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Rear Hub Questions

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Ray Smith

Jedi Hopeful
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Recently pulled the rear hub and replaced the oil seal. When I reinstalled the hub onto the axel housing it appears that the bearing race extends beyond the .4000 that the manual states. Must I remove the hub and reposition the bearing? How much "wiggle room" do I have?

Question 2: I replaced the hub studs with new ones from Moss. When I attemped to install the axel, the holes would not align properly. Is this a usual occurance? Anyone have a "tip" on getting the studs and the holes in the axel to properly align?

Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated, I am at my wits end with this procedure!!!!!!!

Thanks,

Ray
 
Hi Ray, I do not know how much wiggle room you have. However, I would remove the bearing and check the width of it against the original one. It is very easy to destroy the hub by pressing the bearing in too far. Regarding the Studs I can only guess that they were not pressed in dead straight.-Fwiw---Keoke
 
[ QUOTE ]
the bearing race extends beyond the .4000 that the manual states.


[/ QUOTE ]

Ray, probably just a typo on your part but the outer face of the bearing spacer should stand proud from .001" to .004" beyond the face of the hub and paper gasket. Perhaps you have not seated the oil seal and bearing fully. As Keoke said, the studs don't sound like they have been seated fully which can leave them cocked out of line. I will put the studs in a zip lock bag and stash them in the freezer for a few hours then put them on ice in my workshop. The hub extension goes into a shop oven and heated to 180 degrees F or so. When it's time to drive one in, it comes out of the bag and quickly start hammering it home (the hub casing being supported by 4x4 blocks or equiv). Having a large drift and large hammer will concentrate the force on the head of the stud and the change in sound and feel will tell you when it is finally home. Finding someone to press them in may be a better option for you at this stage.

Cheers,
John
 
I totally agree with Keoke. I assume that you are measuring bearing plus it's spacer when you measure for the .004" projection. When you remove the bearing to measure it, also very accurately measure the depth of the bearing recess & the spacer width. This recess dimension compared to the bearing width, plus spacer, should give the amount of spacer projection. If it is not between .001" & .005", you may have to change the spacer thickness. If too thick, it could be surface ground. Measuring these dimensions is the only way to know when the bearing is fully bottomed & no more.

I can't imagine what is going on with the studs. Are they too large in diameter or don't line up. The studs are serrated & should key very tightly into the carrier. If they are crooked (don't line up), the holes in the carrier are damaged or the studs are bent. Also, if the studs happened to be too large the serrated holes are likely damaged. Not good either way.
Good luck, you have my sympathy,
D
 
Keoke,

The bearing is the one that was removed to replace the oil seal, not a new one.

Dave,

The studs are new ones from Moss and did not appear to be too large when they were driven into the carrier.

Question:

How can I remove the hub if I cannot reverse the axel and use it to withdraw the hub due to the misaligned studs?

Ray
 
I never tried that HOT/COLD bit sounds OK, but having lots of bad experience with the volvos Imade a set of tools. Using an old axel I cut it off so is about 6" long . Next I made spacers that are dead square. Offer up the Hub and install the studs, spacers and the nuts. Now torque the nuts evenly around the axel until they bed home. It seem to avoid the problem of skewed studs.---Fwiw---Keoke
 
Well Ray ,Maybe you can tap the hub off with a dead hammer,if not you can make a heavy metal piece that will fit a couple of the studs and use a knocker to pull it.If that is the original bearing you better make the measurements Dave suggested as you may not have set it back all the way home.--??---Keoke
 
Hi, Ray,
I don't know how I did it when I replaced my bearing and spacer because it was just a tad too little distance and I had to drift the bearing out just a little to get the required .001 to .004 inch spacing???? I haven't driven my car very much since I did this so don't really know whether all is well or not, but with the 20 miles on it so far as I can tell it is not leaking. I have not pulled the wheel drum to take a close look, though..... Maybe this weekend? Sure do hope you get it all sorted out, though!
 
Steve,
Ohhh Geee. I hope it works for you. The bearing is "supposed" to fit firmly down into the hub (all the way) & stick out just slightly, so that it can be firmly clamped between the axle flange & the carrier hub recess. What seems like a press fit, is actually not enough to keep the bearing firmly located. Under heavy cornering forces & a bit of heat, the bearing can move around inside the carrier & wear the carrier. Result - loose hub.

The parts, hub, bearing, & spacer were originally very precisely made to accomplish the desired fit. I sounds like the carrier may already be worn - damaged so that the bearing goes in too deep.

I have tightened a bearing that dropped into the hub too easily (radial clearance), with a Loctite Bearing Set compound. Not sure how I would tighten one that was too deep. A thicker spacer would do the trick. After measuring a few spacers & finding variations of a few thousandths, I came to the conclusion that spacer thickness was originally chosen to give a selective fit when the parts were assembled. Never found anything in writing about it though.

You might get by for years with no problem. Good luck,
D
 
Was able to pull the hub last evening. It appears that the studs are off center just a little bit. With a lot of wiggling, cursing, etc. I was able to get the axel on the hub studs. Will let you know how the reassembly goes.

Thanks again for all of the helpful hints. I would be the "creek without a paddle" if it weren't for you guys.

Ray
 
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