Rotors
 

I need new rotors for my 98.I am a little confused about removing the old ones.If I leave the axle nut in place and take the four bolts off that attaches the hub bearing to the rotor on the backside will the rotor come off, assuming it is not rusted to the hub? Or, does the rotor and hub bearing assembly have to come off as a unit? Thanks for your help.

Break axle nut loose while tire is on the ground. Remove tire as normal, remove axle nut, remove caliper. Replace lug nuts on wheel studs till lug nut is completely threaded. This is important because you are going to us a sledgehammer to drive each wheel stud out. The hammer will hit the lug nuts and NOT the wheel studs. Your wheels studs will get damage if they are hit. The lugs can take the pounding. 1 decent hit with an 8-10 lb sledge will do the trick. Then remove the 4 bolts that hold the bearing in place and every thing will come apart. Sometimes the bearing can be difficult to remove from the knuckle, but this is how you separate the rotor from the wheel bearing.

You have to remove the entire hub assembly out of the knuckle to get the rotor off. So taking out the axle nut is required. Getting the hub out of the knuckle is the trick. There are a few options to help get it out. I used a socket and extension long enough to reach the inside of the axle tube and used a sledge on the end of the steering arm on the knuckle. Some use the power steering to press it off this way as well.

Winner!

I used a 4" long 1/2" stud with two nuts on the end, placed it between the steering stop and one of the bolts that hold the wheel bearing on, cranked the wheel and out it popped. Had both sides out in half an hour. Make sure the 14mm bolts are threaded in roughly half way when you go to pop the bearing out of the knuckle.

You can pull the whole shaft assembly out of the housing without having to separate it from the wheel bearing. Be a good time to change the u-joints.

Read this> https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...6&postcount=10

Rotors
 

Thanks guys for the help.It is much appreciated.I will tackle this project in the near future and let you know how things go.

I was too chicken to use the power steering. I thought it was too much stress on the system after I beat those bolts for an hour or so.

Rotors
 

Well, I tackled those rotors today, with no success.The axle nut wouldn't bubge so $16 later with an 8' piece of 1' iron pipe attached to my 3/4 breaker bar it cracked like a rifle. Left it loose but tight per Infidel's instructions and removed the caliper.Took out the 4 14mm bolts from the backside and could see nothing but a flimsy shock bracket to wedge an extension and socket against[driver's side].I can find nothing on the driver's side that looks like Infidel's picture, maybe I'm blind.So I took the nut off and beat on the backside of the rotor for a couple hours with no success.Then I drove a couple wedges between the rotor and knuckle and it started to come off.Then I realized that the bearing was coming apart but the hub hadn't moved.If I hadn't been so tired and sweaty[90+ degrees] it would have been laughable.Put the nut back on and pushed the bearing back together and put it all back together.This job sucks!What a day!

I feel your pain ! Recently had to do one of mine. I cant get the socket trick to work either - the bottom of my truck is pretty rusty and everything I wedge against seems to bend.

This thread may help: https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...ghlight=rotors

And you will need a BIG hammer and a 1/2"X5" sacrifical extension....put the 15mm socket on the bolts and let the beating begin. Good luck.

You lucked out.
Usually when you have to use that much torque it's because the nut is galled to the axle shaft, the axle threads come off stuck to the nut--- new axle time.
When I have to use more than a 3' bar I cut the nut off instead.
Cheaper to buy a new nut than an axle stub.

This is true. I just had this experience a couple of weeks ago.

Dr. Evil,
It's nice to know I'm not the only one experiencing problems with rotors and hub bearings.
Infidel,
Sounds like I was lucky concerning the axle nut.Pulling the whole axle assembly would be the best way to pull things apart on the work bench if it wasn't for damanging the axle seal when reinstalling.Be nice to have a guide that would slide in the axle tube and align the axle with the seal.

I think the theory that the seal gets damaged when installing the axle is overrated.
What I think really happens is fluid gets past the seal when the the axle is removed then trapped in the differential tubing.
Once trapped it can take weeks to finally all run out People think they have a damaged seal when in reality patience is the real fix.
To avoid fluid getting past the seal one only needs to jack the side they are working on high so that the fluid settles on the other side before the axle is removed.

I worked at that driver's side rotor and hub assy again and managed to beat it off.Couldn't have done it without the help from this forum.Got a couple questions.There is a thin metal shim between the hub bearing and the knuckle, is this needed or can I use a thin layer of silicon sealant instead?Also there is a thin rubber "o" ring on the back side of the bearing that goes up against the axle stub shaft.I assume this is needed to keep dirt out of the bearing?Thanks again.

I made a tool to slide into the axle tube and scrape the gunk out, to keep from pushing it all into the seal when you slide the shaft back in. I think that helps a lot, but FYI, the seal has its own guide to help prevent damage by pushing the shaft in.

Every time I have replaced one of these leaky seals I have noticed that the lip is worn right off it. That tells me that grit is more damaging to them than anything else, over years of use. Coincidentally, they do often start to leak after the shaft has been removed, just from being disturbed when they are already close to failure.