Where do you get trackball bearings at?

[Ummon]

Locally, the cheapest I've found was actually Ace. A local bearing supplier said he'd match the price, but it's twice as far. Would either of these be good quality sources? Where do you get them?

[NoOne=NBA=]

Groovy Game Gear has them for about $2 a piece, IIRC.
You would have to pay shipping on top of that, so balance that against the gas to buy locally.

[Kevin Mullins]

Several choices....... what size and kind of trackball ?

http://www.centsibleamusements.com/trackballbearings.aspx

http://www.arcadeshop.com/parts.htm#Trackball

http://www.nortechusa.com/misc/bearing.html

http://www.happcontrols.com/trackballs/950831wb.htm

.... and I'm sure there's more.

[Ken Layton]

Bob Roberts has them for just about every make and model ever made.

[RandyT]

Groovy Game Gear has them for about $2 a piece, IIRC.
You would have to pay shipping on top of that, so balance that against the gas to buy locally.

I just want to mention that we do something we don't advertise widely in cases like this.  If someone wants something small, and doesn't mind waiting a little longer, we can throw the items in a padded envelope and ship first class for about $3.  If they are in a neighboring state, we sometimes do it automatically (and reduce the shipping fee).  But if someone wants to request that we do this, they just need to tell us in the comments section.

That being said, you may still be able to find them at a good deal locally.  Also, if they are just seized from the elements, try soaking them in WD overnight and using a drill to spin them.  They might clean up enough to use them.

RandyT

[Ummon]

Thanks.

Randy, my Happ trackball is spinning heavy to the left. Some of the bearings are spun out. It is a few years old, but has always been inside and used only maybe 20% of the time. I figured they just weren't good quality, and while I was at it, replace the lot.

[RandyT]

Randy, my Happ trackball is spinning heavy to the left. Some of the bearings are spun out. It is a few years old, but has always been inside and used only maybe 20% of the time. I figured they just weren't good quality, and while I was at it, replace the lot.

Due to the position of the rollers, all trackballs have a tendency to "go left".  You can usually see this well at the desktop when you give it a hard spin.  Usually the cursor glues itself to the top of the screen and then goes hard left as the ball slows.

If it's considerably worse than this, you should do a manual inspection of how freely each roller moves (I.e. use your fingers, not the ball, to turn them) and note whether there is heavy resistance.  If not, you probably don't need new bearings.  Even if you do see an issue, make sure the bearings are to blame.  Swap them with the bearings from the other roller to see if the condition improves. 

I have seen poor performance in at least one of these shells, due to shaft end to plastic interference.  So it's worth it to check everything before investing the money.

RandyT

[Ummon]

Oh. I tested each roller and then on the one that was dragging, I took the bearings off and spun them separately between my fingers. Then compared with the other bearings, and the first set had a much lower spin time. If I recall, they also had resistance you could feel when spun.

[RandyT]

Oh. I tested each roller and then on the one that was dragging, I took the bearings off and spun them separately between my fingers. Then compared with the other bearings, and the first set had a much lower spin time. If I recall, they also had resistance you could feel when spun.

This may just be some gummy, or heavy grease.  As long as they aren't crunchy or binding, you might be able to soak them in WD and re-lube them with some 3-in-1.

RandyT