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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / 1939 bearings and grease seals

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Posted By Discussion Topic: 1939 bearings and grease seals -- page: 1 2     parrish 10-27-2009 @ 6:54 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 349 Joined: Oct 2009 is there a good write-up on the correct way to pack bearings and install grease seals? plus torque requirements? supereal 10-27-2009 @ 8:27 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 Dave: We pack front wheel bearings the old fashioned way by thoroughly washing the old grease out in a solvent, such as cheap paint thinner. Allow the bearings to dry a bit. If you use compressed air, don't spin the bearings with it. Place a wad of the correct grease, the yellow "drum brake" kind, into the palm of your hand and scoop the grease into the bearing from the large side until is comes out clean on the reverse side. Put the inside bearing into place in the cup, and place the seal over it with the lip facing inward. Then, using a soft faced hammer, tap the seal around the face to start it into the hub. If the seal needs to be seated further, we use an ordinary plastic pipe coupler with a wood block over it as a tool to drive it flush. Carefully place the hub over the spindle, which has been wiped clean, and put the outside bearing, which you have packed, into place, followed by the keyed washer and the spindle nut. Tighten the spindle nut down tight to seat the bearing and force out excess grease. Then, back off the nut to allow the hub to spin freely, and insert a new cotter pin. Don't bother to fill the hub with grease, as it will not reach the bearing. For the rear hub bearings, remove the axle nut and pull the hub, using a tool for that purpose, such as the Winfield KRW repro. If you use a knockoff, be sure the opposing wheel is off the ground. Also, be sure the brake shoes are fully backed off. Once the hub is off, pry out the lock ring that holds the seal in place, and remove the seal. We use a tool for that purpose, but a large screwdriver or chisel will get it out if used with care. Remove the roller bearing and wash it as you did for the front. Using the same type of grease, work it into and around the rollers until the bearing is full coated, then place in the hub. Place the seal over the hub opening with the lip facing inward, and tap as before, until the face of the seal is driven down enough to allow the lock ring to be placed into the groove. Be sure the end of the axle is clean and dry, and the key is not damaged, and is in place. Carefully place the hub over the axle, being sure the key is in the groove. Place a new outer seal washer over the end of the axle, followed by the washer and nut. Tighten down the nut, being sure the hub is, in fact, properly seated on the axle. Then, using a suitable wrench, such as a breaker bar with a piece of pipe as an extension of the handle, tighten the nut as far as you can, then insert a new cotter pin. If there isn't a clear hole for the pin, back off the nut just enough to clear a hole. Readjust the brakes, front and back. A helpful tip is to mark the hole path on the outer end of the axle with a file or hacksaw mark so you can determine where it is at when the nut is in place. The best seals seem to be those with the red coating on the outside. The others tend to be flimsy, and can collapse before they are seated. As a safety measure, use good stands to support the car when you are working on the hubs. Don't use only a jack. I'm sure others can contribute tips for this job, but the above is the outline of the process most owners should be able to accomplish. parrish 10-27-2009 @ 12:37 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 349 Joined: Oct 2009 That's exactly what I was looking for! Thanks for writing all of that, Supereal. Part of the reason I was somewhat perplexed is that when I pulled the driver side hub/drum off, I saw a what looked like half a grease seal...I've attached a photo of it to this reply. It slides up the drive shaft on the "key" and apparently pressure fits against the axle housing. It is stainless on only the hub side and some kind of attached fiber washer on the sxle side. I don't recall seeing on on the passenger side, but I will pull it tonight and double-check. Are these some kind of quick fix item for a leaking axle grease seal? I suppose I will put it back on if I can straigten out as it was slightly distorted when I removed the drum... supereal 10-27-2009 @ 1:51 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 There are inner grease retainers inside the axle housings on both sides, but the housings must be removed from the center section to access them, and they can't emerge around the axle into the hub. It is difficult to make out what you found, but it appears to be an old hub seal. Did you find a lock ring in that hub side? Some hubs have two slots for those rings, and I've seen them left out. I wouldn't reuse the thing, and install new seals, being careful that the lip faces inward. I'd guess someone didn't know how to install the seal properly. The inner housing seals are supposed to contain the differential oil, but are rarely replaced unless the axle is overhauled. If you find gear oil mixed with the bearing grease, it is likely the axle was overfilled. The oil level can build up from leakage out of the rear of the transmission and down the torque tube. The oil level in the rear end should be maintained to just below the filler plug. parrish 10-27-2009 @ 8:05 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 349 Joined: Oct 2009 well, I'd certainly rather leave it out of the mix unless I can identify what the heck it is! It's too small to be an old seal as they fit around the larger axle housing, right? And this is only big enough to slide up the keyed axle shaft and then butts up against the axle housing. It seemed to plug the opening between the axle housing and the axle shaft. I looked at the hub last night and remember seeing the 'C' clamp and the old grease seal behind it (pretty worn down). So I thought maybe it was some kind of after market quick fix to avoid fixing a bad inner axle seal. Anyway, I ordered all new seals for all 4 hubs and I'll take it from there with your write-up. Thanks for your help! supereal 10-28-2009 @ 10:01 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 Glad to assist. More than likely, the thing is some sort of seal that was meant to stop differential oil from entering the hub and coating the brakes. As said earlier, if the oil level is kept below the filler plug, there shouldn't be that problem. Years ago, there were all sorts of aftermarket "fixes" for Fords sold at places such as Western Auto, etc. parrish 11-08-2009 @ 7:20 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 349 Joined: Oct 2009 I looked at the local auto parts and couldn't find the yellow "drum brake" kind of grease you recommended...can I use Valvoline Ford-Lincoln-Mercury Moly-Fortified Multi-Purpose Grease? It says 'Disc Brake Wheel Bearings" among other things...I received my grease seals and they are the red kind so that seems a good start. The seal lip always points toward the contained grease, correct? Also, out of general curiousity, why shouldn't one use compressed air to spin dry the bearings (I'm not!) Does it force the water into crevices and become trapped? Thanks! G Tosel 11-08-2009 @ 8:19 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 92 Joined: Oct 2009 It is possible that this picture is what is left from what has been discussed as the after market seal solution to differential oil leaking into the brake drum through the bearing grease in the hub. I have attached a picture of these items from Otto-Items, Inc located in St. Louis MO. I found these at a swap meet many years ago and although I replaced the inner seals in the axle housing I also installed a set of these seals on my 36 Ford Coupe. Thanks, Gary Tosel 39 Ken 11-09-2009 @ 4:27 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 380 Joined: Oct 2009 Parrish, Don't use the grease that you mentioned here. It is NOT for your application. The bearings and races in the early Fords don't have tight clearances so you need a very thick grease.You need a Drum Brake Bearing grease. I use Sta-Lube SL3131 available at NAPA that is for drum brake bearings. It also is used in your front bearings. Here is a link to what NAPA has. It may have to be ordered but they can get it over night. Here is a link to what I am referencing. http://www.napaonline.com/MasterPages/NOLMaster.aspx?PageId=470&LineCode=SL&PartNumber=SL3131&Description=Wheel+Bearing+Grease TomO 11-09-2009 @ 6:36 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 7253 Joined: Oct 2009 Gary, I don't know how gear lube from the differential could get on the brake shoes. The axle housings are solid from where the bearings and inner seals fit to the end of the axles. If the inner seals leak, the lube would collect in your hub caps and then be spun all over your tires. The package that you show, fixes a non-existent problem. The rear wheel bearings have grease seals that keep the bearing grease in the hub and off of the brake shoes. These seals are held in place by a split ring. From the description on the package, I assume that these rings are to replace the split ring and would probably not do a very good job of that. Tom

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