how to separate brake disc from hub

hello everyone, I'm in the process of changing my front rotors on my 1999 2 wheel dr. tacoma. the disc and hub are stuck together even tho I had taken off the bolts that hold the disc to the hub. how do I separate the two? thanks

 

welcome to tw.

the two are probably rusted together, so you may need to spray a lil pb blaster or wd-40 around the hub and let it sit for a bit. try a rubber mallet frst tho...may pop loose.

 

x2

Some WD-40 and a rubber mallet will help A LOT! My buddy and I changed his front rotors and pads on his '04 Tacoma and getting the front rotors off was the only step that took such a long time. Good luck!

 

thanks everyone for responding. will give it another go. yesterday sprayed some pb blaster on it and banged it with a hammer, still wouldn't loosen up. If I can't separate the two, does that mean that I'll have to purchase a new hub?

 

thanks again, is there some sort of retaining ring in the hub that needs to be removed?

 

I always do a rubber hammer on both sides of it. You have to hit pretty hard but it will come off. Lots of PB.

 

thanks again for responding so quick. will let you know how I fare.

 

Good luck. If all else fails call Chuck Norris.

 

Yeah. Good point. Once Chuck Norris kicked a brake rotor trying to remove it and the entire truck was launched all the way around the world and landed on his home town destroying everything in sight. Every year on the anniversary of the destruction he remembers it happening and his laugh can be heard for a 1000 mile radius

 

Those with more mechanical knowledge then me(which is just about everyone), stop me if I'm wrong - but while working on my friend's front discs, we ran into this problem. A few minutes worth of heating with a propane torch and a few whacks with a mallet loosened it right up.

 

Use a propane or MAPP gas torch to heat the rotor up near the hub. The heat will cause the metal to expand/distort a bit, which will break the rust.

 

thanks everyone for your suggestions. copious amounts of PB blaster, time and wacks with a chisel and hammer finally did the trick. "whew" I'll do the other side tomorrow. are the rear brakes easier?