Originally Posted by
xrayalpha
What were these type of crankshafts superseded by?
Multi-piece pressed-together needle bearing crankshafts were superseded by plain bearing one piece crankshafts on four stroke motorcycles, e.g. Japanese liter displacement inline fours. Prior to that, the technique of welding up multi piece cranks was used to make them more rigid for racing engines, emulating a one piece crankshaft, although it prevented them being disassembled for bearing replacement.