I noticed that my front OUTER wheel bearing has a bad spot on it. For the heck of it, I bought a new inner and outer wheel bearing and grease seal.

I've never replaced these before. At the parts store, I asked for drum brake front wheel bearings and seal for a '70 Chevelle. Now that I'm taking everything off, the new seal looks different (tho it looks to be the same size as the old). The new outer wheel bearing doesn't look like my old one at all. I can't compare the inner wheel bearings, because....

I can't get the freakin' grease seal out! It doesn't look to be in bad shape, but I figure while I'm here, I'd like to replace all of this stuff. If the old seal is ok, is there any other way to get the INNER bearing out to replace it? I don't think there is.

There must be a trick to this, but I don't know what it is. I usually figure out that all this stuff is pretty easy (well, after the first time), but I'm stumped on this.

Do I try to dig it out with a screwdriver or something? BTW, does anyone have a picture of a disc brake wheel bearing setup? Cuz, I'm concerned that the outer bearing is the wrong one and maybe it's for discs or something.

Thanks for any and all help. If I can get this stuff figured out, then it's off for an alignment and I should be on the way to driving her daily again. smile.gif

You have to "knock" the inner seal out before the bearing can come out.

I use a wooden dowel rod stuck thru the hub to pursuade (hit with a mallet) the bearing out with the seal.

If you have a socket (on a 6" extension) which fits thru you can use it too.

To get the bearing race out of the hub, use a punch to knock it out alternating around it's edges. Don't reuse the old race with the new bearing.

To repack the new beaings with grease there are 2 methods.

</font> Buy a plastic bearing repacker setup (~$15) and use a grease gun to shoot grease to the bearing.</font> Glob some bearing grease into left hand (use latex glove), scape edge of the bearing against the edge of the grease little by little, while rotating the bearing to hit the entire edge. Flip it over and do the other side. Then spin the bearing slowly and repeat. I probably use an egg-size glob of grease per bearing.</font>

Could do it like DG said, but you can also use a large screwdriver or prybar and pry the seal out (it's just pressed in, so either way will work). It will usually get bent out of shape, but they are cheap and you don't want to reuse it anyway. When the bearing is packed and in place, put the new seal on the hub and tap it gently around the edges to start it nice and square, then put a flat piece of wood on top and use a hammer to seat it. There are several different ways of doing it, but that's what I ususally do.

Or you can leave the hub on the spindle without the outer bearing in place thread the nut back on a few threads and quickly "yank" the hub off, it will leavt the bearing and seal on the spindle.

Ok, I took the hub to work and had a friend walk me thru it. I did it with my own hands, which is the best way for me to learn this stuff.

It's easy as pie, once you know the trick. The bearings are the correct ones, cuz I didn't realize thru the packing...that the new races were in there graemlins/clonk.gif . Geez, what a newbie to brakes am I.

I'm about to go out and button this thing up. Man, I may just stop by the parts store for bearings, races and seal for the passenger side. It looked fine, but I'm juiced that I learned how to do it, so it would be extra practice and piece of mind that goes with fresh components.

Thanks guys...and everything mentioned above was correct.

graemlins/beers.gif