front wheel bearings

im replacing my front wheel bearings and races. should i be able to tap out the old races and install the new one myself or do the new races need to be pressed in.

 

thanks. haven't ever done the front bearings and races before. ive got a couple of bras punches.

 

thats good to know, im going to to it tomorrow. its a friends jeep, i have a 55 M38A1 but haven't had to replace my bearings.

 

Just in case you havent put brg in before: setting up wheel brg. tightin inner nut and spinn tire then back off 1/4 turn insall jamnut tight. better a little loose then too tight. also make sure to pack new brg with grease.

 

thats why im replacing the bearings and races, the front drivers side bearing is now backed with rust.

 

Hi everyone, Im now finishing up the steering knuckle seals on my jeep, and have installed new bearing races and am going to grease them up and finish it. My one question (however noobish it may seem) How much grease do I need for the front bearings? Just enough to pack them like a regular bearing or do I need more than whats needed to pack the bearing up? The P.O. had most of that void between the outter seal and the bearing filled with grease. I took about two handfulls of grease out of there when I disassembled it. Thanks guys!

 

You don't need an excessive amount of greese between the inner and outer bearings. I throw an extra wipe just on the inside of the race and an extra wipe over the bearing before the washer. make sure the bearing is "packed" and not just topicly applied.

 

Think of it this way the grease outside the bearing is doing nothing for the bearing.
Make sure the bearing is packed full and a little extra outside to keep water and dust out.
But anymore is just a waste and a mess.

 

The standard is to fill the void in the middle till it's even with the lip the race rests against. Not too much but acts as a reservoir when the grease gets warm and flings off the bearings. The stuff in the void then can flow back into the bearings. Plus the grease can work its way from the bearings into the void and won't be enough on the bearings. Nickmil

 

I've always filled the hub cavity with grease as well.
I've never seen a wheel bearing wear out from too much grease.