June 2008 Archives
With my daughter graduating from High School this month, I have not had much time to work on the car. I have spent most of my free time researching how to disassemble my suspension system, a task that looks daunting, but not as daunting as putting it back together!
First step is to remove the felt seal cover that is screwed into the hub. A lock screw holds this in place, so must be removed first. Then the cover can be unscrewed using a tool that has prongs to fit the holes you see in the photo. Not having such a tool, I had to make one. At the local hardware store I found a strip of brass and a brass rod that fit the holes in the seal cover. I drilled holes in one piece of the brass that corresponded to those holes and bent the rod through them so they protruded just enough to fit the felt cover holes. I then bolted on a cover to keep the rod in place, making sure the bolts were farther apart than the hub diameter. It wasn't pretty, but it worked.
By hammering on a wooden dowel that I place against the front bearing (from the rear), most of the parts came right out. The rear bearing was another thing, however. That guy would not budge. So, I got out a torch and heated up the hub until it had expanded enough to loosen the bearing. I quickly learned that you have to protect yourself against the grease inside the hub, because it gets pretty hot!
In the above left photo are from right to left: Felt Seal Cover, Felt Seal, Washer, Outer Bearing, Cone Spacer, Inner Bearing and Hub.
As I thought, one set of bearings had a hitch when turned, probably caused by a flat spot in one or more of the balls. I plan to order these from T. Rutlands along with new felt seals for the front and the rubber seal for the rear axle.
