I had purchased counterfeit bearings and he told me that if I bought through a certified dealer they would be genuine and to not bother using the app to check the labels since it's next to useless. Also said if I wanted piece of mind to check the weight of the bearings and to make sure they match the specs in the their catalogue. Timken should be right on the money no matter where they're made and the counterfeits are usually off by several grams. Checked the ones I was concerned about and they all were exactly the same and matched the specs.  Edit- I should also add that all but one the bearings I was questioning failed the label reading app, and the one that passed took 3 tries to do so.

[KenB]

I bought a full set of Timken bearings from Summit Racing last year, but haven't got around to installing them yet.  I just went out in the garage to take a look.  The boxes the seals come in are printed Made in Taiwan, the seals themselves are bright orange and have Timken molded into them.  The boxes for the bearings don't have a country specified, but the bearings themselves have USA etched into the top surface.  I bought from Summit because I'd read here that they are a Timken dealer.  Another data point for everyone.

[MAX Burner]

I have a habit of keeping a 1-wheel's worth of bearing kit (pre-packed with grease in a zip-lock) along with my bearing tools in the camper in case I wind up spinning a race out in the boonies somewhere.