wheel bearings (1 Viewer)

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hi all, i'm about to repack/replace my wheel bearings and all of the seals. i was told i needed to do this because when the front end is jacked up you can grab either wheel and wriggle it around. I'll be doing this myself and i'm a total nube and really don't have any idea what i'm doing. I've searched this amazing site and found a step by step guide in the FAQ and i have purchased the rebuild kit and 54mm socket from Kurt at cruiser outfitters and i believe the service manual that i have has an exploded diagram for this too. having said all this i have a few questions:


i purchased the full knuckle rebuild kit, do i need to rebuild the whole knuckle to fix the wheels wriggling around, should i just rebuild it because i'm down there and it probably needs it anyway?

does anyone have a link to some pics for this process, i know there is one link at the end of the FAQ thats not broken but are there any others? i think i'm going to take pics of my whole proses so i can tell how to put it all back together, i can post them here too if anybody wants

finally is there any last minute advice anyone can give before i dive in to this project?
 
If you plan on driving this tomorrow, you are getting kind of a late start on it today.

The wheel bearings are a good thing to check but you also have Trunion bearings to consider. They are the ones sitting above the rectangular housing that is held on with the 4 studs on the bottom and the steering arms on top.


You did get enough rags right?
 
i'm just doing some recon today, i plan on starting early tomorrow morning. i have started to accumulate paper towels and rags.
 
If you post up your location, I would bet a local person with experience will volunteer to come over and give you a hand. If you were local to me, I would off up help and even my garage full of tools.

Another option is to go over to the Clubhouse section of this forum (tab at the top of the page) and find the closest Cruiser club, put up a note looking for help. Someone will step up, Cruiserheads are like that.
 
I always mention this to anyone doing this job. Keep track of parts where they go and in what order! I got a box of 100 zip lock baggies and a sharpie marker and noted the part & where it went, even the parts you will throw out. Keep track of the trunion bearing shims! Keep them in the order installed and where they came off! Don't mix them up! Otherwise it's an easy job just time consuming and as greasy as it gets! Clean, clean, clean, clean....
 
A torque wrench is always a good idea
 
i live in denver, co. there is a club near me, but i think there all in moab for the time being.
 
i live in denver, co. there is a club near me, but i think there all in moab for the time being.

Cruise Moab was over and done two weeks ago.
 
Good for you for jumping into this project. It's a big one, but with patience, and guidance from others on this forum, you can do it!

There are pics on the process, if not in the FAQ, then in the Tech Link section.

As bandicot said, keep track of parts. I lay them out in sequence on a bench/floor/whatever.

To your original question...do you need to rebuild the whole front axle or just the wheel bearings...

Check the condition of the gear oil in the diff...if it's gunky sludge & not very similar to gear oil, then you need to do the whole axle rebuild.

Check the condition of the grease in the knuckle, if it's oily (ie thinned out grease) then you need to rebuild the whole axle.

If the grease in the knuckle looks good, and the gear oil looks/smells like gear oil, then your oil seal is in good shape.

Odds are, you need to rebuild the whole front axle. Nearly every LC out there (not owned by folks on this board) are due for front axle service.

If it were me, I'd adjust the front hub to remove the play, then drive it until you have time to rebuild the whole axle. Do it once, do it right.
 

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