[Vwdiesel] Front wheel Bearings.

[Val Christian]

> Do we need a PRESS ? to install ---NO. ---but it is nicer. Freeze bearing a=
> nd heat  Hub.----then it slips right on with a BIG hammer. Can a bearing be=
>  removed --inspected and reinstalled ---absolutely.It is tricky so you may =
> have to try a couple.Why would Hagar do it ? ---because he installed a bear=
> ing on the "Rustbucket" ---then needed it on the transportation -temp."Rust=
> y?" 1980 Rabbit  ---salted ----then moved it to Temp    1982 Rabbit. On ins=
> tallation Hagar used moocho Zincrich compound on Hub. That made it easy to =
> remove. When remowing FREEZE ---then heat hub. No hammering here. No press =
> ? --use a bottlejack.      Hagar.

FWIW, I put bearings in the freezer prior to pressing, and sometimes
will heat the casting...even just to a temp like 140F, where I can still
handle it OK.  The problem is that WX doesn't always cooperate.  A 0F
bearing gets pretty sloppy installing on a 95F day, with the dewpoint
at 94F.  I'm pretty miserable under those conditions, and a sloppy, slippery,
icy bearing doesn't temper my disposition.

Oh, unlike Hagar, I avoid using lots of neversieze and other compounds.
The wheel bearing doesn't get soaked much, and stays dry from air, and
residual brake heating.  I've never seen any rust on the hub spindles.
Actually, I get concerned that flakes of metal from the antisieze
coumpounds might migrate into bearings, where they would cause problems.
There certainly are places for neverseize usage, I just tend to not use
the stuff much around bearings.

The problem with reusing the bearing is that the outer inner race
(good term, eh?) is press fit onto the hub spindle.  If you could get
a wedge set into there to extract it from the hub, that would be OK,
but in practice it doesn't work well.

Actually, it's worth talking about getting that inner race off.  The
first time, I cut it off with the torch.  Best method.  Since then,
I tried my new fangle 4" grinder.  Big mistake.  Ground forever with
no progress except for destruction of the al oxide wheel.  Then I
tried using a ruby stone die grinder on another attempt.  Also a
mistake.  Figured I'd then try the old fashioned cold chisel.  I
actually resharpened the chisel several times.  Foolishly, I thought
that if I just "hit it hard enough" the race would crack.  No dice.
One that job, I gave up and used the oxy cutting torch.  I've probably
done this kind of bearing a dozen or more times, pressing it off for
others, and for myself.  Removing the inner race from the hub...once
with half moons (and liquid N2), once with a 4" grinder (not too sucessful),
and once with the die grinder/chisel.  The rest with the oxy cutting
torch.  The torch takes about 90 seconds.  The others have taken at
least 10x longer.

Val's mantra: get compressed air, get oxy torch...

Val

ps: Chisel method is not recommended unless you have body protection.
I wear safety glasses.  That day I had cuts on my face from 0.5mm
sized pieces of chisel which flew off with each hammer hit.  I didn't
notice the chunks hitting my forehead.  But when they hit the vascular
mucosa of the lips, the blood FLOWS!