Howdy all, I am in the process of converting some ‘40-42 front hubs to slip fit drums/pressed studs and realized the larger inboard bearing race is spun and captured in the hub. Is there a way to repair this? Oversized races? Sleeve the hub? Or is it now a door stop?
When I was learning the trade, we had to fix things no one else could. I was taught to uniformly prick punch a couple dozen spots all around the inside. We didn't know about Loctite yet, but if I was doing it today, I'd punch & Loctite it.
They aren’t that hard to find. Considering how many are out there with bad drums on them. On milli-thousandth off and you will chew up bearings forever.
If the worn area is still concentric to the original location, then the prick punch / Loctite is a good quick and easy repair. It use to be fairly common to lay some braze filler in the worn area and bore it out on a lathe. If you don't have a lathe, or a buddy with one, that's not cost effective these days. And as mentioned, the parts are still readily available. If you don't repair them now, hang on to them. Never know what's down the road.
Yep same here, take a center punch and start walking around the inside of the hub. Hillbilly knurl, I like that ! I'd do the same thing and add a little loctite and see what happens ! Being a bearing there shouldn't be much load on the race trying to turn it unless the bearing is over tightened. Doesn't cost much to try it..... ...
The staking method 302GMC mentions has potential to distort the cup in this case, but is often affective in some cases. Cylindrical retaining compound does work depending on the bearing bore. As previously mentioned, since the hubs are reproduced I'd get new.
The loctite 641 works if & only if you prepare the surfaces & use their primer while following all directions.
I would just find another one, they are not rare or expensive. The concentricity of the 2 bearings is now compromised.
Thanks for the replies y'all, I will source another hub. I'm a machinist by trade, I'm confident I could sleeve it and hold concentricity, but there isn't much material there to begin with. I cant bring myself to hillbilly knurl it...
Yes, sleeving is not a good repair option due to the original material thickness as you mentioned. That's why the filler braze and bore repair use to be the common fix, especially on commercial applications.
A couple of hits with a welder on that race will shrink it enough to remove easily. Then you can examine the hub and see if it's worth saving.
If all else fails and concentricity of the oversize bore is still ok, you could have that outer race plated a thou and restore the fit in the hub.
If you are a machist, just bore it out to the next size up race. Get a good bearing dimension book and determine the over bore. Bones
I've had the surfaces where the cup sits on rollers or support hubs for large food processing machines metal sprayed and machined back to spec when a race spun a few times. That may cost more than a good hub as a lot of solutions might. Had one of the mechanics in that plant that was a top notch machinist who bored out and sleeved a few end plates and bored them to size but the hours he spent saving some 10,000 dollar pieces wouldn't be viable on a 40 wheel hub.
I'm a machinist within engine maintenance ops for a major airline. The FOGs at my shop recalled that in the past they would plate or spray weld the OD of bearing races and bushings, but that was before my time. They already give me hell and say these are now $1000 hubs, I will just replace it.
Just heat shrink it! Find a method to clamp the outside, then heat it [just enough to Blue it] This allows for heat expansion inwards only, and it will shrink slightly when it cools I have successfully heat shrunk for bearing cups [on a trailer hub] with 4 localized stitch welds around the outside . then grind the welds down later. The weld pinches-in the steel when it cools.
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