DMC 6239: Hub Bearings Pressed In! Brake Calipers Cleaned and Loaded!!!

Big steps completed today thanks to help from Jake and Darrin! The morning started with Darrin and I putting the new 20-ton press to work pushing out the hub bearings from the wheel hubs. The press made some noise at first but we determined it was the springs and pushed forward.

Using a large socket as a press fitting, we pushed the hub bearings out with relative ease.

On the second pressing, Darrin made a two-point shot, landing the falling hub bearing right into the waiting bucket. Nice move.

The hubs were clear and we then subjected them, along with their spacers, to a good douse of degreaser.

The result was a long-overdue cleaning before we prepared to put in the new hub bearings. Darrin and I prepped the hubs with 90W marine-grade gear oil while Jake created a plywood jig for the hub bolts to pass through so the press did not damage them. That would allow even, flat pressure on the bearing as it was pressed in, so it would not go into the hub crooked. Using a power drill, we put four generous holes in the plywood sheet.

A shop towel was placed on top of the bearing, then the plywood and then the press was brought down on the whole setup.

We checked and re-checked it to make sure that the bearing was centered and that no pressure or damage was being inflicted on the hub bolts. Then we put the snap rings back into place with the pliers and a little help from a rubber mallet and a punch.

Once completed, we had two nice and clean, reconditioned hubs!

The next task was removing the old brake pads, then cleaning and loading new pads in their places. The calipers, when originally removed were dirty and the pads had uneven wear, likely from warped rotors.

The first step was removing the pins and springs and pulling the old pads and shims. Then, using a C-clamp with the old pad as a buffer, we pressed the brake pistons back in, while opening the bleeder valves to allow the old fluid to escape without contaminating the hard lines.