Help me help Wayne- bearing puller

Neilk · 11-20-2002, 10:24 AM

Hear's the deal...

My rear wheel bearings seem to be shot. I will order a complete set of front and rear wheel bearings from PELICAN PARTS, if someone will lend me the hub bearing kit shown here

I have read many tech articles about removing the bearings with crowbars, hammers, chisels, etc, but I really would prefer to do this the proper headache free way. I would like to BORROW your bearing puller kit. I WILL PAY for shipping plus whatever deposit you like plus a small fee for your trouble. I would only want the kit a maximum of two weekends, and if you don't get it by an agreed upon date, you could keep my deposit.

ANY TAKERS?

n8marx · n8marx's Garage

I can't help out with the puller but I did just do the wheel bearing job on my own car and can share my opinion.

I tried like hell for two nights to remove my wheel bearing with hammers, crowbars, slide-hammers, etc. Finally I just marked the bolt positions and took the whole trailing arm off and had the bearing pressed out and the new one pressed in by a local machine shop for $35. It then took me 45 minutes to put the whole thing back together and get on the road. I still need to do the other side but wouldn't do it any other way. I am going to pull the trailing arm and have the machine shop press the bearing out and in. This procedure is so simple it's silly.

Of course, by marking the bolts and reassembling to the marks my alignment may not be "exact" but it is very close. I needed an alignment anyway.

Good luck whichever way you go.

Neilk · 11-20-2002, 11:41 AM

n8marx,

Your approach is probably the best, but if I do it your way, it will get very expensive. If I remove the trailing arms, I will end up buying some aluminum trailing arms from a fellow list member. Then I will redo the spring plate bushings, buy adjustable spring plates, get an alignment... and suddenly a $125 job turns into a $1500 job by the time I do all the upgrades. Plus I am afraid of what I might discover under the rocker panel trim when they are removed.

silverc4s · silverc4s's Garage

Plus I don't think the 73 trailing arms can be removed with the tranny in the car...

john walker's workshop · 11-20-2002, 01:30 PM

the large piece in the picture is a flange (hub) puller. it will not work on a 911. if you try to use it, the backing plate for the e/brake shoes will be bent all to hell. you will have to use the prybars, or take the arm out as suggested. the rest of the kit removes and installs the bearing of course.

ohecht · 11-20-2002, 02:15 PM

I am considering this job myself, and borrowing the tool was something I was going to look into.

John,

Does your post mean that there is no tool that is designed to remove the bearing easily (without any pounding) from the trailing arm while it is still in the car? Mine is an 82 SC.

Thanks,

Olivier

Superman · 11-20-2002, 03:20 PM

Tyson removed my rear bearings with his special tool set. I don't think there was a problem with hub removal though. I think they just came out easily.

ohecht · 11-20-2002, 03:44 PM

Super,

Do you know which tool set he used? I have seen several variations with about a $100 price spread between $150 and $250.

Thanks,

Olivier

11-20-2002, 04:34 PM

Jordi,,,,,,are you listening??????????

john walker's workshop · 11-20-2002, 06:12 PM

the tool R+Rs the bearing fine. it's just that the flange has to come out first, and the flange puller in that tool set does not do the job. i wish there was a good flange puller out there, but there's not. the 3 foot long pair of snapon pry bars on either side of the flange really does pull the flange out well.