• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

8-3/4 Rear Axle Bearings

You all should stop driving your late model pickup trucks
You mean the pickups that have the bearings that ride directly on the axle shaft instead of using and inner race? Yeah, I have had to replace complete axle shafts along with worn out bearings due to THAT stupid design. And those are still roller bearings, although they run flat rather than being tapered.
Ball bearings? That's a real good GM idea from the 1950s....
 
You all should stop driving your late model pickup trucks!
WHY?? Many most 3/4 ton trucks have a full floating rear end, where the hub runs on a spindle with tapered bearings and the driving axle member has a separate bearing assembly. Your statment neans nothing without additional information.....
BOB RENTON
You mean the pickups that have the bearings that ride directly on the axle shaft instead of using and inner race? Yeah, I have had to replace complete axle shafts along with worn out bearings due to THAT stupid design. And those are still roller bearings, although they run flat rather than being tapered.
Ball bearings? That's a real good GM idea from the 1950s....
The GM idea used DUPLEX ANGULAR CONTACT BEARINGS which are entirely different design a single row ball bearing. This is when GM made their own bearings as in Delco/New Departure/Hyatt (DNH) manufacturing division. Regarding the 3/4 ton truck rear end assembly, the brake drum/hub runs on a hollow spindle with tapered bearing assembly with a separate driving axle to the gear carrier connected to the brake drum hub. YES....you can run a bearing assembly directly on a shaft IF the shaft has been hardened to a higher Rockwell number than the bearing race or roller running area....I've done exactly that in industry on a 75 ton crane hoist drive's main speed reducer....
BOB RENTON
 
WHY?? Many most 3/4 ton trucks have a full floating rear end, where the hub runs on a spindle with tapered bearings and the driving axle member has a separate bearing assembly. Your statment neans nothing without additional information.....
BOB RENTON

The GM idea used DUPLEX ANGULAR CONTACT BEARINGS which are entirely different design a single row ball bearing. This is when GM made their own bearings as in Delco/New Departure/Hyatt (DNH) manufacturing division. Regarding the 3/4 ton truck rear end assembly, the brake drum/hub runs on a hollow spindle with tapered bearing assembly with a separate driving axle to the gear carrier connected to the brake drum hub. YES....you can run a bearing assembly directly on a shaft IF the shaft has been hardened to a higher Rockwell number than the bearing race or roller running area....I've done exactly that in industry on a 75 ton crane hoist drive's main speed reducer....
BOB RENTON
I have had to replace axles with grooves cut in them by worn out bearings. Much more expensive than just replacing a bearing with an inner race. This is 1/2 ton, not the full floaters like 3/4 ton and bigger trucks.
 
You're removing and pressing back on bearings either way you look at it to change that seal. Do it right, do it once...to last for the rest of your lifetime. Put Timkens back on..
Best advice.
 
Referring to post #17 [ Thanks, Bob ]. These green brgs are the same type as GM used back in the 60s on Buick-Olds-Pontiac. They stopped using them because they were [a] dangerous & failed quickly.
The problem is that the grease dries out from the heat & then the brg fails. The inner race will spin on the axle & the axle walks itself out...Ruins the axle as well.
My GTO came with these brgs. What I did: there is a space between the brg & the inner seal. I drill into the axle housing between this space & fit a grease fitting; inner seal is removed from the brg. I pump some grease in when greasing ball joints etc, so brg gets fresh grease.
 
Referring to post #17 [ Thanks, Bob ]. These green brgs are the same type as GM used back in the 60s on Buick-Olds-Pontiac. They stopped using them because they were [a] dangerous & failed quickly.
The problem is that the grease dries out from the heat & then the brg fails. The inner race will spin on the axle & the axle walks itself out...Ruins the axle as well.
My GTO came with these brgs. What I did: there is a space between the brg & the inner seal. I drill into the axle housing between this space & fit a grease fitting; inner seal is removed from the brg. I pump some grease in when greasing ball joints etc, so brg gets fresh grease.
How many times have you seen, or heard of, a car having a rear wheel and axle come out. It happened twice to people I knew when I was a kid in high school, and we would beat on our old early 60's "hot rods". And how many times have you seen pictures or video of cars loosing axles or wheels at the staging lights at drag strips? Seems like it's usually GM vehicles.....
 
You're removing and pressing back on bearings either way you look at it to change that seal. Do it right, do it once...to last for the rest of your lifetime. Put Timkens back on..
View attachment 1450566View attachment 1450567View attachment 1450569View attachment 1450570View attachment 1450571View attachment 1450572
Looks familiar, got this done yesterday, with the help of my Son !!!
0425231231.jpg
0425231237.jpg
0425231244b.jpg
0425231307a.jpg
0425231307c.jpg
0425231309.jpg

New Timkins ready to go back in !!!
 
How many times have you seen, or heard of, a car having a rear wheel and axle come out. It happened twice to people I knew when I was a kid in high school, and we would beat on our old early 60's "hot rods". And how many times have you seen pictures or video of cars loosing axles or wheels at the staging lights at drag strips? Seems like it's usually GM vehicles.....
That's why at a certain point you must use a c clip eliminator kit. Which is a fancy way of saying a press on ball bearing.
 
Answer to post #27: I have seen it twice......which is 4 times too many.....
Once, with a friend down the road who had luckily slowed down for a roundabout.
Other time, driver was on a back road & just about to enter a 110kph freeway when the axle walked out...
For such a simple fix, why wouldn't you do it??
C-clip axles are totally different, used on Chevs [ not B-O-P ]. The inner race runs directly on the axle. About 1970, B-O-P upgraded this poor design to a tapered roller brg. Sound familiar?
 
I put them back in today, should be ready for as long as I own it !!!
21249.jpeg
 
Last edited:
Back
Top