scurvy
Good Ol' Boy
All I have ever used on mine is an electric impact, the cheapo $40 Harbor Fart one. Works like a charm.Has anybody used an electric impact gun to remove the wheel bearings with the wheel bearing tool?
All I have ever used on mine is an electric impact, the cheapo $40 Harbor Fart one. Works like a charm.Has anybody used an electric impact gun to remove the wheel bearings with the wheel bearing tool?
When you press in the hub it bottoms out. Make sure to press against the inner bearing race when you press the hub back in, not the outer race, otherwise you might push the bearing apart.
Glad you found it useful, thanks for the feedback!I have been reading all the posts, looking for alternatives to the original procedures posted by Scurvy. Did both sides of my 2006 Golf TDI over the last two days. First side took about a day and a half figuring out how everything works, trying different ideas etc. I ended up using Scurvy's original posted methods, including cutting off the inner race from the hub. I don't understand the reference to billions of cutting disks - I used only one disk to do two hubs. Anyway, once I figured out how to do the job, the second side took about 2 1/2 hours start to finish. I found that it really helps to reconnect the ball joint to the control arm when using the slide hammer.
Many thanks to Scurvy for posting this information.
This has been my experience as well. No amount of futzing with the puller would get it to grip but 30 seconds with the Dremel and a few whacks of the cold chisel with a mini sledge and the inner race popped right off.
The last wheel bearing I did, I even tried using my 4" angle grinder. Definitely more fiddly to get a decent notch and not score the hub, but absolutely doable.
Can you guys explain further what you did in pictures with the grinder and cold chisel? I am going to use these methods in the coming weeks. Pictures or video would be great!I fought with a puller last night for about an hour and simply couldn't get enough bite to pull the race off. Went in the garage and busted out the dremel and with a cut-off disc I cut a notch down the race in about 5 minutes and took a chisel to and and after only a couple whacks it cleanly slipped right off.
I think it's a bit of that and a bit of CYA from the bearing company.Quick question - on the FAG bearing box it says 'replace both sides'. Any reason not to just replace the bad one? Are they just trying to sell more bearings?
My understanding, because I had quite a battle getting the inner race off the hub, is that you cut in to the race parallel to the hub's length (up and down) in order to weaken it and to give you an indentation to get a chisel in to break that race piece free. I had thought that you had to cut down the entire length, which is basically, as I found out, impossible to do at the lower shoulder part. Again, the aim is to just get some leverage on/against the inner race piece so that you can jolt it free to get it off the hub. There doesn't seem to be much concern about scoring the hub, though you should look to minimize doing so and, of course, clean any roughness that you might have created so that the new bearing fits on without a struggle.Can you guys explain further what you did in pictures with the grinder and cold chisel? I am going to use these methods in the coming weeks. Pictures or video would be great!
You're basically cutting a slit crossways across the race. Cut *almost* all the way through. Then a good wack with a chisel perpendicular to the axle will cause the race to split the last little bit, and at that point you can pretty much pull it off with channel locks. This is a pretty normal way to get off inner races of wrecked bearings when you can't get a good purchase behind them.Can you guys explain further what you did in pictures with the grinder and cold chisel?
yes that race needs to come off the hub, most will notch it with a grinder or cutting wheel, and use a punch to split it, will fall right off at that point, If you nick the hub spline, be sure to clean it up before pushing it in, and you need to support the inner race on the new bearing when doing so
The grease seal in your pictures looks compressed somehow. It should look like the one in my pictures at the start of the thread or more like your first picture in post 558. Did your pusher or support disc push against it?
You obviously have no professional training in this field. Didn't you know that the first thing they do in automotive trade school is graft an impact gun onto the students' dominant hands?Oh, Also, IMO you shouldn't use the impact gun to install the new bearing.
You should check it immediately and re-torque the bolt. As discussed in various pages of this thread is this bolt needing to be re-tightened or tightened with an impact gun.. if it isn't tight, it will come apart in less than a few days and need replacing again.OK. Did it this weekend. What a chore. I had some issues pulling the passenger side hub and ended up making a brace that I could slide through the hub and rest against the chassis to push on. This did the trick. Pushing on the axle did not work as it kept moving. One note. Today I hear a hum from the driver side. I did this side first then the passenger side. Would pushing on the passenger side axle damage the driver side bearing I just finished? It has a high pitched hum and I am not relishing the idea of doing this job again. In retrospect I should have undid both sides before I starting re-assembly. This article doesn't necessarily suggest that as it covers the steps to do either side.
...no. Are you aware of how the half-shafts/axles/CV joints are situated? There's a transmission between them.Would pushing on the passenger side axle damage the driver side bearing I just finished?
I would start with the simple stuff - like rotating your tires and spending time on proper diagnosis - before redoing the wheel bearing job. But if the noise persists after rotating and it is speed related, it very well could be improper wheel bearing installation. Could also be a damaged CV joint.It has a high pitched hum and I am not relishing the idea of doing this job again.
Why? This wouldn't have any benefit to the job.In retrospect I should have undid both sides before I starting re-assembly.
As mentioned before, it isn't mentioned because there's no reason to do it.This article doesn't necessarily suggest that as it covers the steps to do either side.
Bolt? In a mk4, the end of the axle/half shaft threaded and a nut is torqued onto the end. There's also no need to use an impact gun, a long breaker bar is sufficient to torque the crap out of the nut.You should check it immediately and re-torque the bolt. As discussed in various pages of this thread is this bolt needing to be re-tightened or tightened with an impact gun.. if it isn't tight, it will come apart in less than a few days and need replacing again.
Which bearing puller did you get?I looked at bearing puller. HF one is crap. For 3$ more I got a good one from Amazon brother had prime so free shipping.i