VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1933-1936 1936 Standard front wheel bearings

I'm just buttoning up the complete brake job on my sedan and do not want to repeat the mistakes made by the last owner. Besides using rear slave cylinders on the front and twisting the front flex lines, somehow he packed the bearings so full of grease that it pushed out passed the seals and ruined both sets of perfectly good shoes. It was all my hub puller could do to pull the drums off, the shoes were so swollen!!
Now that it have everything all nicely cleaned up and assembled, I'm trying to remember the rule for tightening ball bearing wheel bearings. Could anyone refresh my memory?? Also, how much grease is required??? My new seals are still made of felt. Any suggestions for a grease type I can get here in Canada for a car that will only see warm Sunday weather?? Thanks as always......

A bearing/seal supplier should be able to convert the part number of your grease seal to a rubber lip style. The grease only needs to be packed into the bearing roller assembly. Put some grease in the palm of your hand and with the other hand scrape the grease into the bearing rotating and scraping until it comes out thru the balls of the bearing. When I adjust the bearings I tighten until snug and then back off to the the nearest slot for the cotter key-usually about 1/6th of a turn or a little less. After tightening rotate the wheel to be sure the bearing is seated and then finish with inserting the cotter key.

I have had the best luck with a long fiber grease. May be difficult to find. The modern smooth grease for disc brake cars seems to run away from the ball bearings. Usue just enough grease to pack around the ball bearngs. Too much is worse than not enough.
I adjust the bearing so the is no wiggle felt and the wheel spins freely. With new seals and freshly packed bearings there will be some drag so if it were mine I would lean towards the tight side an recheck afer a few hundred miles.

Thank you, gentlemen. I get it.....Like a lot of older things, bearing torque is also more a matter of "feel" than science!! Love it!
I was really concerned about how much grease to use, and I was leaning to less than more. Glad to hear confirmation on that. I have a little tub of Lucas X-TRA Heavy Duty that I'll apply sparingly.

For ball or roller wheel bearings the grease mainly seals the balls or rollers and does not lubricate. After 10,000 miles the grease is long since gone where the ball/roller bearing travel.

New Departure's thoughts from 1952 (they made Chevrolet's wheel bearings):

http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/manuals/1952sbb/52bb12.htm

Thanks bloo...I always left the ring on the spindle and slid the hub on. Perhaps thats why seals get ruined. That process will change from now on!