Dana 44 Manual Hub Rebuild

By Madd Ramm

*As a note, even though the hubs/spindles being shown have already been taken off of the vehicle, the article will treat the process as it would if still on the vehicle. Also, the brake rotor and studs have been removed for ease of process and is highly recommended when doing this job. The hub is heavy and awkward enough without the rotor getting in the way.

The first thing is to remove the brake calipers. Once the two bolts are out, slide the caliper off the rotor and place it where the caliper won't hang by the brake line!

Next, use a 9/64ths Allen wrench to remove the hub screws from the manual locking turndial. If the screws are rusted and get rounded, then take a #25 Torx bit and hammer it into the head (I got this trick from liliysdad!). This will enable you to get more contact area and break the screw loose. On vehicles with auto hubs, just use a screwdriver to pry the metal hub cover off to expose the locking mechanism. Once the turndial has been removed, use dental picks or small screwdrivers to pry the retaining ring from the groove auto hubs might not have one. This is simple but difficult! I once spent almost an hour and a half trying to get one out! This ring keeps the locking body inside the hub...otherwise the whole assembly would fall out.

Once this has been removed, use snap ring pliers to remove the retaining clip from the axle shaft and the locking body will come out. If you can't get a good grip on the body, screw one or more of the hub screws back into the locking body and pull out. Set it all to the side in a clean area.

Next, use the appropriate hub socket to remove the outer spindle nut. Then, with a screwdriver/dental picks or fingers, pull the spindle washer out. Then remove the inner spindle nut as well. With this removed the hub itself will slide right off the spindle. If you are concerned about the bearings, be careful, the outer hub bearing isn't attached to anything and will fall out the front of the hub.

*At this time, remove the rotor to make the rebuild easier. Use a brass punch or put nuts on the studs to prevent boogering up the threads as you hammer the studs out.*

To remove the bearings and seals, the easiest way is to use a really long punch. Insert it in through the front of the hub and hammer on the lip of the inner race at the back of the hub. This will push the bearing against the hub seal and all of it will come out the back together. If just replacing the hub seal itself, use a slide hammer to grab on the inside of the seal and yank it out.

Now, with all the bulk removed from the rear of the hub, put the punch in from the back and hammer the outer race through the front of the hub. When hammering on the races, try not to gouge the insides of the hub. You can take a file to any burrs you create, but try to keep the punch on the race itself. Remember to hammer alternately around the edge of the race to keep it moving straight out.

With everything removed, wipe all the excess grease out then use cleaner on the inside of the hub. Make sure it is cleaned thoroughly!

*As a note, if you don't have any access to large washers or seal installers, you can take the old race and grind it down. Use a grinding wheel to make the outside edge smaller so that the race can fit all the way down and not get stuck in the hub. This way, you can put the new race in and lay the old one on top. Then, use a punch and hammer on the old race and this will force the new race down but the old one won't stay pressed into the hub.*

The installation of the bearings is in reverse order. Take the outer race and use a bearing/seal installer disc of the right size to hammer the new race in from the front. These seal installers can be found at Harbor Freight and auto parts stores. I bought an generic 18 piece one with plastic discs that is good for general work such as this that requires various sizes.

Once you have hammered in the outer race, go to the back of the hub and hammer in the inner race; this will use a different size disc. Make sure that the inner race is beyond the groove machined into the hub. Not all hubs may have this though. You can see it as the bright white line just above the installed race in the picture.

With the races in, pack the inner bearing full of grease and put plenty of grease on the race and inside the body of the hub as well. Once the bearing is dropped into place, use another size disc/washer to hammer in the seal. Also, you can use the old seal by placing it on the new one and gently hammering. The hub seal holds the inner bearing into the hub. We won't put the outer bearing in the front yet because it will just continue to fall out! Try to get the seal edge to be just even or slightly recessed into the hub. In the pictures you will notice that I put the seals in just a hair farther than I intended.

If you are going ahead with the spindle bearing replacement, then don't bother with the outer bearing just yet. As I mentioned, nothing holds it in there and it will want to fall out the front of the hub and get dirty.

Next are the spindle bearings, axle shaft spacers and seals. The purpose of the spindle bearings is to give support to the axle shaft and keep it from wobbling. Rarely do they need replacing, but I did it anyway as part of my axle project.

