When I recently pressed my rear axles apart It seemed like the only way to get the bearing out of the bearing case was to press on the inner race of the bearing (you can't get at the outer race from the back of the case). I was under the impression that the bearing should always be pressed from the outer ring. Of course, it doesn't take very much force to push the bearing out of the case, so perhaps no damage was done. It got me to wondering if I might have damaged my bearing? Has anyone else had any experience with bearings damaged by doing this? The bearing I pressed out has relatively low mileage and seemed to be in good working condition. Under normal conditions I would expect the bearing to have quite a bit left. Sure hope I can reuse it.

And speaking of rear axle bearing cases, I just looked them up on a discount Toyota dealer website and was disheartened to find that they cost around $50 each.

 

fwiw, you can get the bearing and seals from low range for a good price.


Item Sku Qty Subtotal
Toyota 1979-2000 Hilux Pickup, 4Runner, Tacoma, T100 Ultimate Rear Wheel Bearing Kit (Per Side)
TAX-RBKU. 1. $65.00 Subtotal $65.00 Shipping & Handling $0.00. Grand Total. $65.00
Thank you again,
Low Range Off Road


just arrived today:

 

Don't. Its not the zombie Apocalypse and they don not last forever.

 

Think of what a giant pain it would be to replace a wheel bearing 6 months from now when you were already right there with the bearing out in your hand and compare that to how hard it is to open your wallet and cough up some dough. If your kids are going hungry re-use it, if not, don't be a cheap skate.

 

If a bearing has "play" in it, even a new one, would it be considered bad. I just pressed on new ones and bought new bearing cases as well but the passenger side one has a little wobble to it when I wiggle the backing plate.

 

Times infinity. Rock Auto has a good selection of quality replacement bearings and seals for reasonable coin.

New vs. old.

 

A little wobble doesn't matter much, the inner end of the axle is supported by the differential. if you don't feel any play up/down, in/out you're good.

 

I replaced the oil seals and bearings on both sides, and that made a huge difference on my truck. No more nasty oil leak and noise on the highway and a lot less shaking when letting off the gas pedal.

 

I'm just getting ready to tackle this one myself. I already have my stuff on the way.

OEM oil seals, 3 -ordered an extra in case I screw one up (#90310-50006) $15.90
OEM bearing retainers, 2 (# 42423-20010) $30.78
OEM rear axle O-rings, 2 (#90301-88077) $7.24
OEM shaft snap rings, 2 (#90520-36045) $3.26
Timken rear outer wheel seal, 2 (#1956S) $1.18
Timken real wheel bearing, 2 (#RW130R) $91.58

Plus $20 or so in shipping, and another $80 the machine shop quoted for the press work, about $250 total. I realize I ordered a bunch of stuff I may not need, but better to be prepared than get halfway into the teardown and find out I need to wait a week for another part. I'll probably need to get new brake pads, too, but I'm pretty sure I can get those locally.

I've done a lot of research on this, and aftermarket inner seals are reported to be too stiff, while aftermarket bearing retainers can be less polished than the oem ones. The rest of it shouldn't matter too much, and I just went with a reputable brand at the lowest price I could find.

Also, I've read in a couple different places that the bearing retainers need to be reversed so that the newer seal design will ride properly on them. I'm going to try to find a little more info on that, but I'll probably end up doing it as long as the reversed retainers don't rub against the axle housings.

 

That is a call you need to make hands on!!

It all comes down to your time

.I know what i would do because things seem to always bite me in the butt in these cases

 

I vote this as the best answer to my question.

That said, the bearings in my '84 lasted 250,000 miles with me riding around with 300 pounds worth of construction tools for 10 years and pulling a Trailer pretty regularly (my differential went out at around 225k). It makes me think.

 

Hey, I just learned, I can be a cheapskate and replace my bearings. Rock auto.com has bearings for $4.87 apiece (retaining collar included). Thank God for rock auto. I can see me rebuilding my whole truck for about $189.

 

Sometimes used is not too bad. Take these backing plates that I sourced from Montana for $35 bucks apiece. With with the bearing case and the parking brake lever included!

 

Your really going to put a $5.00 bearing in your truck.

I hope it works !!

Best of Luck

 

I'm currently faced with wrenchtech's same situation.

I had new bearings pressed onto my truck's rear axle shafts about a month ago, but haven't moved once the truck. Since I've decided to replace axle shafts (they were nicked during the retainer removal process), I'm thinking on obviously reusing the unused pressed-in bearings.


So what's the big deal on removing them and pressing them again in? Why would this damage them in any way? Actually, the FSM, as we all know, clearly points out which parts are reusable and which ones don't, and rear axle bearings are NOT pointed out as a non-reusable part in the FSM.


I'd appreciate it if anyone could please give some technical reason as to why the bearing would be damaged during the removal process.

 

IF, and only IF, you pressed on the proper race so as not to stress the bearing part, then OK to reuse. IF you stressed the bearing in any way, consider which you value more - cost of bearing or your time.

 

Meaning when the bearings were pressed IN? Or meaning when pressing them OUT?


Also, could you please clarify, which would be the proper race to press on?


Thanks for your quick reply!

 

The bearings themselves should never be stressed whether pressing in or out.
You have to look at the assembly configuration.
If bearing is press-fit around a shaft, press only on inner race. Example: Rear Wheel Bearing:


If bearing is press-fit inside a hole, press only on outer race. Example: Power steering pump idler:

 

When a bearing is pressed onto the axle, the bearing is, or should be, pushed on by the application of force ONLY to the inside race.

Any force to the outside race is bound to transfer force thru the balls into the inside race.

Depending on the force necessary to push the bearing into place; This force can indeed damage the bearing.

It is impossible to press a bearing off it's axle and brake back by pressing on the inside race because of the configuration of the assembled parts.

So....... When the bearing is pressed off, by necessity, force is placed on the Outside race and transfered thru the balls into the inside race.

If the force is sufficient, the bearing can be damaged. This is why these bearings are seldom reused.

 

Illustrated examples above.