My front wheel bearings are both a little loose. No clicking or other sounds but I have checked and have movement with the wheels off the ground.
Anyway, the CSM instructions sound pretty straightforward but anything I need to watch for? I bought new Napa innners and outers, seals, etc, but I'll check the originals first. Can I clean them with break cleaner (manual calls for gasoline) and pack them with [drum] wheel bearing grease (manual calls for lithium soap?)?
I don't have a bass drift; can I use 1/4" brass rod as a driver? And does anyone happen to know the size socket needed to tap in the seals?
And lastly; the CSM says I may have to loosen the brakes to get the hub off, so I'm assuming I don't have to disassemble the brakes......again.
Any suggestions appreciated.

 

Just being loose may only be a sign that they need a little adjustment, or may even be normal. If you read the instructions, to adjust, you tighten them up, then back off - when you are done, there is always a small amount of play.

You can clean them with anything you want to, just be sure you don't leave a fine layer of grit on them.

You can pack them with any good wheel bearing grease.

You don't specifically need a brass drift to punch the races out. A long steel punch is fine, too.

I have no idea what size socket to use for the seal.

There is no need to remove the brake parts.

One word of advice: If you can leave the races in the freezer and heat the hubs a little, then you can usually just drop the races in, with just a tap to square them up.

- Eric

 

Thanks Eric. I'm guessing they're a little too loose. I have some vibration at speed, but not like suspension vibration. No wander, no pulling, not after a certain speed. It's barely there but I can feel it through the steering wheel. I might just try adjusting, as you said. But I thought maybe 40 year old grease should be replaced.

However, just got a text from the daughter. Sounds like she popped a brake line on her Intrigue. Oh well, maybe next weekend

 

They should definitely be cleaned, inspected, and packed. Whether they should be replaced is up to you.

- Eric

 

That's the plan

 

Make sure you check the races in the drums too. If you see pitting and a bluish tint in the bearings or wear in the races, change them. You were supposed to do this when you did the brakes.

 

Buy a bearing grease packer it's faster and a bit less messy then doing it by hand.

 

Bearing packers are ok for production type work. I prefer to do it by hand for the limited use it gets at home.

 

... But packing bearings is all about making a mess. It's like making mudpies!

- Eric

 

hand packing a bearing is one of the first things i learned about cars...its actually kind of an art...just putting enough grease in the heel of the palm...push push push watch the grease come thru a few rollers...then start again..... grease packing tool?? no way

 

You mean when it took me three times to get them right? Yeah, that wasn't going to happen

Exactly! But this time I might wear rubber gloves.

 

Don't be a wuss, roll up your sleeves and be a man...

 

Lol!

 

Well, the deed is done. I was tempted to half-arss it and just repack the outers but then I thought about the razzing you guys would give me so I did it right.
Bearings and races looked brand new; hard to tell about the grease since it's so dark brown anyway. I didn't realize the space between the bearings, inside the hub, was packed with grease but I cleaned them out and repacked them for good measure.

 

Great! You never know what the bearings look like until you look at them.

The space between the bearing usually has "overflow" grease in it. I generally clean it out (to remove potential grit), but don't make an effort to re-fill it.

Glad you got it done right!

- Eric

 

Well done Mac.

 

One thing comes to mind with wheel bearings; cleanliness is next to Godliness! They need to be clean,dry, AND repacked with the proper grease!

When I was a Mopar tech, some of the guys in the shop used to clean the bearings using either a parts tray degreaser, gasoline, or Brakeclean.....


BUT the big NO-NO was using compressed air to blow out and dry the cleaning solution from the bearings, spinning them DRY at the same time; no better way to ruin a perfectly good bearing, race, and rollers!

 

Also you might want to consider a proper seal installer kit. Often it looks like a 6" or so rod that different size discs attach to. That way you can make sure to have the proper size diameter to properly seat the seal without damaging or bending the seal. Harbor Freight(AKA Ship Wreck Tools according to some ) has those kits for a good price.

 

That was A LOT of overflow grease, then. I must have pulled a half cup of grease from each. But yeah, glad I got over my lazybones and did both inners and outers. Nothing like a little peace of mind when driving 70 mph.


Thanks Eric. I manned up and skipped the gloves, lol.

I must have gone through four cans of brake cleaner on the bearings, washers, and castle nuts. But I let the bearings air-dry in the sun. I did read that about compressed air, years ago. Glad I remembered.

Ship Wreck Tools, lol. I didn't have any trouble with a hammer and piece of soft pine but thanks for the tip.