# The Bearing Post Thread - Which do you prefer? **URL:** \ **Category:** General Yo-Yo\ **Created:** [May 20, 2019, 7:17pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537 "2019-05-20T19:17:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![AaronW](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/aaronw/32/49251_2.png) [@AaronW](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/AaronW)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:17pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/1 "2019-05-20T19:17:06Z")
**Which do you prefer?** _Poll ([view on site](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/1))_ > [@One Drop Flat Bearings Are Outdated: Change My Mind](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/one-drop-flat-bearings-are-outdated-change-my-mind/302430/87): > > A tight bearing posts drive me insane. One Drop posts are the only ones I have found to be constantly the right size nowadays. Back in the day too loose seemed common. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate the quality of your bearing posts. A bad post is often a deal breaker for me. Makes the whole thing feel cheap to me. This was a great post in the “Flat Bearings” thread. What is everyone’s thoughts on this topic? I’d love to have @The_Machinist thoughts as well, eventually as the topic gets going, or right off the bat if he’d like. ---
**Author:** ![G2\_Jake](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/g2_jake/32/446_2.png) [@G2\_Jake](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/G2_Jake)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:19pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/3 "2019-05-20T19:19:49Z")
Tool removal tight. Snap fit. Loose enough to fall off if you flip it over. I think everyone prefers the snap fit but if you have to lean one way because of anodizing inconsistency (and bearing size), I’m curious which side ppl prefer. ---
**Author:** ![AndreBoulay](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/andreboulay/32/69662_2.png) [@AndreBoulay](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/AndreBoulay)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:21pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/4 "2019-05-20T19:21:05Z")
There is a bit of opinion around this - and its going to stir the pot be forewarned as its been argued here before! To me the answer is: - Easy to remove bearing seat - so long as the yo-yo spins vibration free and stays that way. - Tight bearing seats if that manufacturer feels it is an important part of why they have perfect spin quality. We can all agree - no one wants a ‘too tight’ bearing seat where the bearing doesn’t come off - or the bearing seat gets marred over time… But you saying ‘correctly machined bearing seats’ I think indicates everyone else is wrong if the bearing doesn’t just come off? Something else to note - bearings have way more variance typically than bearing seats. We generally find its bearing variance that causes more of the problem here then the manufacturers themselves. ---
**Author:** ![AaronW](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/aaronw/32/49251_2.png) [@AaronW](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/AaronW)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:22pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/5 "2019-05-20T19:22:43Z")
> [@AndreBoulay](#): > > But you saying ‘correctly machined bearing seats’ I think indicates everyone else is wrong if the bearing doesn’t just come off? Very true. Poll renamed. I liked @G2_Jake suggestion. ---
**Author:** ![codinghorror](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/codinghorror/32/8052_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/codinghorror)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:25pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/7 "2019-05-20T19:25:28Z")
I’ll dupe this post here, since it’s on topic here, information from @tyler_severance of Recess > Tight bearing seats put a lot of Yoyo Manufacturers “between a rock and a hard place” so to speak. > > We can either take the risk of machining a looser bearing seat…which means we will lose concentricity in the bearing seat, potentially making your Yoyo vibrate or wobble. Adds to the difficultly of maintaining your yoyos smoothness once it leaves the factory (the bearing will never sit the same way twice). > > Or go with a slightly tighter bearing seat. Which might make it slightly harder to disassemble/reassemble, but will keep your yoyo maintaining it’s smoothness (so long as it’s not hit hard enough on the ground to bend the wall/axle). > > Most go tighter, than looser. > > Like Tom mentioned, colors will change the bearing fit also. Darker colors build more pigment onto the metal. Personally, I’m with @G2_Jake on this, snap fit, not _ridiculously_ tight but it does not fall off if you flip it over, and you need a tool to take it off, but it’s not an onerous task. ---
**Author:** ![Applepooh](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/applepooh/32/40751_2.png) [@Applepooh](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/Applepooh)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:25pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/8 "2019-05-20T19:25:29Z")
OD Bearing Posts allday, perfect IMO. Not a fan of having to use a tool to remove bearings, tighter posts can get messed up down the road if you remove the bearing a lot. ---
**Author:** ![SpyseaRice](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/spysearice/32/82121_2.png) [@SpyseaRice](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/SpyseaRice)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:29pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/9 "2019-05-20T19:29:01Z")
Overtight bearing posts are a pain to deal with and overly loose bearing seats mean you can easily loose the bearing. The happy medium is usually the optimal choice. ---
**Author:** ![AaronW](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/aaronw/32/49251_2.png) [@AaronW](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/AaronW)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:31pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/10 "2019-05-20T19:31:51Z")
> [@tyler\_severance](#): > > Tight bearing seats put a lot of Yoyo Manufacturers “between a rock and a hard place” so to speak. > > We can either take the risk of machining a looser bearing seat…which means we will lose concentricity in the bearing seat, potentially making your Yoyo vibrate or wobble. Adds to the difficultly of maintaining your yoyos smoothness once it leaves the factory (the bearing will never sit the same way twice). > > Or go with a slightly tighter bearing seat. Which might make it slightly harder to disassemble/reassemble, but will keep your yoyo maintaining it’s smoothness (so long as it’s not hit hard enough on the ground to bend the wall/axle). Going to re-quote Tyler here again with a question. Why can’t we demand that machine shops get consistent? Work with anodizers that are consistent(ish). Is it people have just come to expect things to be cheap, so tighter is the new norm, not having to be consistent? Are the machines being used the problem? Is it the skills of the machine shops being used? Or: > [@AndreBoulay](#): > > bearings have way more variance typically than bearing seats. We generally find its bearing variance that causes more of the problem here then the manufacturers themselves. Should we be looking at bearing manufactures to standardize, or be more consistent with their bearings? If people really know the answers to the above please share. I would genuinely like to know. As this topic has been popping up in other threads lately I think others would as well. ---
