what's the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

[tipoil]

what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

I just finished a semi-rebuild of my front (d44) end (iner seal,new u joint,new wheel bearing,new ball joint).
evrything was fine until the damn bearing adjustment!!!!
i get out the shop manuel (haynes) and do evrything that they said and the disk brake was loose (pull on the disk by hand and there was some slack in it) so i do it again...same thing...try on the other side...same thing...(by this time all the tool are airborn in the garage!!!)
so i end up tightening it by hand just to take the play (just like i alway's did on my car ) and get it all back together .
so my question is... are the bearing ok that way or i need to re-adjust them ????
in the manuel they said ... torque to 50 , back off 90 degre , torque to 35 , back off 3/8 turn .
the jam nut torque to 50 (seem to be not much)

by the way 77 d 44 6 lugs /forums/images/graemlins/k5.gif

 

[POWERMAD]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

This is how I do it.
Install assembled hub assy, install outer bearing and the adjusting nut.
Tighten it down to 100 ft lbs while you are tuning the wheel.
This is to seat and pre load the bearings.
back off the nut till it is finger tight and torque it to 50 ft lbs.
Back it off an 1/8th of a turn and install the lock ring and lock nut.
Pop the lock nut at 100ftlbs or so.

 

[HarryH3]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

I just went through this the other night when I repacked the bearings on my '75. Your manual is right. Torque the inner nut to 50 lb/ft while turning the rotor. Back it off, then torque it to 35 lb/ft while turning the rotor. Then back off the nut not more than 3/8's of a turn. My manual then says to tighten the outer nut to at least 55 lb/ft. When it's all done, the endplay spec is .001-.010 inches.

Did you replace any bearing races while you were in there? If they aren't fully seated in the hub, then they'll keep moving each time you torque down the inner nut. Once they're seated all the way it should be pretty easy to adjust the bearings properly.

 

[Burbinator]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

</font><blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr />
Then back off the nut not more than 3/8's of a turn.

[/ QUOTE ]

That step is only necessary to facilitate the alignment of the lock ring and guide pin. I always tighten my outer lock nuts to 75 ft/lbs...55 is too thin for me. However, my truck is a 3/4 ton, not a 1/2...

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[HarryH3]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

But you still need some endplay. It's easy to leave them too tight if you don't back off the inner nut enough. It takes right around a quarter turn to end up with about .005 inch endplay after tightening the outer nut. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

 

[Burbinator]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

Good point...

...I will be checking that tonight.

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[HarryH3]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

I thought that backing the nut off just enough to get the lock ring on would be good enough, but that didn't leave any endplay. Using a dial indicator I found the 1/4-turn back trick gets it pretty close to the middle of the spec. Check the endplay after tightening the outer nut, as it does make a difference. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[Burbinator]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

I checked my bearings last night...sure enough, no end play. Dialed it in to 3/4 ton specs and it is now properly squared away.

Thanks for the info...I learn something new EVERY day on here!

/forums/images/graemlins/burb.gif

 

[HarryH3]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

Just one more reason to pony up the cash for the factory service manuals. They ain't cheap, but they have good info! /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

 

[Burbinator]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

Funny that you mention that...

...the Brown Santa (UPS) just delivered my 1991 Suburban Portfolio from Helm today...

...been a long time coming!

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[hammer]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

my manual say's for a 84 10 bolt with the wheel on torque to 70 lbs back of 90 degrees torque to 35 back of 3/8 turn put washer on and torque outer nut to 160-205 lbs

 

[HarryH3]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

My front axle is a 74 Dana 44HD. The specs I posted were from a '74 shop manual. But I just checked an '87 shop manual and it while specs just 65 lb/ft. for the outer nut on a 14-bolt FF, but indeed shows a minimum of 160 lb/ft for a 10-bolt front axle. /forums/images/graemlins/eek.gif I wonder if it's so high due to something about the auto-locking hubs? That's a lot of torque to place one the 4 or 5 threads of that thin nut! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

 

[HarryH3]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

Oh yeah, at the end of the section in the '87 manual is where it lists the acceptable end-play for the wheel bearings. The '74 manual listed it right in the spot where it's telling ya how to setup the wheel bearings. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[tipoil]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

thanx for all the help guys!!!!

i'm going to re-check them after i finished painting the truck!.the only weeling it sees now is up and down the driveway..

 

[HarryH3]

Re: what\'s the correct adjustement for front wheel bearing????????

Well, tonight I took apart my first GM auto-locking hub. Now I see why the torque spec is so high for the outer bearing nut on later model axles! The lock ring that goes between the nuts has 4 large tabs that stick out from it. There are tangs on the back of the locking hub that engage those tabs to hold part of the inner hub stationary. It looks like the auto hubs put a lot of stress on that lock ring that earlier manual hubs never created. So they raised the torque spec to make sure the outer nut doesn't come loose.

I also found out why some outer axle shafts have 2 snap ring grooves in them. The inner groove and snap ring hold a washer in place right up near the lock nuts, so that the outer nut can't back all the way off of the spindle, even if it does manage to get worked loose. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif (The outer groove isn't used with the auto-hubs on this axle. It must be there only for manual hubs).

I also found out that the front 10-bolt on my Suburban has the fairly rare 30-spline inner axle shafts! /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif