RedCelica

Got my rear knuckle back from the shop and am wondering if the wheel bearing can be installed backwards/upside down. According to Robinette's site, the rubber seal needs to be facing up. That said, looks like the shop installed it backwards and am wondering if I need to by another one or if this still viable. Safe to run or trash and replace? Hub has not been pressed in yet.

RedCelica

Singh_snisen

Yup the rubber seal should be visible. Not sure wat the set backs of this is but I can't imagine them being good. Damn shop fail.

will010100

I'm really curious to know why it is important that the bearing face with the rubber towards the hub.

I have disassembled them, and the quantity and diameter of the balls are the same on both sides. Some manufacturers use metal seals on both sides. And I would have thought facing the rubber towards the hub would expose it to more heat.

Is there really a difference, or do we just do it that way because that's how Honda did it?

Bruunz

I believe its for the ABS.

RedCelica

This is what I found out Friday. The bearing I bought (National bearing brand) didnt actually have the rubber seal on either side. Both sides were identical. T'was MY BAD!

Pinky

Dude.......you need to visit Harbor Freight and get a shop press.........be done with it, no more visits to get stuff like this done.

RedCelica

I had that exact thought sitting in dude's shop on Friday. For the $250 I paid I could nearly buy two presses. SMH

bgoetz

Just grabbed a 20 and the dies to press this past weekend $200 out the door!!

will010100

Subscribe to the Harbor Freight email coupons because they are better than the mailer and store fliers. I see the 12 ton press for $99 quite often (almost always). I think the 20 ton gets down to $129.xx on occasion, but you've got to be on the lookout for this price.

I have the 12 ton and it has successfully changed 8 bearings, but it struggled on a couple. I had to use a heavy hammer to break some free. I had to do the freezer/torch trick to get a few of the inner races off the hub. Even then the 12 ton was barely able to get the job done. In some cases I had to push the handle quickly to spike the pressure as the fluid slowly squeezed past the pressure relief valve.

I think using all 20 tons to break free stuck parts would be terrifying and possibly break stuff. So, I'd still use the freezer/torch trick or hammer on stuck parts, but the 20 ton press would allow me to apply a little more force without the sudden spikes that can be more terrifying.

In summary, if I had time to plan ahead, think I would wait for the 20 ton to go on sale and pay the extra $30.