First, remove the spindle from the steering knuckle by taking off the 5-6 nuts. These usually are 9/16ths nuts. Once they are removed, gently hammer the studs out the back of the knuckle. Not all of them will come all the way out as the ball joints behind them keep them there. Also, dpending on the model, the dust shield may be on the front or the back of the spindle.

Once you have done this, screw on the two spindle nuts and washer (that were taken off at the beginning of the write up) back onto the end of the spindle. Make sure they are tightly against each other. Now, use a dead blow hammer or even a sledge and whack the spindles nuts. With them on the end of the spindle, this will give some leverage with each hit and help pry the spindle from knuckle. Hit on the top, then from the bottom, then from the side....alternate your hits to work it out. These are always difficult to remove as the knuckle and spindle rust to each other. Use PB Blaster at the back of the spindle also. If you can, use a screwdriver to help pry it out. There is a special tool for this that runs around $35, but I like beating it up with the hammer. Just make sure you don't booger the threads! If you want to, put a towel over the spindle nuts to keep from damaging them. If you have the entire knuckle off (wouldn't recomend taking the effort unless doing ball joints too) then you can hit it from the back to knock it off.

Once the spindle is removed, you can pull the shaft out of the housing and set it aside.

The little spindle bearing can be seen at the back of the spindle. The best way to get these out is to have a slide hammer! It helps to have a relatively small one for these jobs. Place the grips in through the back and grab onto it. If you need to, place the spindle into a vise to provide resistance as you use the slide hammer. The slide hammer is best because you can't get a good lip for the long punch to hit it coming down through the spindle. Also, you can use a small Dremel cutting tool to cut it out, but be careful. Once the spindle bearing is out, use a washer/seal disc to hammer in the new one. Drive in the new one the same distance as the old one was. Once it is in, work grease into the needle bearings. Then, place the little seal onto its back. In this picture you see the spindle bearing and its little seal at the back of the spindle. Also, you see (from the left) the large metal dust shield, the axle shaft seal and the metal spacer that go on the shaft.

Usually the spindle bearing, spindle seal and the large axle shaft seal can be found in a little kit. But the large dust shield and metal/hard plastic spacer usually just need the dirt cleaned off of them. Slide the big axle seal onto metal dust shield then push the spacer in the middle of the seal. It all fits together and mates up to the back of the spindle. In the above picture, where the bright glare is between the metal shield and axle seal, that is the thick part of the shaft that rides on the spindle bearings. If there is any rust or grit on that, clean it off! With the new seals and clean spacers, reinsert the shaft back into the housing and With this done, reinstall the spindle onto the steering knuckle as well as the dust shield. Torque the 5-6 nuts on the spindle studs to the specifications for your vehicle.

With the spindle back on, put plenty of grease all over its surface areas to allow the bearings to slide on smoothly! Get as much grease as you can on it. In this picture I still have the spindle off the knuckle. I am pointing to the area where the hub seal runs. The next step up is where the inner bearing rides. The next step nothing rids on and the final step at the top before the threads is where the outer bearing rides. The bright glare in the center of the top is the flat keyway for the tab on the spindle washer.

Don't forget to put the rotor back on the hub!!! Then, slide the hub onto the spindle. Shove plenty of grease in there on the spindle. At this time, grease up the outer bearing liberally and slide it in the hub and onto the spindle.

Next, torque down the first spindle nut with the hub socket and torque wrench. I usually spin the hub while I am doing this to work the grease in and help set the bearing preload. Once you have torqued it according to the service manual (usually 40-50ft/lbs), undo it slightly and repeat the torqueing. I sometimes do this a few times just to make sure everything is set. Then slide the spindle washer making sure that the tab fits into the keyway on the spindle. Also, sometimes the inner spindle nut will have a nipple on it that will fit into one of the many holes on the washer. (this can be seen in the above picture on the left washer at its 2 o'clock) If you have to, loosen the inner nut up just a little bit for that nipple to fit, never overtighten!!!! Some inner spindle nuts don't have this nipple, but if yours does, make sure it and the washer holes line up. Then, screw on the outer spindle nut to specs or really tight. Try to move the hub up and down'there should be no play.

With this done, just put the hub locking mechanism and turndial/cover back on as it came off. Don't forget the retaining clip and the retaining ring. I like to spin the hub a little bit to keep working the grease into the bearings and check for overall tightness. Lastly, bolt the caliper back on.

I usually lock the hubs in, and drive around a little bit to work the grease into all the hub.

Good job on rebuilding your hubs!