Changing front hubs I'm in a pinch

[GoBlueHummer]

I'm trying to change my front hubs today and have hit a wall with pulling the old one. Bolts are out, nut is off but the hub won't budge. Any ideas? I'm am passed the point of no return on this so some advice us much appreciated. I dont remember seeing anything in the service manual special but dont have it in front of me.

Thanks
Corey

 

[06 H3]

I had to remove mine from the oem knuckle to the rancho lift knuckle and they are a PITA I would lightly tap with a soft hammer. If rust is an issue in your area it will be more difficult.

I would put two blocks with a gap in between and rest knuckle on it and tap the hub out. I used towels below the knuckle to rest on the block so I didn't chip anything.

 

[06 H3]

And remember to be patient. Mine took tons of it to get it out...

Depending on how long they have been in there can make it easier or tougher.

 

[SolidusJ]

Go to a firestone or a auto shop and they'll press it out for some cash.

 

[4speedfunk]

You can't press them out unless you take the knuckles off. There are two methods to remove them:

1. Soak em in PB-blaster, beat on em, pry on em, eventually they'll come off. This will destroy your backing plates...its nearly impossible to save them since you end up prying against them.

or....

2. Do it the right way...use a slide-hammer. The slide-hammer has a bracket that bolts to the wheel studs, and places the slide shaft sticking straight out from the hub. Then stand back and start wailing. They pop right out with no damage to anything. You can probably rent one at your local parts store.

 

[GoBlueHummer]

Thanks for the replies. I apparently missed the part in the service manual about removing the knuckle, doh! Late yesterday it occured to me that I could thread the caliper bolts in and use them to push the rotor, to help push the hub out. I got the hub moved enough to get PB blaster to penetrate around it. Of course I started on the side that isn't bad yet a but at least I'll have a better idea going into the bad one. I'm going to stop at AZ and see if they have a slide hammer to rent.

I was trying to avoid removing the knuckle but, if it comes to it, I guess I will have to.

 

[GoBlueHummer]

I forgot 1 other question; the manual says the axle nut is torqued to 191 ft lbs. They came off with much less force, felt like loosening a snug lug nut. I have new trust washers and locking nuts(outside edge is picnched from 3 sides). I don't know that I ahve ever had to put a nut on with that much force ad I'm sure my torque wrench only goes to 150, suggestions? Just go really f***ing tight and re-check or go in search of a 200 lbs torque wrench?

 

[4speedfunk]

191 sounds excessive to me. Just crank it tight with a breaker bar...100lbs should be plenty. I don't understand why it would ever need to be that tight anyway...the axle nut doesn't do much. It just holds it in place...the splines do all the work.

 

[Sethmark]

Not true. The unitized bearing is held together by the axle nut. Bearing preload is maintained by tightening the nut correctly. If you were to run without an axle shaft there's a distinct possibility that the bearing will separate.

 

[GoBlueHummer]

On the side with the bad bearing, I found the axle nut quite tight. I retightened both of them with what I feel was adequate torque. I haven't removed the axle nuts in the past, and with 123K on, I figure it must not have been critical to the exact spec.

The slide hammer was the silver bullet. It took about 5 minutes per side to get them out once the PB blaster set for a couple minutes. Also replaced my rear shocks today.


Thanks for the help fellas :cheers

 

[4speedfunk]

I think Bebe drove around for awhile without any half-shafts.

 

[Sethmark]

Didn't say you couldn't. It's possible that it'll hold together. I wouldn't bet my life on it.

 

[bebe]

I think Bebe drove around for awhile without any half-shafts.

True - about 450 miles.

 

[Mr_Rich]

In about '05 or thereabouts I replaced the majority of the front end components on my Chevy K1500. The parts are slightly heavier than an H3 Hummer. There was about 150K miles on that truck at the time and I had to beat on the end of the half shaft to remove it from the hub. I mushroomed both sides taking it apart. No puller was going to do the job of getting those components apart. The hub nut was supposed to be torqued @220 ft. lbs. I used a 150 ft. lb. torque wrench to the max and then used a breaker bar to tighten as far as it would go past that point. It's survived for the last eight or nine years so I figure my method was successful. Those hubs are pressed together to retain the bearings. You're not going to squeeze those back together properly with the tightening of the hub nut if it wasn't torqued tight enough in the first place. If the bearing goes bad replacement is the only option.