Posted by Jim in North Louisiana on Tuesday, May 11, 2004 at 10:14AM :
In Reply to: Wheel bearing cup installation posted by Brian in San Mateo on Tuesday, May 11, 2004 at 0:35AM :
Just did that last weekend. I took a drive pin that was softer than any of the other metal. The bearing cups are super hard, so not a big chance of scarring them.
Anyway, I couldn't find a brass drift, but had an old railroad spike laying around that I had used before and noticed that the point would mushroom out, indicating it was fairly soft. I ground the mushroom off, but left the tip end flat in an oval shape. I then alternated sides driving the race in. If you were looking at the hub as a clock, I alternated between the following positions with the spike and a good sized ballpien hammer. (12 - 6 - 3 - 9, repeat) until it bumps up. Don't be afraid, but don't get impatient and get too rough with it. You can barely tell it moved after making several rounds with the drift pin, but you will see progress. After I did a couple, I could tell the race, when struck with the hammer/drift pin, had a different "feel" when it had bumped up againt the shoulder in the hub. I didn't scratch my race or hub, so it worked for me.