What size socket needed to remove front wheel bearing?

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hal keiner

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I want to repack/grease the front wheel bearings on my 2002 2-wheel drive ST. Before I start this project, I wanted to find out what is the size of the nut that has to be removed to get at the bearings. I thought it best to know before take the wheel and grease cap off, as I would have to put it all back together to drive to the auto store to buy the socket for my torque wrench.



Thanks
 
Last edited by a moderator:
On 2wd all you need is channel lock pliers for the nut. It is only torqued to 25ft lbs and backed off half turn then keyed..
 
Thanks for the advice. However, I don't have much of a feel for torque. I wouldn't know the difference between 10 ft lbs, 25 ft lbs, or 50 ft lbs. when tightening a nut with pliers by hand. I feel much safer using a torque wrench to tighten the nuts to spec, and thus I need to get a correct size socket to do the job. I already have the torque wrench on hand.



Thanks
 
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I dont remember the nut size. Good that you have the torque wrench. Be sure to rotate the rotor while torqing.
 
What Is a good thing is this...



Tighten the nut while spinning the rotor till the rotor almost doesn't want to spinn...



Back off the nut till the rotor spins freely...



Then while spinning the rotor again, tighten the nut till the rotor only spins around 1 turn...



that will seat the bearing and set it close to spec...



also a cheep bearing packer is a great investment.... and you will need to remove the back seals to get the rear bearing out to clean and re grease.... SO you need to replace that seal too...



Todd Z
 
Ford actually has torque specs for the bearings. I can not find my CD's at the moment, but from memory it goes something like this.



While turning the rotor CW, tighten to like 25 Ft/Lbs. Loosen 1/4 turn. While turning the rotor CCW, tighten to 10 Ft/Lbs.



Job complete. One sets the bearings to the rotor while the other sets the pressure on the bearings.



I know someone out there has access to the CD's that can look it up.





Tom
 
From the repair manual while spinning the rotor first tighten 17 - 24 lb/ft then loosen and while spinning the rotor re tighten to 17 lb/in.



Not a bad guess Tom...



EDIT: corrected lb thingy



Todd Z
 
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That final torque setting is 17 IN/lbs, not FT/lbs. Big difference. :p



At least, that's what my DVD Ford Service Manual says.
 
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That final torque setting is 17 IN/lbs, not FT/lbs.
Click to expand...



Why doesn't Ford just call it 1.4 ft/lbs and call it good? Why mess around with such an obscure and confusing measurement as inch/lbs?
 
My shop manual says:



While rotating wheel, tighten adjusting nut to 17-24 ft. lbs. (23-34 N.m). Back off adjusting nut 1/2 turn

(180 degrees). Tighten adjusting nut to 17 INCH lbs. (2.0-2.3 N.m). Install lock cap and NEW cotter pin.
Click to expand...



Thanks for all the input guys. I didn't notice the INCH designation in the spec either at first. I probably would not even get close to this spec without using a torque wrench.



I am now off to the store to buy a 1 1/16" socket...









 
Last edited by a moderator:
Well, I was running directly off memory.



I wasn't sure if I was thinking about my father-in-law's Chevy truck. I did brakes on that last summer. It's sequence was alike to the ford.





Tom
 
It's apparently not all THAT critical if you have good grease. Mine kept getting loose until I figured out the lock caps weren't tight enough on the nuts. I replaced the right wheel bearings once just to see if they were the problem, but the lefts are original. Squish the lock cap with channel-locks so it is TIGHT on the nut before inserting the cotter pin.



I've never used a torque wrench on our Trac. The left wheel bearing is still the one it came with, 139,000 miles ago.
 
dreman, like you I have done alot of wheel bearings with channel lock 420's. Never had any problems.
 
Replaced my front wheel bearings last July and used a 31 mil, socket worked great. Had to go to 6 different shops to find one, not a common size.



Woody
 

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