Coleman

Cheers, I'm halfway through the daunting job of installing new rear wheel bearings.. And I just can't get them in- I have a rear wheel bearing install tool and the tool fits the bearing well (photo of the adapter on top of the bearing) & it applies even pressure to the outer race.
I can get plenty of pressure on it, but whenever I begin to get the bearing to go in, it starts to go in at a slight angle and then binds- I don't want to force it further for fear of damaging the knuckle.. I've been freezing the bearing and applied some heat to the knuckle, though I didn't get it super hot.. Bearing OD measures 85.0mm and the ID of the knuckle is around ~84.6mm +/- 0.02

• Is there a trick to this?
• I've been setting the bearing initially by tapping it in and making sure it was straight, and then setting the tool up and starting to press it-
• I have used plenty of grease-
• Photo of the stack shows how the tool is used and the gap in the stack is where the knuckle would be...
• I'm sort of thinking about removing the entire knuckle and bringing it to the shop to have them press it in..?
• How difficult is it to remove the knuckle? I would then have to realign-
• I've tried both sides and I've had the same results-

Any comments welcome...

Coleman.

Jeff96-993

All looks well, but when I replaced mine I put the bearing in the freezer overnight. Slid right in.

samurai_k

Get some steel wool and get the inside surface clean and pit free.

Freeze the bearing.

Use a heat gun and heat up the wheel carrier aluminum hot enough not burning to touch though. Grease it up.

Drop the bearing if the carrier is on your bench, or push the bearing in the carrier on the car. It will go right in or be ready to use that bearing installer to help it in. Will go in easy.

haygeebaby

I used the Sir Tools tool for this. Left the Hub in the car as I couldn’t be bothered undoing the handbrake cord.
I did not use any heat or cooling.
Just some grease inside the hub and the lip of the bearing.
i remember I had to use a lot of force.
for me everything came apart so re-alignment after was a must. But if you marked everything and haven’t touched it yet you should get things close when putting back together.

what tool are you using ?