Seized wheel bearing hub? Most useful tool ever.........

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Dr. Righteous

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I've have these seized before but never like this.
It was time for front brakes and wheel bearing hubs on my '14 RAM 1500 Express. I've run into seized rotors and wheels hubs before and always managed to get them removed without much hassle. When changing a rotor usually a couple hits with hammer breaks it loose. Took a few for this one but it eventually popped off. Then came the hub. I doused the entire assembly with PB blaster and let it soak. I took the axle nut off and pushed the shaft out of the hub. I was able to get to the 3 bolts in the rear then and unbolt the hub.
Right! A couple well placed hits with a big hammer and the hub will pop right out. At least that is how it always worked before. Well, after wearing myself out beating on it with heavy hammers and it not budging I knew I had a serious problem. I was familiar with a few tricks to get the hub out. One is place the rotor on backwards then put a jack under it; this letting the weight of the truck push it off. No go. didn't work.
Another was taking a bottle jack, placing it against a frame member then pushing it off that way. No go, the jack doesn't work on it's side. I decided on a quick google search and found a product called a HUB BUSTER. This is a piece of thick wall square stock welded to a plate that bolts on to the 2 wheel lugs. You bolt it up and stand back, hit it with a sledge.
I can see how that would apply tremendous shock load and break it free. Simple as the tool is, it is over 100 bux. Screw that. Can I weld one of those up myself? Sure can. But wait, I have another idea.
A couple days before I use a big ass pipe wrench to bent the mower blade back into shape. It is just a matter of leverage. The pipe wrench I uses was actually sitting on the porch. I grabbed the pipe wrench and had it clamped at the top of the brake rotor (mounted backwards). I went and got my sledge hammer and stood back and gave it a good whack; which snapped the aluminum handle off. The bearing hub didn't budge.
I thought about it for a minute. I'm not surprised the wrench didn't live though it. I need a all steel pipe wrench, a bigger one. Harbor Freight has these fairly cheap. So after church Sunday I headed to Harbor Freight and picked up the biggest pipe wrench they had. Had a 20% off coupon so got it for about 25 bux. When I got back I placed the new wrench on top of the brake rotor. Stood back and hit is hard with the sledge. To my delight it worked and the hub popped out and fell to the ground.

Examining the mating surfaces you can see the corrosion that had it seized in place. Aluminum steering knuckles are used because with independent front suspension you need low mass for quicker tire rebound. Well, the hub is steel, so bolting 2 dissimilar metals together you get electrolysis and that is corrosion. IMG_20190729_075721698.jpg IMG_20190729_075705184.jpg
A simple solution is to add some anti-seize compound to the mating surfaces at the factory. But they don't do that!

A quick wire wheel cleanup and some anti seize will make the new hub go in nicely. Hopefully this is the last time I have to take a sledge hammer to my RAM pickup
 
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Shiva

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Good job.
I have taught apprentices over the years to do-it-right the first time. If that doesn't work think outside the box.
Sometimes the wrong tool is the right solution.
There are no problems that a solution looking for a home can't fix.
That pipe wrench found the right home.
Thanks for the heads up about the anti seize.
Just a tip. There is nuclear grade anti seize available. I think it is way over priced but I can tell you, ya get what you pay for and the stuff lasts long enough that your grand kids will inherit it.
 
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Dr. Righteous

Dr. Righteous

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Good job.
I have taught apprentices over the years to do-it-right the first time. If that doesn't work think outside the box.
Sometimes the wrong tool is the right solution.
There are no problems that a solution looking for a home can't fix.
That pipe wrench found the right home.
Thanks for the heads up about the anti seize.
Just a tip. There is nuclear grade anti seize available. I think it is way over priced but I can tell you, ya get what you pay for and the stuff lasts long enough that your grand kids will inherit it.

I couldn't find my tube of anti seize and it was too late (and I was tired) for a parts store run. So I put a thin layer of moly axle grease on the mating surfaces.
This should prohibit the hub from seizing again.
 

hdvespa

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What is the process for getting the shaft out of the hub? I've changed hubs on my 2002 but it is 2wd. My 2014 is my first 4wd truck.
 

crash68

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It is just a matter of leverage. The pipe wrench I uses was actually sitting on the porch. I grabbed the pipe wrench and had it clamped at the top of the brake rotor (mounted backwards). I went and got my sledge hammer and stood back and gave it a good whack; which snapped the aluminum handle off.
waste of a perfectly good aluminum pipe wrench .. hope that wasn't a Rigid :-(
You should have tried a long cheater bar on the pipe wrench first. I used to use a 6' cheater on the handle of my 24" aluminum pipe wrench all the time, if it didn't come apart, something usually broke and it was the wrench.
 
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Dr. Righteous

Dr. Righteous

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waste of a perfectly good aluminum pipe wrench .. hope that wasn't a Rigid :-(
You should have tried a long cheater bar on the pipe wrench first. I used to use a 6' cheater on the handle of my 24" aluminum pipe wrench all the time, if it didn't come apart, something usually broke and it was the wrench.
Don't cry for that pipe wrench, that was a cheepy from HF. I stood on the pipe wrench handle and it didn't budge. Took a shock load to break it loose.
 
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Dr. Righteous

Dr. Righteous

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What is the process for getting the shaft out of the hub? I've changed hubs on my 2002 but it is 2wd. My 2014 is my first 4wd truck.

Remove the big nut; (think it is like a 36mm) and you should be able to use a regular 3 jaw puller to push the shaft out of the hub. I didn't have any problem with the shafts on mine. The real pain in the rear is you cannot get to bolts that hold the hub on until the shaft is pushed out of the way.
 
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Papagod

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I had this problem with the rear hubs on my cadillac, I looked at the pipe wrench solution but didn't like it, plus they're not cheap. In the end I borrowed an air compressor from a friend and the air chisel, I unbolted the 3 hub bolts fully, then out them back in a fair way but not fully, I then put a flat end on the air chisel and used it on the hub bolts one at a time, evenly, it popped out like it was buttered, I'd never attempt this job another way after that.
 

Mistwalker

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Had that issue with my '04. Had driver hub fail during a turn(pucker factor of a 1000). Got it replaced and together in under an hour. Moved on to the passenger side and what a nightmare. Nearly bent a puller trying just to get axle out of hub. Then hub was stuck in knuckle. By that time I was angry. Just grabbed biggest sledge in shop and beat it out. Felt good and got job done.

I used so much anti-sieze when it all went back together. Next owner should have no issues.
 

hdvespa

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So after you remove the bug nut from the axle you just push the axle in some and can then access the 3 bolts?
 

PaulTGarrett

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As I've said in other posts, if I ever meet the fscking idiot who designed the unit bearing, I'm going to kick him in the nuts so hard and so many times it will echo back through history and his great great grandfather will double over in pain. The first modification I'm doing to my truck as soon as the money is saved up is to replace those damn things with spindles and locking hubs. The way 4x4 front ends are supposed to be made.
 

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