Well, if you run them too loose then, there is a danger that you are going to get some wear in the carrier, especially if there is no trace of lubrication between the bearing case and carrier surface.
When the chassis twists, the carrier allows the bearing to twist and return to a natural position and not exert any force on the axle, thus causing it to bind up.
They are designed to move and if they are dry then the soft carrier does wear and you will see this as the black deposit left on the cloth when you clean them out.
If the carriers are too tight and there is a bind left in the axle from a 'yomp', the bearing is exerting a localised force on the axle and can start to stress it and will result in an axle failure.
Axles will also fail if you are in the habit of changing axles regularly and don't line up the grub screws with the old marks, especially when using soft axles which can be badly distorted by tightening the grubs screws too much.
The resulting multiple marks set up stress point around the axle.
It is possible to punch a hole through a very soft axle with a grub screw.
Use thread lock fluid to hold the grub screws but apply it to the grub screw not the hole or you will end up with the fluid running between the axle and bearing, resulting in locking the axle firmly to the axle and it can be a bitch to shift it and unless you use a proper axle drift, you will almost certainly distort the end of a soft axle, causing it to mushroom.
Tape or a cable tie can also be used over the grub screws to prevent them going awol.
With the carrier pinch bolt, I personally tighten then up till they just bite and then use 1/4 to a maximum 1/2 a turn to tighten them.
A piece of tape over the hole will prevent then dropping out if the do come loose.
If you feel in a really 'engineering' mood, you can drill and tap the carrier through the side for a grub screw that will hold the pinch bolt once you have set it how you like it.
Sorry, I'm getting boring and some will complain, bye.
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How tight should an axle bearing be in its carrier by 'jweaver' (14 Jan 2009 @ 15:50)
