8 3/4 axle bearings

[bluefury]

I need to replace the outter bearings on my 65 Coronet with the original 8 3/4 axle. I thought I had seen information about a "green" bearing, or a direct replacement sealed bearing for this application.
Does anyone have information about that.....?

Thanks, Will.

 

[Belvedere]

http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/moreaxbeset.html

Change out the inner and outer housing seals too.

 

[moparsteve636]

No personal experience with the green bearings on a street driven car!Use them in my race car,with no problems!Have heard not really great on the street.I would go with a quality replacement bearing,less cost also.

 

[Meep-Meep]

If your hardware is in good shape (adjuster and plates) just get the set 7 Timkens. Also don't forget the little skinny seal that goes in the retainer plates. Many people don't realize there is a second seal on the 8.75" and those axle bearings MUST be packed with grease as they do not get oiled from the rear end.

 

[67 B-body]

If you would like the service manual for this project / task, let me know through PM (send me your E-Mail).... I have this in PDF form and will get it to you...

 

[Meep-Meep]

If you would like the service manual for this project / task, let me know through PM (send me your E-Mail).... I have this in PDF form and will get it to you...

Good call. I think it should be a sticky.

 

[bluefury]

bearings....

If you would like the service manual for this project / task, let me know through PM (send me your E-Mail).... I have this in PDF form and will get it to you...

Thanks,
I have a original service manual and have performed this service in the past. I was just curious about the sealed bearings..... performance, cost etc. It looks like the cost would be about the same, just a bit higher, then the OEM style bearings and seals. I'm not sure there would be any advantage over a good "Made in USA" bearing.

 

[Meep-Meep]

It's not so much the made in USA bearing but the style of bearing. The OEM is a tapered roller type and the green is a ball with a plastic retainer. Way more load carrying ability with the OEM type.

 

[5.7 hemi]

It's not so much the made in USA bearing but the style of bearing. The OEM is a tapered roller type and the green is a ball with a plastic retainer. Way more load carrying ability with the OEM type.

Green brgs. with plastic retainer....whatch ya talkin' bout willis?? Please explain.

 

[RustyRatRod]

Sealed (green) axle bearings have been used on cars from the factory for decades with no problems at all. They are perfectly fine for street, race, road race or whatever you want to do with them. They are not inferior.

Having said that, I prefer the original style tapered roller bearings, myself. Nothing wrong with the design, so why change? I reckon maybe if I was doin a complete rear axle rebuild, I might put the green bearings in, I don't know. I would not consider them an upgrade, just a different style bearing.

 

[Cranky]

Green brgs. with plastic retainer....whatch ya talkin' bout willis?? Please explain.

The retainer in the bearing is sometimes plastic. It keeps the balls apart. Without some type of retainer, they will come together and you don't want that.

Sealed (green) axle bearings have been used on cars from the factory for decades with no problems at all. They are perfectly fine for street, race, road race or whatever you want to do with them. They are not inferior.

Having said that, I prefer the original style tapered roller bearings, myself. Nothing wrong with the design, so why change? I reckon maybe if I was doin a complete rear axle rebuild, I might put the green bearings in, I don't know. I would not consider them an upgrade, just a different style bearing.

Ball bearings eat up less power than a tapered roller bearing and became a standard issue for drag racing. Yes, they will perform well in cornering but the tapered roller will take more loading than a ball. Ford products used ball bearings in much of their line up where Chrysler used the tapered roller in theirs.

 

[5.7 hemi]

I have never seen a plastic retainer in a high speed or high load type ball bearing. So with the green bearings, being both, high speed/high load, I dont think they have a plastic retainer.....but I haven't taken 1 apart so I could very well be wrong. Does anyone have a pic of a green bearing with the seals taken out? This has my curiosity peaked!!

 

[RustyRatRod]

.........ball.......

Hay Beavis, you said ball. heh heh heh huh huh huh.

 

[Cranky]

I have never seen a plastic retainer in a high speed or high load type ball bearing. So with the green bearings, being both, high speed/high load, I dont think they have a plastic retainer.....but I haven't taken 1 apart so I could very well be wrong. Does anyone have a pic of a green bearing with the seals taken out? This has my curiosity peaked!!

I've never taken one apart either but when you get to thinking about it, a rear end wheel bearing isn't exactly turning high speed or taking heavy loads when you take into consideration what a ball bearing that size can carry.

 

[1moreproject]

Sealed ball bearings certainly have their place. They probably won’t last as long as a tapered bearing but if it’s a life of 100,000 vs. 150,000 miles who cares the way our cars are driven. I think it’s come down to more of a marketing exercise than engineering. Hot rodders always feel compelled to second guess the factory engineers. I suspect had the 8-3/4 come from the factory with ball bearings, then a “tapered roller bearing upgrade kit” would be very popular.

 

[RustyRatRod]

I see little FWD crapblower cars in here everyday with 200K plus that still have the sealed bearings......front and rear. I think the case for one type being superior than the other is poor. They are simply different.

 

[Meep-Meep]

I have never seen a plastic retainer in a high speed or high load type ball bearing. So with the green bearings, being both, high speed/high load, I dont think they have a plastic retainer.....but I haven't taken 1 apart so I could very well be wrong. Does anyone have a pic of a green bearing with the seals taken out? This has my curiosity peaked!!

I did take a failed green bearing apart and it had a plastic retainer. My take on the green ball bearing is load distribution over fewer rolling elements vs. a tapered roller bearing that has load distribution over more rolling elements.

Another thing that I have seen happen in other type of equipment where ball bearings and weak cages fail, is the balls spread apart in high static loads in the radial direction and the weak cage can't keep things together, thus allowing the balls to stack up to one side. They simply get out of the way while the inner race moves to make contact with the outer race. This is not always true depending on the dimensions of the raceway grooves and ball diameters. On some ball bearings the inner race will literally fall out if the cage is removed and the balls are moved to one side.

 

[1moreproject]

A tapered bearing in this application wins in side load capacity and longevity, hands down. Is a tapered bearing overkill in this situation? ....probably, but part of what makes these vehicles great is they represent a time before the corporate bean counters started chiseling every last nickel out of the product.

If you’re not in to the overdesigned, overengineered thing, then I think the most compelling justification for the tapered bearing is that you can still buy it from a company (Timken) that makes the product in North America and has maintained their quality reputation over the years. I have no idea who makes the green bearings but at the price they are offered at, I would venture to guess it’s not a name you’d recognize.

 

[bluefury]

bearings.....

This has all been very educational, and entertaining. :argue:....:eusa_think:..I went with the OEM style tapered bearings. Should last mine and the next owners lifetimes.

Thanks guys.