Rear axle shaft removal/install difficulty

As bad as you said that old bearing was to bad you didn`t take pictures .

It had to have gotten hot did you never smell anything hot??

I lean toward a warped housing or bearing race material in the axle tube where the bearing rides

 

The only thing I smelt when I drove it was the smell of gear oil afterwards.

unfortunately it was my sister driving so I’m not for sure what happened. I do know that the night before I was in the truck and it made no unusual noises but the next night that bearing decided to let go and talk

 

Did you ever find out why the axle shaft was difficult to remove and reinstall? I'm having the exact same issue with only one side. I see you're also in Virginia, I'm in the DC area.