Removing Wheel/Tire from m35a2?

[mitchsc0tt0]

Hey All,
I am getting ready to flip my hubs to put some super singles on and have a few questions that I couldn't seem to find when looking through the TM's.
1. I am new to the split wheel / locking rim type wheel do i need to deflate before i remove from truck or is it safe to remove from truck inflated? (I plan on having a shop replace the tires and wheels once off)
2. Do I need to buy an axle seal kit or can i get away with using the existing seals?

Thanks!

Mitch

 

[MWMULES]

1 safe with air in them. Big factor not to do is call them a split rim, tire shops will work on lock rings (which is what you have) but they will not touch a "split Rim"

2 seals may be ok but as long as stuff is apart I would repack wheel bearings, use lots of brake cleaner, check wheel cylinders. Unless you have been in there before I would be ready for anything.
Also make sure you have single lug nuts for putting it back together and that the drivers side is (or should be) left hand thread. Another biggie is make sure you have cribbing or the correct jack stands besides the correct jack to keep your truck in the air and safe.

 

[Scar59]

Mitch,
It is acceptable to remove the tire/wheel assembly inflated. They roll better inflated. Nothing wrong w/ dropping the press to 20/30 psi either.
As for re-using your existing seals, that's your call. Any evidence of leaks now? Do you know the service history of the truck? Are you mechanically inclined to remove them
with out damaging them? What other opportunity will be presented to inspect/service the seals? Do you believe in Mr. Murphy?

 

[RodUSMC1962]

I would have new seals on hand and replace them, only a few $ in the whole scheme of things. My worth.

 

[silverstate55]

Easy rule of thumb when it comes to removing RH/LH threaded nuts & thimbles (aka Budd style): no matter which side you're on, they will always tighten towards the front of the vehicle and loosen to the rear.

 

[Flyingvan911]

I'd buy new seals just to be sure. It's a small expense to keep from having to take the time and effort to replace a seal that turned out to be more worn out than it looked the first time.

 

[mitchsc0tt0]

Thanks All!

 

[silverstate55]

I'd buy new seals just to be sure. It's a small expense to keep from having to take the time and effort to replace a seal that turned out to be more worn out than it looked the first time.

All excellent posts here; you'll know when you remove the wheels/tires if you need seals for sure; if there is crusty/greasy/oily buildup on the outside of the drum/hub, that is a dead giveaway to replace seals & rebuild wheel cylinder. I'm going through an older Deuce now, and am on the last hub/drum. Every axle end got new seals (inner/outer), as well as wheel cylinders rebuilt & honed out (also rebuilt the master cylinder & Airpack). Good thing I did, because while the entire brake system looked good, there was a ton of moisture and rust/crust inside each wheel cylinder. Each wheel cylinder honed out nicely and sealed up well with the rebuild kits from Erik's, but a couple of them were so bad that I could barely remove the pistons! While the drum/hub are off you can inspect the brake pads and check runout on drum.

While you're at it, an easy way to adjust the rear brakes: pull the axle shaft once the wheel are removed, so you can free-spin the brake drum to get everything adjusted. I find it easier to fully retract the two upper brake adjustment cams, adjust the lowers (with the large lock nuts), then set the upper half of the brake shoes with the cams. The adjusting cams will rotate in towards axle center to retract, and when you turn them away from axle center they will bring brake shoes closer to drum.

I wouldn't consider driving a newly-purchased Deuce without doing all of these steps, unless I personally verified that this was all done prior to my purchase. It's a lot of work initially, but can potentially save you from a lot more work (and/or trouble) later.

ETA: I also modify the outer wheel seals per Gringeltaube's specs in another posting; Click HERE. Since doing this to every Deuce I work on, I've never had a problem and never had gear oil wash out the bearings again.

 

[yolner]

ETA: I also modify the outer wheel seals per Gringeltaube's specs in another posting; Click HERE. Since doing this to every Deuce I work on, I've never had a problem and never had gear oil wash out the bearings again.

What did you use to grind down the bearing races to make the press tool he described? I want to make one but unfortunately don't have a lathe.

 

[silverstate55]

What did you use to grind down the bearing races to make the press tool he described? I want to make one but unfortunately don't have a lathe.

I secured a 7-in grinder in my vise, and marked on the race where it needed to be ground down to...then carefully ground the races down to the required height, as marked/scored on the race prior to grinding. Seems to have worked, as I've done 4 complete sets of hubs on Deuces since then and they are all still holding quite well....whenever the axle shafts are pulled, no gear oil has gotten into the bearings/hub. So far so good!

Alternatively you can take the races to a machine shop to reduce them to G's specs.

You might also want to consider going through your wheel cylinders as well, I make it a requirement if I pull a hub for the very first time. A Deuce I am currently rebuilding for some friends had sat for many years after being well maintained by its last unit before auction...the master cylinder & Airpak looked great,and were easy rebuilds. The brakes even seemed to work whenever I applied them while moving the truck around. But, as soon as I removed each wheel cylinder, I was amazed that they worked at all. Each one was packed full of rust and crud, and crud had built up around the pistons so much that they were very difficult to remove and required soaking in PB Blaster. I honed each one out as best as I could and used Erik's rebuild kits. They work GREAT now.

If you haven't personally visited the inside of any of your wheel cylinders yet, this would be the perfect opportunity as you already have the hubs & drums removed to flip them.

 

[yolner]

Thanks. I already have new cylinders all around but I'm going to flip hubs so it's a good opportunity to improve the seals.
Did you mount your grinder with the wheel facing sideways or facing up?

 

[silverstate55]

Thanks. I already have new cylinders all around but I'm going to flip hubs so it's a good opportunity to improve the seals.
Did you mount your grinder with the wheel facing sideways or facing up?

Facing up, and ensuring that the sparks didn't land where they were unwanted.

 

[topo]

I secured a 7-in grinder in my vise, and marked on the race where it needed to be ground down to...then carefully ground the races down to the required height, as marked/scored on the race prior to grinding. Seems to have worked, as I've done 4 complete sets of hubs on Deuces since then and they are all still holding quite well....whenever the axle shafts are pulled, no gear oil has gotten into the bearings/hub. So far so good!

Alternatively you can take the races to a machine shop to reduce them to G's specs.

You might also want to consider going through your wheel cylinders as well, I make it a requirement if I pull a hub for the very first time. A Deuce I am currently rebuilding for some friends had sat for many years after being well maintained by its last unit before auction...the master cylinder & Airpak looked great,and were easy rebuilds. The brakes even seemed to work whenever I applied them while moving the truck around. But, as soon as I removed each wheel cylinder, I was amazed that they worked at all. Each one was packed full of rust and crud, and crud had built up around the pistons so much that they were very difficult to remove and required soaking in PB Blaster. I honed each one out as best as I could and used Erik's rebuild kits. They work GREAT now.

If you haven't personally visited the inside of any of your wheel cylinders yet, this would be the perfect opportunity as you already have the hubs & drums removed to flip them.

View attachment 642429

This is a great way to increase the life of your wheel cylinders .Wash the rubber parts -spring and pistons in hot soapy water and let dry leave the cylinder on the truck wipe through it with a cloth then lightly hone and wipe with cloth oil parts with brake fluid and put back together .