klx300guy8

i'm changing ball joints on my 2003 3500 4x4 and can't get the hub assembly off on the right side. i've tried using an air hammer, penetrating oil, and using a puller, nothing. Also, i can't get the rotor off either. Please help, i need my truck to work out of.

wannadiesel

Have you tried the power steering method where you wedge a socket/extension between a loosened bolt and the knuckle, then use the power steering to press it out?

If all else fails, put the truck back together with the hub bolts about a turn loose. Get up to about 25 mph then stomp the brakes and cut the wheel hard at the same time. A few times doing that in each direction will pop it loose if nothing else does.

bigdave

Have you got it off yet?

klx300guy8

no i have not

mrclean

The rotor should slide right off, but often they'll get seized on there. If you're not replacing the rotor, try a few hits with a soft-faced hammer. If that doesn't work, try some heat+soft-face hammer. Careful with the heat, you can easily cook wheel bearings. If you're replacing the rotor anyway, just get the BFH and beat the snot out of it, it'll come off. For the unit bearing, loosen the hub bolts on the rear of the knuckle and wedge the socket and an extension between the bolt and the axle housing. Fire the engine and turn the wheel(you're using the power steering as a makeshift hydraulic press). Alternate bolts side-to-side so it moves evenly. When reassembling, clean up the knuckle and unit bearing and use anti-seize, it'll make disassembly easier should you have to do it again. HTH

infidel

On an '03 the rotor and unit bearing should slide off easily, not like the hassle of earlier models.
Did you remove the four bolts behind the rotor?

klx300guy8

We Got It. but the rotor never came off. None of the suggestions worked for mine. We took a tap and put threads on the back side of the hub assemlbly goes (where the four thread into) and put in a bolt with the head cut off in there. Then we took some good size alan bolt and pushed those up against the others. Slowly but surely this worked. The only thing that's different is now I have four tapped holes where I didn't have them before. It sounds pretty serious, but their is no other way I could have gotten mine off. Thanks for the suggestions though.