May have uncovered a worn/loose rear hub bearing. Any special needs to do this, or press out / press in? Any issues with the half shaft?
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Two things come to mind. (1) There is a special tool needed for the axle nut. (2) The axles are supposed to be a press fit in the bearing. If there's signs the axle has been spinning in the bearing race, if its loose & pulls out without using a press, this has to be repaired.
The rear axle bearing is actually 2 bearings held apart by a spacer. Wilkinson sells a replacement that uses a thicker bearing and a narrowed spacer.
Setting the height of the rear suspension so the half shafts are parallel to the ground will reduce the rate of rear wheel bearing & u-joint wear.
-G
The rear axle bearing is actually 2 bearings held apart by a spacer. Wilkinson sells a replacement that uses a thicker bearing and a narrowed spacer.
Setting the height of the rear suspension so the half shafts are parallel to the ground will reduce the rate of rear wheel bearing & u-joint wear.
-G
This car is stone stock, so "adjusting" it is not part of the owner's game plan. He will only be concerned with making it "correct" as it was when he bought the car. Steve @ Wilkinson was "off" today. I'll call again tomorrow.
I recently completed this task with a Hall billet axle/spacer/bearings/nut combo.
More info here about rear suspension procedures:
http://www.panteraplace.com/page87.htm
More info here about rear suspension procedures:
http://www.panteraplace.com/page87.htm
Torque multipliers and sewer pipes, huh? Sounds like fun.
Not as bad as I thought it would be. the tool is needed though for the bearing.
I home-made a tool to remove the axle nut out of an old socket and some steel key...search this site, there is a thread about it somewhere.
Bob, pressing the rear axles out needs care. Too much pressure on the cast iron brake disc can crack it into many pieces. I push all 5 wheel lugs loose first to reduce the force needed, and made a fixture to put the press load on the tapering shoulder of the stock disc.
Once out, you'll likely find the bearings are fine but the mild steel axles have a worn spot right where the much harder bearing races run. Only 0.010" wear is enough to cause wheel wobble. Many Panteras were produced with the wrong press-fit axle OD to the bearings, resulting in wobble and fretting of the axles. Axles can be welded, plated or spray-welded, then reground to make the required 0.0005-0.0008" interference fit needed with new bearings. The better alternative is new axles made of 300M steel to the correct press fit. All the Pantera vendors now sell them. Billet 4130-steel axles are also available and are suitable for street or pro-racing. Knurling, Lock-tite and other substitutes for the proper interference fit will last maybe 100 miles. Finally, axle nuts can be either left hand or right hand, code-stamped on the threaded end of an axle: S= left hand and D= right hand threads, torqued to 350-450 ft-lbs.
Once out, you'll likely find the bearings are fine but the mild steel axles have a worn spot right where the much harder bearing races run. Only 0.010" wear is enough to cause wheel wobble. Many Panteras were produced with the wrong press-fit axle OD to the bearings, resulting in wobble and fretting of the axles. Axles can be welded, plated or spray-welded, then reground to make the required 0.0005-0.0008" interference fit needed with new bearings. The better alternative is new axles made of 300M steel to the correct press fit. All the Pantera vendors now sell them. Billet 4130-steel axles are also available and are suitable for street or pro-racing. Knurling, Lock-tite and other substitutes for the proper interference fit will last maybe 100 miles. Finally, axle nuts can be either left hand or right hand, code-stamped on the threaded end of an axle: S= left hand and D= right hand threads, torqued to 350-450 ft-lbs.
BOSSWRENCH I am in the middle of this myself. I would like your optinion of using a fixture to support the upright from the a-arm attaching points to facilitate pushing the axle out.
Jeff
Jeff
OSO, I have photos somewhere of a stock rotor in 3 pieces at a local non-Pantera repair shop where they pressed it the easy way. Those rotors are pretty brittle so putting simple press stand-offs under the brake surfaces of a rotor is chancy. Sometimes it works, but sometimes it doe$n't & you'll need a new rotor.
My 'fixture' is a heavy 6" ID cast-iron sewer pipe-cap I found in a scrapyard, with a hole bored thru it slightly larger than an axle flange. I blew a hole in it with a cutting torch, then cleaned it up on a lathe. The hole edge is bevelled a little and catches the rotor right on its sloping flange-edge. Another friend uses a similar fixture made from two pieces of 3" thick plastic blocks glued together. Likely, even a hardwood block would work.
By pressing the 5 lug studs loose (one at a time) first, press- pressure needed to move the axle is significantly lowered. Hitting the studs with a hammer to pop them loose is an un-good alternative 'cause it's really hard to hit the hardened studs perfectly vertically. Any significant side-loads from the hammer will bend and/or crack an occasional $16 (each) stud. Do not ask how I found this out...
Finally, press pressure usually does not exceed 10 tons but even this is sometimes enough to bend the steel front bearing retainer. Before reassembling, check this steel metal piece for flatness and pound it back flat as req'd. Otherwise, the stub axle will be fitted a little further outboard than normal, maybe causing alignment & other problems.
Incidently, I used to weld-repair & remachine stock axles, but the cost of hard-face welding rod went up while the quality & strength of replacements improved and their price dropped, so I no longer recommend repairing stockers. Hard track use WILL crack OEM stub axles right at the chamfer. To do this work, you will need a 1"-2" micrometer that can read to the 4th decimal, as the ideal size will be 1.5876" +0.0004" - zero, and yes- the last digit IS important. Regular mic's aren't good enough.
My 'fixture' is a heavy 6" ID cast-iron sewer pipe-cap I found in a scrapyard, with a hole bored thru it slightly larger than an axle flange. I blew a hole in it with a cutting torch, then cleaned it up on a lathe. The hole edge is bevelled a little and catches the rotor right on its sloping flange-edge. Another friend uses a similar fixture made from two pieces of 3" thick plastic blocks glued together. Likely, even a hardwood block would work.
By pressing the 5 lug studs loose (one at a time) first, press- pressure needed to move the axle is significantly lowered. Hitting the studs with a hammer to pop them loose is an un-good alternative 'cause it's really hard to hit the hardened studs perfectly vertically. Any significant side-loads from the hammer will bend and/or crack an occasional $16 (each) stud. Do not ask how I found this out...
Finally, press pressure usually does not exceed 10 tons but even this is sometimes enough to bend the steel front bearing retainer. Before reassembling, check this steel metal piece for flatness and pound it back flat as req'd. Otherwise, the stub axle will be fitted a little further outboard than normal, maybe causing alignment & other problems.
Incidently, I used to weld-repair & remachine stock axles, but the cost of hard-face welding rod went up while the quality & strength of replacements improved and their price dropped, so I no longer recommend repairing stockers. Hard track use WILL crack OEM stub axles right at the chamfer. To do this work, you will need a 1"-2" micrometer that can read to the 4th decimal, as the ideal size will be 1.5876" +0.0004" - zero, and yes- the last digit IS important. Regular mic's aren't good enough.
Just found out my axles have gone through this kind of repair before...
I'll buy new ones.
I'll buy new ones.