Bicycle Mechanics - Weirdest bearing question ever

Just got new bike back from LBS after they ordered a bar/stem. I had HED Alps wheels on the bike when I took it in that I wanted tensioned/trued. When I got it home, I noticed the saddle wasn't centered, seatpost was higher than where I had it marked, and that the wheels hadn't been trued.

So I threw it up on the stand and corrected the saddle/seatpost, and changed out the wheels to the Dura Ace 7850's (pre tubeless) it came with, which are new. When I was done, I noticed a small bearing on the floor. I know the DA hub doesn't use cartridge bearings, not sure about the HED's. It's possible the bearing is from something else, but I have no idea what it would be. I just don't see any way the DA hubs, when assembled, could drop a bearing. When I called the LBS, they didn't see any way that it could lose a bearing either (although they thought the DA hub probably had cartridge bearings). The asked me to check hub play in the DAs, and there is none. They thought that it is possible that a free bearing in the shop might have stuck to something, which I guess could happen.

Long story short, should I be concerned enough to take the wheels in, hubs disassembled, and check to make sure all the bearings are there? I have never had them Or am I OK as long as there is no hub play? Again, this is a new bike (bought elsewhere than LBS as they aren't a dealer, but I have a great relationship with them...in fact, they told be not to pass up the deal on this bike). I can't think of any other component that would have loose bearings on the bike. If it helps, the group is DA, the headset is FSA (whatever BMC uses with their frames).

Thanks in advance.

The seat isn't any big mystery. The shop I hang out at automatically extends the seat post so they can clamp the post into the bike stand instead of clamping onto the frame tubes. Far less risk of scratching the paint that way and no worries about pinching cables or fluid hoses. I suspect your shop does the same thing. And even if they do put it back close it'll never be just right unless they measure to the millimeter.

The wheels is another issue. If they aren't true like you asked for then there's something wrong. Was it the dishing or a wobble you asked to be fixed? If it's the dish then perhaps the did it as requiested but it's something else on your bike that is the issue in the first place. If there's still a wobble take it back to them.

The bearing is likely as they said. Something off the floor that was caught up and fell off somehow. Unless your hub has suffered a total collapse and all the balls are now jammed up and in a D shape there's no way to spit out a single ball. And if some catastrophy had happened to the hub to cause such an ejection you'd sure feel it right away. Same with the headset, if it's loose enough to puke a ball you'll feel it right away.

What size is the bearing, is it headset size or front or rear wheel bearing size. Should be easy for anyone in LBS to tell you. If it is any of the above, have your wheels or headset checked by LBS.
Hope that is of help

Did you ask them why the wheels had not been tensioned and trued?
Having a good relationship with the LBS is good but if they don't perform the maintence you ask them to do there is a problem there.
Did they charge for wheel truing etc?
Or then again the question might be 'Did the wheels need trueing and tensioning?'
IMO dishing is an integral part of the truing process not an isolated operation though it can be done singularly there is too much interaction with the other truing factors to completely separate it. If you ask for truing it better come back properly dished or they didn't do the job (IMO).

I'll cut them a little slack on the wheels...I am relatively sure I wasn't charged for truing, and know if/when I take the wheels back, they'll take care of me. They are not terribly out of true, but there is a pretty big diversity in the tension I measured on the non-drive side, so would rather err on the side of caution.

With respect to the bearing, I will check it tomorrow, but according to the Park Tools website, DA bearings are 3/16"; it seems smaller than that. Since everything else uses cartridge bearings, I think I'm probably safe...

Like the shop said- it could be something that the tire picked up off the floor.

Something else that I've seen: some "polished" parts are actually ball-burnished, which means the aluminum parts are dumped in a tank with a jillion little balls that polish off the rough spots. Sometimes the balls stay stuck on the part for quite some time, then fall out. It could be that you found one of those.

if it was a bearing out of a hub it would let you know it. Im sure its something that happened to by laying around.

Im kinda surprised that the shop thought da hubs used cartridge bearings, da hubs have always been cup and cone along with the vast majority of every shimano hub made. Unless youve been going to this shop more than once or twice id at least visit a couple other local shops to see if they are any better.

NOT the weirdest bearing question ever. I think that ~honor has to be reserved for the guy that wanted to know if his use of butter to lube his hubs was a good idea.