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brake rotor alignment

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keith k

Freshman Member
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After replacing a hub due to worn splines, my rotor seems to be out of alignment. It won't spin without contacting the pads in one area. I am reasonably sure that it is seated properly on the hub. Laying awake at night wondering what is causing the alignment problem I got to thinking that maybe the bearing race isn't quite straight in the hub, which would cause a minor alignment problem. The rotor turned true on the old hub, so I don't believe it is warped. Any ideas out there? Thanks in advance.
keith
 
[ QUOTE ]
I am reasonably sure that it is seated properly on the hub. Laying awake at night wondering what is causing the alignment problem ...

[/ QUOTE ]

I would agree that it is most likely seated evenly, but, maybe not properly.
If you had an alignment problem caused by an obstruction, where the rotor was "cocked" to one side it will still rotate true and will contact part of the pad all the time.

I believe you have two problems:

1. The hub seated either early or late. for some reason your rotor is either farther in or farther out than it used to be.
2. The rotor is slightly warped. You likely didn't realize it when the rotor was positioned properly within the calipers.

Another problem could be that the caliper is not properly seated causing it to rub. (the rotor would still have to be warped)

check which pad is rubbing (the inner or outer) and that will let you know whether the hub is too high or too low. Then fix whatever is causing it, (Improper bearing seating, dirt, wrong bearing, etc.)

If it were me, I would try to determine if the rotor is out of true. (anyone who turns rotors can tell you) If it is, it might be possible to true it by turning it. Worst case, replace it even if it isn't still rubbing. It will cause a hot spot on your rotor and that certainly is less than good.

Mike
 
Thanks Mike, I pulled the hub and cleaned everything again and reassembled. No change, so I pulled both hubs off and will take the rotors in to be turned tomorrow. Hopefully that will clear it up. Thanks for the help.
keith
 
Keith,
When I redid the brakes/suspension on my 78 B, I had the same problem as you after reassembly. The rotor was to close on both sides of the car, it looked like it needed to move about 1/8 of an inch toward the outside of the wheel. After multible times taking apart I realised that I had left a collar(spacer)off on both sides, causing the rotor to caliper fit to be off. This collar is shown in the VB catalog on page 137, item # 34(collar-oil seal). Check to see if you reinstalled it during reassembly. After purchasing 2 new ones from VB for 50.00 I found the old ones in my box of spare bolts, washers etc.. as I thought it was a part of the old wheel bearing race that had just been replaced.Below is a picture of where the collar goes on.
detail
 
Thanks Paul, I'm always open to suggestions and the wisdom gained from others experiences. I didn't have any parts left over after changing the hub out, but I did double check for the seal just in case. I did have the rotors turned this morning and that did the trick. Thanks again.
keith
 
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