**Author:** ![zslane](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/zslane/32/19816_2.png) [@zslane](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/zslane)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:32pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/11 "2019-05-20T19:32:20Z")
The guys at OD are absolute magicians. They machine some of the smoothest, most consistently performing yoyos available, and yet the bearings pop off with only a little finger pressure, no tool required. How _do_ they do it!? 😲 ---
**Author:** ![JohnnyJ](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/johnnyj/32/94616_2.png) [@JohnnyJ](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/JohnnyJ)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:33pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/12 "2019-05-20T19:33:21Z")
I like it when the bearings so tight, that I destroy the yoyo, the bearing and the tool I’m trying to use to remove it in the process. I’m looking at you C3 P-Wave ---
**Author:** ![codinghorror](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/codinghorror/32/8052_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/codinghorror)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:37pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/13 "2019-05-20T19:37:16Z")
> [@zslane](#): > > yet the bearings pop off with only a little finger pressure, no tool required. How _do_ they do it!? 😲 This is not a great thing if you’re disassembling your yo-yo to remove a knot, though. I’ve had my son lose a bearing on his MMC this way while we were out and about. So _too loose_ is in fact a negative, because it makes every single disassembly a risk of losing the bearing, or being extra super careful each time. Other than that I don’t have a strong preference here. Clearly ODs are smooth regardless, so that aspect of the argument doesn’t hold water! ---
**Author:** ![zslane](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/zslane/32/19816_2.png) [@zslane](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/zslane)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:41pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/14 "2019-05-20T19:41:27Z")
> [@codinghorror](#): > > I’ve had my son lose a bearing on his MMC this way while we were out and about. Since I can’t always predict how easily a bearing will come off (and accidentally dropping an axle is an issue in every case), I’ve taken the approach of always being _super duper careful_ whenever taking a yoyo apart. Better safe than sorry! ---
**Author:** ![TurdFerguson69](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/turdferguson69/32/45638_2.png) [@TurdFerguson69](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/TurdFerguson69)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:47pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/15 "2019-05-20T19:47:57Z")
A little lock tight stops losing an axle. Or a tiny piece of tape works too. ---
**Author:** ![pep65](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/pep65/32/54510_2.png) [@pep65](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/pep65)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:48pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/16 "2019-05-20T19:48:35Z")
how about a compromise and have snug fit. ---
**Author:** ![zslane](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/zslane/32/19816_2.png) [@zslane](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/zslane)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:53pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/17 "2019-05-20T19:53:11Z")
But quite often, vibe tuning requires flipping/swapping the axle, and lock-tite makes that way too challenging. ---
**Author:** ![TurdFerguson69](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/turdferguson69/32/45638_2.png) [@TurdFerguson69](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/TurdFerguson69)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:56pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/18 "2019-05-20T19:56:02Z")
On the flip side you can tune with the lock tight and then never fear opening the yoyo losing the position of the axle. I have never been big on tuning though. ---
**Author:** ![WretchedRapture](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/wretchedrapture/32/1124_2.png) [@WretchedRapture](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/WretchedRapture)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 7:59pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/19 "2019-05-20T19:59:10Z")
I’ve never given any thought to bearing variance - I assume you’re referring to slight variance in bearing size? Thanks for that perspective! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Applepooh](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/applepooh/32/40751_2.png) [@Applepooh](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/Applepooh)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 8:06pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/20 "2019-05-20T20:06:50Z")
> [@codinghorror](#): > > This is not a great thing if you’re disassembling your yo-yo to remove a knot, though. I’ve had my son lose a bearing on his MMC this way while we were out and about. I don’t think SE posts are the same as regular OD posts. Could be wrong, but do believe SEs are looser than the non SE yoyos. ---
**Author:** ![AndreBoulay](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/andreboulay/32/69662_2.png) [@AndreBoulay](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/AndreBoulay)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 8:15pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/21 "2019-05-20T20:15:01Z")
Yes - the inner diameter of the bearing that goes over the post - the ‘tolerance’ for bearings in the size yo-yos use (.250 x .500 x .187) are generally no where near the tolerances that a yo-yo is machined to - so therefore there is variation often between bearings within a single run even. But again - between suppliers even more variation where one bearing fits really tight and one bearing falls off, etc. So when One Drop also says they try to produce a bearing seat that allows you to remove that I’m sure they have this variation in mind too. It is a tricky balance to maintain! ---
**Author:** ![da5id](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex015/user_avatar/forums.yoyoexpert.com/da5id/32/48214_2.png) [@da5id](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/u/da5id)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2019, 8:50pm UTC](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537/22 "2019-05-20T20:50:07Z")
Side Effects will be naturally looser once you take it apart - it’s how they work. Assembling them pulls the posts into place. That’s why they fall out. Easy to avoid though - just hold the yoyo with the cup up. [Next page](https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/the-bearing-post-thread-which-do-you-prefer/302537.md?page=2)