Boy, did I get lucky. Coming home from the HAMB drags, I started getting a bad pull to the left when I hit the brakes... "No problem," I thought..."just a brake shoe." Wrong! Man, am I glad I decided to pull the wheel. The inside bearing was just about to come apart. The little bit of axle grease on my hands was well worth the spindle it would have fried. Check 'em. Grease 'em. They're easy to forget about, they take little time and effort to maintain, and they really weren't (30s & 40s) designed for the speeds we're running. JOE
That's no BS. Before I started out on my last road-trip I checked all 4 of mine... had to replace the outer bearing on the right front. It had rust damage from sitting and wouldn't have gone 50 miles before coming apart. You can't see the rears but you can feel them and hear them while spinning the wheels with your hand.
[ QUOTE ] Check 'em. Grease 'em. They're easy to forget about, they take little time and effort to maintain, and they really weren't (30s & 40s) designed for the speeds we're running. JOE [/ QUOTE ] First thing I do each year! Wash them out completly. Carefully inspect. (replace if there is even the slighest sign of flaking on the races) Good time to buy one of the tools that "sandwitch" the bearing and let you use a greese gun to refill; mine cost about $10.
[ QUOTE ] Good time to buy one of the tools that "sandwitch" the bearing and let you use a greese gun to refill; mine cost about $10. [/ QUOTE ] Ha ha... Yeah, pretty soon hand packing a bearing will be a "lost art". Kinda like blacksmithing. Wait... I are one. What's a grease gun? JOE
[ QUOTE ] Good time to buy one of the tools that "sandwitch" the bearing and let you use a greese gun to refill; mine cost about $10. [/ QUOTE ] what are they called and where do you get them? another thing, when I repack my fronts I only do the bearings and don't refill the entire hub with grease, is it nesecarry to refill the hub entirely with grease?
damn right... my pal phillip called me 5 hours east of louisville after the street rod nationals telling me that he lost a wheel bearing at speed and nearly broke the spindle in half.. luckily he got the car stopped and fortunately he was travelin with a pal who was able to tow dolly him back to richmond.. damn right you better check them and check them often.. thanks for the heads up sawzall
For the guys that don't know how... On an early Ford, just unscrew the center hub (grease) cap. Pull the cotter pin. Unscrew the nut. Pull the hub off slightly and push it back on. This will allow you to grab the washer and bearing. Put them someplace clean and DON'T drop them in the gravel. Pull the hub. The inside bearing will come with it, due to the dust cap in the inside. Pull the dust cap and remove the bearing. You can GENTLY tap them out from the inside, but risk damaging the bearing. Clean/grease/replace as needed. Insert the inside bearing and tap the dust cap flush with the hub face. Put a film of grease on the rubber seal of the dust cap. Replace the hub onto the spindle. Insert the outer bearing and washer. Rotate the wheel while tightening the nut. Stop when it begins to bind. Back the nut up to line up the hole and replace cotter pin. Tighten hub cap. You don't need to take the rim off first. It takes about as much time as it took me to type this. JOE
[ QUOTE ] what are they called and where do you get them? [/ QUOTE ] They seem to go by different names depending on where your located. Mine is called a wheel bearing grease packing tool. Try NAPA or any of the auto outlets. Tell them your packing wheel bearings and they should know what your talking about. [ QUOTE ] ..another thing, when I repack my fronts I only do the bearings and don't refill the entire hub with grease, is it nesecarry to refill the hub entirely with grease? [/ QUOTE ] Don't pack the whole hub! If the hub heats up, it could push grease out past the seal, and get on the brake linnings! Follow the directions above. If you want to pack the bearings by hand, (after washing them out with solvent and blowing them dry; DON'T LET THEM SPIN WHEN DRY! You can damage the bearing if it's spun fast when dry!) put a "gob" of wheel bearing grease in the palm of your hand, then holding the bearing with your index finger through the inner hole and your thumb on the outside; press the bearing into the "gob" of grease; and keep working the bearing until the grease starts to come out the top. Keep repositioning the bearing until grease appears all the way around. A dab on the race and the seal and follow the above. Just a hint. When your doing roller bearings, pack from the larger side. (diam.) If your doing ball type bearings, pack from the open side of the ball cage.
Reminds me of riding along in my grandmother's late 60's chevy wagon, when for some reason, it started losing power. She and my Mom didn't know why, so they crept along through the neighborhoods to get home. Several blocks later, drivers side rear axle twisted off like taffy, wedging the wheel and tire up in the fender well. Amazing how hot it got, all from a dry bearing... Pete
Very good idea. I bent an otherwisw straight body last fall because I put the wheelbearings off one trip to many. Whell came off as I pulled into the doctors office, now its front rubber 1 Galaxie 0. Could be worse I guess it could have happened on the interstate @ 80+.
I had mine out this spring for a good cleaning and repacking. Doesn't take long and its cheap insurance...
What junkyard said, post #7..... Same goes for trailer bearings... Only I don't pull the inner bearing, I just reach in and grease it...
What is the recomended Ford service interval, (removing, cleaning, and repacking) for Early Ford front wheel bearings?
Another tip... drop a blob of grease in a ziploc bag with the clean (and dried) bearing. Now you can pack grease without getting your hands dirty AND you reduce the risk of contamination when you drop it!
As far as tightening the nut,I was told years ago to tighten it to 50 ft lbs,then loosen 1 turn,then tighten to 10 ft lbs,then back off to 1st hole for the cotter pin to go through. Anyone have any other methods?
Timken tapered bearings require preload but there is no way to measure it. http://www.timken.com/en-us/solutio...rket/heavyduty/techtips/Do***ents/Vol6No3.pdf Do NOT pack wheel bearings fully. A light coat of grease is proper.
On my car trailer they were packed a few years ago but I do not put many miles on it, but I do take my temp gun and at the first stop I walk around the trailer and check them all to make sure they are all around the same temp. Plus I carry spare everything
had a loose on on my dodge dakota and took punch and hammered out the big one and it was rumanion and fell apart next one took vise grip and pulled out the rear seal on it and saved all the parts including the seal, old mopar juk 200k on for miles save the $$ for show car parts it still has one original front rotor and both original rear drums
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