Front Wheel Bearings '96 RK
Road Master
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 856
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From: North Carolina
So, not a bearing expert but.. Pull the wheel IF you know the bearings are bad. You need new dust covers, new roller bearings and some good grease. When you pull those dust covers and the inner race and bearings take a good look at the outer race. If it's in great shape my indie guy says re-use it and just replace the bearings and inner race. But, if the outer race is worn in any way replace it. On cast wheels that requires a special tool. They say that it is possible to bang them out with a punch and a hammer but, everyone agrees that this is a bad idea, a really bad idea as you can ruin your cast wheel. When you reinstall it the bearing end play is critical. It must be within specs. If the bearings are too tight then they will wear out really quick and that will cause issues.. Too lose and you can see the issue. That end play is in large part determined by the spacer(s) that sit in between the two roller bearings. Make sure to pack the bearings really good with a good quality grease.
I have seen web sites that lay out everything you need to know about replacing the bearings including the correct end play. Also, I have heard that people weld a bead to the inside of the outser race to get it to basically fall out of the wheel. That I would try.. Anyway, with the proper tools a wheel bearing ain't a hard job. You just want to be sure that when it's all back together it's exactly like it's supposed to be.
I have seen web sites that lay out everything you need to know about replacing the bearings including the correct end play. Also, I have heard that people weld a bead to the inside of the outser race to get it to basically fall out of the wheel. That I would try.. Anyway, with the proper tools a wheel bearing ain't a hard job. You just want to be sure that when it's all back together it's exactly like it's supposed to be.
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