Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Anyone seen this before?

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I've seen it twice before, both times on just postwar Chrysler products.

I thought it was unusual, the wheel bearing had been installed backwards on this axle, which was rectified recently.

How the h*ll did someone install a rear wheel bearing backwards?? Some people shouldn't be allowed to own tools.

Good evening;

The short answer is YES. The nut makes quite a noise . . . and woke me up of a quite Sunday morning drive when my '48 suffered the same plight. The threaded end of the axle likely failed in fatigue and once the gone the hub is left without retention. Double check about the bearing being in backwards . . . that would mean in one direction the lateral forces would not be supported by a bearing . . . but would be limited by the thrust block . . . I would think the brake drums would relax into the brake shoes every time the bearing was aggressively loose . I agree with OD's comment if the bearing was installed backwards. Any idea how long it has been since the bearing install or brake work? I'm an advocate that the rear axle torque should be rechecked after 100 miles of a re-assembly.

Re-assembly is straight forward. You will need to re-check the bearing clearance and perhaps re-shim, because the replacement axle and new bearing will not likely be the same length as the original.

dp

They also should not be allowed to work on cars!!!!!!!!!!

I had this happen on a 1947 Clipper 6 Cylinder car that I once owned.

What did you conclude as the most likely cause of the failure?

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I believe that the failure was caused by the axle nut not being tightened enough.

I think that's logical. Of those two Mopar failures I noted, the owner of one thought he caused the failure by using a thin film of grease on the axle taper when he reassembled. His conclusion was that the grease was rather quickly squeezed out which then left a loose fit which battered the keyway and key, galled the shaft and wallowed out the inside taper of the drum, and ultimately cause the axle failure. The drum became junk in the process.