MTFCA Forum

So the first thing I noticed is that the hubcap was filled with grease. Not sure this is necessary. So my first question is: Do you have to have all the grease in the hubcap and all over the nut?

My second question is. How tight do you make the bearing and the nut? I'm used to my Mopars, spinning the wheel while tightening the nut then I back it off and put the cotter pin in. But the book says tighten the bearing so it is set on the race and then the nut so that the wheel turns.

This is how I do it and haven't had any problems. I take off the wheel and remove the inner seal. Then I clean out everything and put wheel bearing grease. Be sure the container indicates it is for wheel bearings. Then I force the grease into the bearings while turning them on the inner race so that the grease gets worked in between the rollers. I put in the inner bearing and install a new seal. Then put the wheel on the axle and pack the area between the bearings with grease. I grease the outer bearing in the same way I did the inner bearing. Then I thread on the outer bearing to the axle spindle and tighten it until the wheel will spin but it will not rock up and down on the spindle. Note, there could be some play in the spindle bolts so check for that while you test the tightness of the bearing. After you get it the way you want it, put on the washer with the tab into the groove in the spindle and then the outer nut. Tighten. Try spinning the wheel again. If it still turns freely place the cotter pin. If it gets tighter, loosen the bearing threads just a little bit and tighten the outer nut again, and test. Sometimes there is just a little play in the threads and when you tighten the outer nut, it will cause the tightness. That is the reason for the second test. I don't pack any grease into the hub cap. I have not had any problems doing it this way.
Norm

Perhaps I'll learn the error of my ways ? I was taught to "pre-load" the bearing by snugging up, spinning the wheel, tightening until it stopped, then backing off a quarter turn.

As for grease, there are two schools if thought. One (from ancient times) is to pack the hub cavity and the hubcap full; as grease liquifies with heat and the friction of motion, the bearings stay well lubricated. The other (espoused by professionals who don't like to expend any more material than minimally necessary - profit margins, you know) claim it is only necessary to fully pack the bearing cage.

Grease lubricated tapered roller bearing should not be preloaded. They should have at least .001 inch endplay, which means you will feel a little looseness.

A model t is driven slowly and is normally inspected frequently, so a failure will most likely be detected ahead of a catastrophy. Properly maintained and adjusted, a model t front wheel bearing will last at least 100,000 miles.

I have seen a lot of front wheel bearing failures in the past 65 years due to improper adjustment.

On the highway, I stay way from older cars and trailers, especially boat trailers.

Art Mirtes

AS i stated on an earlier post if you feel better filling the cap cool but I'm pretty sure the grease out side of the bearing is not going to do anything to lubricate the bearings. But according to # 66 page 22 of the ford service Manual you do fill the cap with grease, you run down the cone sufficiently far to permit wheel turning freely yet have no play between bearing cup and cone. insert spindle washer over end of spindle positioning it against the cone, run the spindle nut locking it with a cotter key. then fill the cap with grease and screw it on hub. This is much easier then the spin , torque, back off retorque & back off 1/8 of a turn and torque locking nut to 150 lb. ft. as I'm used to on class axles.
So I think I stand corrected.
Craig

It is completely unnecessary to fill the hubcaps and Hub with grease. Some do with the hubcap only to have a supply of grease available to use elsewhere on the vehicle. Grease is only needed packed into both cones and a smear on the inside of the hub between each bearing.
Excessive grease can cause overheating in modern applications but wouldn’t be an issue in a slow moving Model T, only unnecessary.
Zero end float / preload is the way to go. Having the LH Threaded bearing on the RHS and vice versa is more critical!!
Alan In Western Australia

Overpacking modern hubs is not necessary and is likely to cause grease to get past the seal and onto brake lining/pads. It may even push the seal out of the hub. A T has no front brakes, and stock seals are marginal, so I'd be more free with grease. It is a good idea to coat all surfaces in the hub bore with grease to prevent rusting and to trap any flakes or grit that may be loose in the hub after use. With new bearings, it's necessary to be sure the outer races are seated fully and squarely. Rotating the wheel while slowly tightening the adjustment until a slight drag is felt will seat the bearings and inner races on the spindle. At that point, I back off the adjustment until the wheel spins freely with no free play. I've never had a front wheel bearing fail. I don't mix and match used parts.

Here is a shot of (and link to) the Manual Setting section of the Timken catalog where clearances are discussed. Not much different than the Ford procedure


https://www.timken.com/wp-content/uploa ... hure-1.pdf

I have a wooden wedge which I drive between the spindle body and the axle yoke to take out any wear in the spindle bushes when feeling for play in the bearings. Then I set the bearings with some play before tightening the spindle nut. This will take out any looseness in the threads. You need to be able to feel just a tad of play when rocking the wheel on the hub. It is better to have a little play than to be a little tight. There is no need for any preload on model T bearings.

Allan from down under.

Thanks for all the Info everyone.

Always helpful to gather experiences.

The grease inside the hubcap will keep the inside of the hubcap from rusting. Nothing more. My hubcaps come off clean and dry (and still not rusted).

FWIW - the Service Manual does in fact direct the mechanic to both fill the hub cavity with grease as well as fill the hub cap with grease.

I believe that was a direct reflection of the quality of the grease used during that period, and the fact that the car was expected to see much more severe and wet service than we typically do today.

I personally do not follow the manual's advice here...and it is one of the few and perhaps only time I do not follow it.

A modern neoprene inner seal and a schmeer of grease on the hubcap threads tends to be a far better dust/moisture excluder than the old felt seal ever provided.

The old type grease, in use in the early part of the last century was a paraffin based grease that would or could under higher heat, melt and run into the bearing. Or at least that was the theory. It could also be of a fibrous type as well. In 1959, my parents, with four children, and our dog, were flat towing our 25 coupe from southern Indiana to upstate NY. On the first day, dad noticed the front wheels were throwing grease out, so that evening he repacked the bearings with modern grease. That cured that problem, and we made the 750 mile trip without any more problems. I still have the tow bar, that my dad and my mechanic uncle made. It has bolted to the front axle and the wishbone on each side. No idea how fast we towed, but this was pre interstate. The u joint was removed for the trip. The tow vehicle was a 1958 Plymouth savoy.

All advise given is good, but to me the Ford instructions of filling the hub and hub cap are rational. For the wheel hub, while not complete filled, I usually put several tongue depressor loads in the inner hub, and smear them around, as that cavity can hold moisture.

Then the hub cap is filled, and it serves to supply grease , but better to retard water and moisture that is the ruin of wheel bearings. Ford knew, the Ford would go fording!




The Improved Car has a smaller hub cap, but grease it full.