I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

I'm Flying down the freeway as about 80mph (stupid )..... I notice a slight pull to my left and hear a grinding noise that quickly went away as quickly as it came...... I slowed my speed anyway thinking Oh Shhh! what did I burn up now!!! about a mile later I lose control of the Truck at about 45-50mph because I was already coming up on my exit. by the grace of GOD the mini van next to me managed to steer clear. I came to a stop at the shoulder safely and found that my front wheel bearings had a melt down!!!!

The crazy part is that about 7months ago the bearing wore out so I purchased new rotors, bearings and i used High temp disc brake bearing grease on both sides.... 4 months later one of the rotors broke where the bearings sit. so I had to return the rotor and bearings and installed new ones again (covered by warranty still) . it has only been about 3 months since. Now once again???? Its only the driver side... The passanger side has held up fine each time...
http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/...4132011323.jpg
http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/...4132011322.jpg

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

Glad you are ok.

You could have damage to the spindle on that side or an obstruction that is preventing it from seating fully when you install. What torque value are you using on the install?

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

is it possible you overtightened the castle nut on there? glad you werent hury.. years ago on a 77 delta 88 i did the same thing and the tip of the spindle broke off from the heat

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

It could be a possibility that I may have over tightened .... I didnt know I had to use a torque wrench??!
umm yeah, so I removed everything right now and the spindle is bend and also the inner bearings are torn to bits just like the pic I posted of the outer bearing.... is it easy to replace the spindle here in my drive way??

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

its a very light, but specific tightness. actually i think its an inch pound value possibly, either way its not much at all. did you like tighten it as much as you could or something?

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

i didnt tighten it as much as i could but i did tighten it till it till the nut wouldnt spin without force... i guess that was where i went wrong....

I found a guy on CL that has a set of stock spindles cheap.... really cheap.... how do i go about removing mine??

OK, so i just watched a video on how to remove a spindle and apparently Its not my spindle that is bent it the "THINGY" that the bearings and rotor sit/slide onto, and the axle nut screws onto...... how do i remove that???
http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/...4132011324.jpg

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

Spin the hub and tighten until it you can feel it become harder to spin, then back off until it spins free again. That's the way I've always done 'em and never had any problems.
Did you pack the bearings and add plenty when you drove the cap back on? I generally pack 'em full and fill the cap, but you don't want enough to knock the rear seal out, which will happen if you overfull the cap.

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

you need the whole spindle

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

You would have to remove the whole spindle in order to remove that machined piece, the hub, the whole spindle needs to come off. This is generally referred to as a spindle all put together. Honestly you would need a press to remove and install the new spindle, I would really just replace the whole thing, pressing it apart and getting it back together is not much fun.

Bearing packing and tightening procedure for installation is as follows. I've done literally hundreds of these as a kid. My dad raced stock cars and I raced stock cars and EVERY week we re-packed wheel bearings. Overkill yes, but we NEVER had any problems. Start by packing the bearings well. Make sure you have new seals in the back of the rotor, Grease all over the brakes doesn't make for a good day. Then put your back bearing inside the rotor, slide it on the spindle hub. Now install your front bearing and your washer and castle nut. Snug the nut down pretty tight with a wrench. Spin your rotor a few times. This gets the grease all worked in, and OUT of places it doesn't need to be. This will gain you a few thousandths of additional clearance in order to properly install the castle nut. Now loosen the nut about a half turn. Spin the rotor again. Now you should be able to quickly pull out on the rotor and push it back in. You'll hear and feel a little thunk thunk sound, it has space between the bearings and the races inside the rotor which create the noise. Now start tightening the nut just a little bit at a time. I use my hole through the hub and castle nut as a guide. Go one crenelation at a time as you tighten it. The clearance will go away as you tighten the nut. When you finally get to a point where it no longer makes a thunking sound it's tight. If you have to go just a bit further than one of the crenelations in order to remove that sound but it doesn't quite go far enough to put in the cotter key, tighten it to the next crenelation and put your cotter key in. In fact this is usually the case. I've rarely had one be exactly in the correct spot. Always spin the rotor a few times and double check to make sure the clearance is out before calling it good. Install your dust cap and you're good to go.

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

yepp its all one piece. i have a set actually if your interested pm me if the clist falls through.

it looks warped?

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

It can be done without a torque wrench if you have a good feel for it. The torque wrench is not really for the final tightening, it is to make sure the bearing is properly seated and you are on the right flat of the nut. If you tighten the nut to 15-20 Ft. lbs and turn it a few rotations. When it holds that torque value after turning, you should be in the right position. The back the nut off until you can insert the cotter key. This should be a very small amount. If it is more than 1/2 of a flat, start over. That should leave you with a rotor that spins freely and no more than a few thousandths of free play.

Once you have a feel for how much resistance the rotor gives you at that torque value, you can do it without the torque wrench.

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

ok guys, i have the lower control arm jacked up with my small 2ton jack.
I removed the Tie rod nut, lower cont arm nut, and upper cont arm nut...... now Im nervous because I really dont know where to go from here...... If i lower my jack will the coil come flying out???

whats my next step??

*************LOL UPDATE***********
I got that sucker out!!!!!! didnt even need to lower the jack just a few bangs with my good ol' $5.00 hammer!!!!!!!!

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

Your spring shouldn't come flying out. But lower slowly and let it unload by itself. If you have a set close, put a coil spring compressor on the spring and snug it, but don't tighten it. That should keep any possibility of the spring flying out to a minimum. However, with the spindle totally detached from the A-arms, the spring should have enough room to relax without trouble.

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

If you lower the jack the spring COULD come flying out. WITH THE JACK IN PLACE...... If you have a pickle fork use that to split the spindle from the ball joint. If you don't, usually a couple of good whacks with a BFH will pop it loose. As long as you're replacing the spindle anyway, it doesn't really matter. Just give the spindle a good pop right next to the ball joint. Do the same on the bottom ball joint when you get the spring out. Before lowing the jack, put a jack stand under the frame so the whole truck doesn't come down.

Re: I ALMOST DIED!!! AT LEAST THE CHEVY IS UNHARMED lol
 

i always chain up/ratchet strap the springs, just for personal piece of mind