Proper way to press in new rear wheel bearing?

Not to shabby, not shabby at all!

 

Yet one more tip. Rusted brake hard line.

Depending on ones location, the brake hard line likes to rust and become one with the flare fitting where it screws into the wheel cylinder.
As one starts to unscrew the fitting it twists the hard line into junk. So to save a trip to the parts house, watch it closely. If the line starts to twist STOP.
Unbolt the wheel cylinder and pull it away from the backing plate enough to get your line wrench on the fitting (outboard of the backing plate). Then hold the wrench and unscrew the cylinder from the fitting. Might have to remove a line mount or two for enough slack.
This way the axle job can be finished and a new hard line installed later, at your leisure.

 

Yes, it's plenty but plan your moves and keep a close eye on it or you might get battle scars.
Yet one more thing (I promise). When you press things apart, put something on the floor under the shaft. It is just possible that you will be so pleased with yourself at how things are going, you will forget about gravity. Might even cause trauma to your toes! Voice of experience!

 

OK, well Wolfgang, when you get a chance and have one available, take a good picture of what you have and we will see. Thanks for the offer.

 

It will be a while I still need time to make mine first

 

That's a good idea if your press is beefy enough to press all four pieces at once and you're able to get the snap ring out without scratching the axle flange too badly.

I used the Durasolid tool to do my press work (kind of pricey, the cut-off junk axle housing works well too) and I used a bearing splitter on the end of it to press the ABS ring and the inboard bearing retainer off in one shot.




You have to pound out two of the backing plate studs to make room for the splitter, but they come out and go back in easily. Other than this or your 4-at-once method requires cutting off the ABS ring and retainer and that's an expensive pain in the butt.

 

That tool is pretty slick and $120 isn't to bad.

I have a couple questions. In the specs it says "tube I.D. 1.5". I measure the machined area on the shaft at roughly 1.57". How do you deal with the inner retainer?

I really like the threaded feature. Do you happen to know off hand the thread type? Fine, course, Acme, I don't really need the exact size, just the type. Thanks

 

They should've listed the actual I.D. instead of the trade size. It's actually 1.66".



This fits over the machined part of the shaft and its size works well as the press sleeve for reinstalling the retainers and ABS ring.



Notice the inboard retainer is pressed on 'backwards'. I used the redesigned oil seals so that's intentional:

The threads on the tool look to be standard NPT 12TPI (11 1/2).

 

Great man, thanks. That really is a slick tool. I have the NPT tap and die, time to start collecting some plate drops.
In my other question I meant how do you remove the outer retainer? The usual grind/cut thing?

I Have seen that fellows story. I have to say I have been installing the upgraded seal in ABS tubes since around 00 when it was discovered, with continuous 100% success. I noticed the depth issue right away figured the previous Toyota spec for locating the retainer was history. I didn't flip the retainer and the seal rides on the center of the retainer with no retainer/housing contact. I feel it is all about the seal driver used and the man using it.
On the other hand flipping the retainer can't hurt anything and it does give you more space to play with, no doubt about it.

 

Ah, sorry. I didn't take a picture of that but it's the same procedure as using the SST in the FSM. In these two pictures visualize it without the bearing splitter and standoffs, with the 4 original axle backing plate studs now protruding through the holes in the lower blue plate of the tool (4 of the multiple holes line up perfectly with the studs.




After the snap ring, ABS ring and inboard retainer have been removed, the lower blue plate of the tool now sits on top of the outboard retainer. There are enough threads of the studs protruding through the tool's bottom plate to install the original nuts that hold the axle assembly to the axle housing. With the nuts holding the tool to the axle assembly, the tool is installed in the press exactly like the first picture and the axle is pressed out of the bearing as in the FSM. The outboard retainer is just along for the ride here so it will be pressed off in the process.

 

I saw the picture of your homemade tool (very nice) so you already know how it works, but here's the part of the FSM that shows the ridiculously expensive SST that does the same thing as the Durasolid tool.


The main thing that may not be clear is that the outer retainer is still there and gets pressed off at the same time the axle shaft is pressed out of the bearing.

 

Do these rear wheel bearings have a fair amount of free play in them when they are not installed in the axle housing? just wondering because i got an entire rear axle out of a junker and split it all apart. seems like the bearings are a little sloppy but could not feel any freeplay while the axles were installed in the housing..

 

Interesting that they are now on board with pressing the retainer off with the bearing. My 99 FSM says to cut/grind/chisel it off. I have never cut one in my life, a retainer that is.

 

Yes, when you pull the shaft/backing plate, the plate will seem to flop around quite a bit.
Toyota says shaft should have no more than .028" of "in and out" play, installed.

 

Made this today while i was at work:

 

This is how i pressed everything back together: (1.5" pipe coupler)

 

Awesome. thanks so much, you just saved me like 200 bucks haha.

 

My 98 FSM just says to cut off the inner retainer and ABS ring, not the outer retainer that sits between the bearing and the snap ring. It says to press that outer one off along with the bearing. I'm like you though, I press both of them off.

 

Nice job. Did the square tubing flex at all?

 

Well I feel a little silly now. I just looked at my 99 book and sure enough it is just like yours. I guess I never looked at it close enough.
The facts be straight now.