Front Brake Upgrade Suggestions Needed

[Charlief1]

So, with the sealed hub and the grease zerk, where does the grease end up?does it just pile up in there? Does it "blow out" the sealedness of the unit? I guess I am unclear. When I grease things like front suspension I at least like to see the ball joint rubber boot expand and the center link grease squirt out from between the pieces so I know it is full.
I guess I'm just not "feelin" the sealed hub, like turbo68.

Our cars are supposed to have the front bearings repacked every 30K miles but the hubs aren't supposed to be repacked ever. That's the biggest issue with them. The inner seal fails and the grease gets contaminated so they go bad. By adding a way to introduce new grease you can "change" the grease and contaminates so the bearing will live longer. The hubs use the same ball bearings as the older (think 55 chevy here) cars. If you're not willing to re-pack the bearings on the car as it is then the bearings will fail, so adding grease and pushing the old grease into the knuckle's pocket will allow it to live longer.

[Pyro6]

So, with the sealed hub and the grease zerk, where does the grease end up?does it just pile up in there? Does it "blow out" the sealedness of the unit? I guess I am unclear. When I grease things like front suspension I at least like to see the ball joint rubber boot expand and the center link grease squirt out from between the pieces so I know it is full.
I guess I'm just not "feelin" the sealed hub, like turbo68.

Rich, seems sorta like a trailer hub, you need to guess/gauge the grease input. I see Charlie's point too. Seems he is saying you need to let the rotor hub cavity empty so excessive grease goes there.  I would also be concerned how the different grease would mix from other applications. I've encountered situations over the years where bearing grease didn't mix well and caused noise and leaks.

[Scoobum]

On a side note. Which is the best bearing grease? Sorry for the hijack.

[TexasT]

http://www.timken.com/en-US/products/lubrication/products/automotive/Pages/WheelBearing.aspx

http://mobile.walmart.com/#ip/Mystik-JT-6-Hi-Temp-No.2-Grease/17128827

I like these.

So, those sealed hubs are like trailer axles. My dexter axles are drilled where you pull off the rubber cap and inject grease in and it comes back out the outer edges. I just squirt it in and scoop out the old when I use the trailer. My flat trailer has hubs and caps like the Buick fronts.

[Charlief1]

Rich, seems sorta like a trailer hub, you need to guess/gauge the grease input. I see Charlie's point too. Seems he is saying you need to let the rotor hub cavity empty so excessive grease goes there.  I would also be concerned how the different grease would mix from other applications. I've encountered situations over the years where bearing grease didn't mix well and caused noise and leaks.

The grease used in most cases is that green thin stuff and I know you can get it in tube form. The inner seal is what goes out in most cases so you could take the seal out of the rear and pack the knuckle or feed it in where the ABS sensor is mounted. Either way it should allow for more bearing life. The hubs seem to go out between 60 and 80K so it most people won't need to replace the hubs that often.

[Charlief1]

A small update on the 12" rotors on the blazer knuckle. I'm working on 2 more sets of brackets and the bigger B body caliper will fit and work. Just waiting on a bracket so I can copy the spacing and holes for the caliper.

[TexasT]

Cool.

[earlbrown]

Charlie, are you sure the bearing can get wet by introducing lube into the ABS pickup hole?   I just bought a 99 4X4 Blazer with twin piston calipers and the RF hub is roaring.  I put some gear dope in that hole with no change.

There's this cute parts chick at Orilly's with big cans that I'm going to boink. I got her to pull a hub off the shelf and it looks like a conventional double sealed ZZ type ball bearing.   If that's the case there's a metal seal between the ABS reluctor wheel and the inside of the bearing.

[Charlief1]

If the bearing's already roaring then it's shot Earl. The key here is forcing the old grease out just like packing a bearing. The back of the bearings where the seal is is usually where the grease comes out when they fail, not the front. The 4wd units seem to last longer because of the shaft going through them, but that's speculation on my part. You need to plan on a mileage to add grease and force the old used grease out so this doesn't happen.

[earlbrown]

Oh I know it's shot.   But if the gear dope would have got the balls wet, it should have changed noise, or shut up. I'm wondering if the zerk in the ABS hole is just lubing the hell out of the the trigger wheel and having no effect on the inside of the bearing.   If the races weren't hardened, I'd stick it in the horizontal bandsaw and do an exploratory
.


Then again, I know what a front wheel bearing feels and sounds like when they go bad. The average Joe-ette most likely couldn't tell a thing.

I think the 4X4's last longer because they have a larger ID on the inner race.  If the OD is the same that means the actual bearings are most likely smaller therefore the load gets divided more.     No idea why GM didn't just put 4X4 setups on all the Blazers and just omit the CV shafts on the 2WDs.   ESP since the 4X4 hubs are cheaper to replace.

[motorhead]

would have got the balls wet...
 
I think the 4X4's last longer because they have a larger ID on the inner race.  If the OD is the same that means the actual bearings are most likely smaller therefore the load gets divided more.     No idea why GM didn't just put 4X4 setups on all the Blazers and just omit the CV shafts on the 2WDs.   ESP since the 4X4 hubs are cheaper to replace.

Heh, you said wet balls.
 
And that is what they did on the Trailblazer's GMT360 platform.  I think CTSeses do similar with their AWD vs. 2WD front hubs?

[TexasT]

would have got the balls wet...
 
I think the 4X4's last longer because they have a larger ID on the inner race.  If the OD is the same that means the actual bearings are most likely smaller therefore the load gets divided more.     No idea why GM didn't just put 4X4 setups on all the Blazers and just omit the CV shafts on the 2WDs.   ESP since the 4X4 hubs are cheaper to replace.

Heh, you said wet balls.
 
And that is what they did on the Trailblazer's GMT360 platform.  I think CTSeses do similar with their AWD vs. 2WD front hubs?

Schwetty balls?

[Charlief1]

Well I finished the brackets to be able to go with the 12" F body rotor today. Here's a couple of teaser pics for those that might be interested. Good2win22 (Jason) will be letting me do the alignment on his car and hopefully this weekend or next we'll be installing the the bigger brakes along with the everything needed for testing this out. The first pic is the bracket mounted on the knuckle and the second is everything mounted with the stock G body brakes and knuckle beside it. The caliper also has a 2 & 15/16" piston so this should stop the car really well considering that you're getting a 1.3" larger rotor that's 1/4" thicker. Well it seems that I can only add 1 pic so here's the comparison. Sorry guys.

[Pyro6]

So now that I see the pictures and reviewed this thread, if all goes well: don't have to service bearings anymore, more braking surface, fits all GN wheels. Why even bother greasing a sealed unit, it ain't gonna get where it's supposed to go anyway. Rich's early on???

[Charlief1]

So now that I see the pictures and reviewed this thread, if all goes well: don't have to service bearings anymore, more braking surface, fits all GN wheels. Why even bother greasing a sealed unit, it ain't gonna get where it's supposed to go anyway. Rich's early on???

Well hello stranger. The biggest issue with the hubs is the grease going south so having the ability to flush it out will keep them alive longer. I've also found new hubs on evilbay for under $20 each shipped, so it's really cheap to replace them. These will give you better braking and if you want to go to a 16" wheel you now have the option for a really cheap upgrade. If you want to try this set up I think Jason has 1 more set he'd sell to his drag racing buddy. Jason's bringing his car to the shop Thursday so I can align it, and if things work out, we'll be doing the testing on the F body rotor set up. The new set up should through you through the windsheild under hard braking.