Someone on Facebook asked about how to remove an inner bearing and seal from a front drum. Naturally all kinds of answers, some pretty involved using welders, punches, chisels, etc. The easiest method is so simple...after removing the washer and outer wheel bearing, screw the castle nut back on and yank the drum or rotor off. The nut will catch the inner bearing and seal and pull them right off. When you remove the drum or rotor, the inner bearing and seal will be hanging on the spindle for you.
My dad showed me that method when I was a teenager. I wonder what the service manual shows as the recommended method.
When I read some of these most simple and basic questions I first cringe. Like really??? Then the answers astound me even more. Our hobby is doomed.
Yup, learned that from my Dad, when I was probably 10 years old. That was about the time I was promoted to "head wheel bearing packer".. we had no fancy tools, one packed wheel bearings by putting grease in your palm, and then smacking the bearing repeatedly in the grease on your palm, until it was forced thru to the other side of the bearing. JW
Same here. As a kid my dad showed me to put grease in my palm and force it into the bearing. My boys are now ages 10 and 13 so it's time to teach them as well.
I use a lisle bearing packer tool. You put the bearing in a clear tub and it squeezes the grease through
I use my foot and lean on the plunger. Best tool since the bread slicer was invented. Ha! If I'm really lazy, I'll put it in the shop press
That's how I was taught to do it when I started working in a shop @ 19. Don't believe I ever saw my dad even check the oil in a car so what I'd learned in the years prior was on my own. Can't imagine if we'd had YouTube back then.
Thanks for the input Mark! I had completely forgot about this, and regreased my bearings by hand. I may just keep doing that as I can count on one hand how many times I've had to do that is the past 5 years.
I bought mine when I was in the mechanical end of cars, I used it a few times, but DAMN, you gotta push on it! For home use it’s over kill, I think I’ve replaced more hub bearing assemblies in the past 8 years on GM’s than repacking wheel bearings
Yep, Also learned that trick from my father. If you do it right you almost never need to replace the seals. I was putting front brakes on my Mustang every year for inspection. I was always hard on brakes, not that I did jack rabbit starts/stops or anything. I have a good story about this. One day I was replacing my brakes and got called in for lunch. After lunch I went to finish putting everything back together and one of the springs for the shoe was missing. Anyway we had a Pomeranian and he was hell on picking things up, so I told my dad I would give him the other one and watch where he put it. (It didn’t matter if I needed 1 or 2 because they only sold them as pairs at the parts stores.) Sure as $hit the dog took the one I gave him and dropped it next to the one he stole. Then I put my brakes back together. Duane
Lolol I learned my lesson from that very same scenario, I never leave anything on the ground, I’m always going to find one less part if I do, and asking the dogs doesn’t help
