Community Forums

Chaffeekid · 09-02-2019, 06:40 AM

Good Morning, well today I am going to finish repacking the wheel bearings on my 97 Georgie Boy, sitting on a 96 Ford F53 Chassis, with that big old 460 Engine, love it.
Anyhow, took her out the other day to put some fresh gas in it and fill the propane tank down at Halters Gas about 10 miles from home. Well on the way back, it was very hard to get her up to 50-60 MPH. When we got back home and parked it, I noted streaks on the front wheel simulators and started examining the situation. A little voice has been telling me to drain the old brake fluid and put in some fresh....but I didn't listen.
Due to all the health problems this year...wife and I refer to this year as a year without a summer, we haven't driven the RV in well over 8 months. As we all know, brake fluid is hydroscopic, meaning it will absorb water. What I found after removing the calipers was the pistons had rusted in their bores....frozen I couldn't force them back with a big C clamp. We were in effect driving around with the brakes on

The grease had gotten so hot it had mostly turned to oil. After pulling the bearings front and rear and the seal cleaning them and inspecting, the bearings were still in good condition. No metal flakes in the grease, and the grease didn't appear to be the High Temp grease that is required for the bearings. So cleaned them up. Cleaned the spindles and repacked the bearings with High Temp grease.
One of the many reasons I bought this motorhome is the 16 inch wheels, our previous model an Expedition DP, had 22.5 wheels, can't handle those anymore, to heavy. And my Georgie Boy even has a spare. Was able to remove the wheels with my 1/2 ratchet and a 3 foot pipe on it

Now later I plan to post some pictures showing how to remove the hub and repack the bearings on this old girl. I'll tell you what when you pull that hub off, be prepared, it is HEAVY, well for a 75 1/2 year old Marine

Moral so far, when that little voice in your head tells you to do something...do it, course depending on what it is

Our Georgie Boy was a barn find, it had set in a barn for about 10 years after the previous owner's husband had passed. Course first thing I did was replace all the tires, and the analog TV's

I'm going to try and post a picture of where we are now on the project. As you can see I like working upside down don't know how to rotate it

marjoa · 09-02-2019, 12:55 PM

I will be following this thread and look forward to more detailed pic's.

JIC...you have to rotate all your pic's before you upload them. Or we can just turn our computer upside down. Either way works.

Ray,IN · 09-02-2019, 01:05 PM

re: rotate pictures; if you hold your cell-phone in your left hand with camera "shutter" button on right, picture should transfer upright. There are free photo programs to manipulate the metadata to rotate pictures. I use https://www.xnview.com/en/xnviewmp/

Anyway, inspect the bearing closely for any signs of flaws(even what appears to be a shadow) on the bearings, if ANY are spotted, replace bearings and races.
Were this my MH, I would replace calipers, flexible hoses, and pads, rotors may be turned if not warped to badly.
You only want to do this once, I assume.

EyezOpen · 09-02-2019, 04:26 PM

Smiles were in the same boat here...well kinda of.I inherited a 83 HR Imperial..while not in a barn it was wrapped in tarps, when i first pulled off the tarps i had a 30ft green monster...algae mold. LAMO i had to do something with it so i took a large weed sprayer and and liberally sprayed it down with a 50/50 bath of bleach and water rinsed it off a hour later and that was all there was to it.....lol well kinda.

As the above poster said i would double down on bearings.. brake pads...lines stater....new coolant.... the list is endless. Good luck its quite a adventure...then theirs...new rugs.....ahhh new sink....and of course new back splash....

Chaffeekid · 09-03-2019, 08:17 PM

OK Gang, got some videos uploaded to YouTube, here's some links to see what I did.
https://youtu.be/hEQAh1JI_YI
https://youtu.be/20JLFhTK2_g
https://youtu.be/r-_efMdtLus
https://youtu.be/isYhW2ctXaE
https://youtu.be/MFZv-xSFjQ8
https://youtu.be/oH2ix3eE--Q

Redapple · 09-03-2019, 09:07 PM

OMG, I just love your videos. Beyond the technical content I can tell right off the bat you are a great teacher! Well Done!

txcpl · 09-04-2019, 04:59 AM

Your videos are very informative!

Chaffeekid · 09-04-2019, 07:23 AM

Ok Guys, here's a couple more videos, please forgive the dog barking. Amber goes nuts when my buddy Earl comes over for a visit, he lost his leg in a vehicle accident years ago and goes around in a motorized wheel chair. He is a licensed private pilot.
https://youtu.be/i-ae7XILyEE
https://youtu.be/3jtpS2VjCrQ
https://youtu.be/INnZXv-t4iY
https://youtu.be/m9dApkkutxk
https://youtu.be/t8rdHOkcHpQ

marjoa · 09-04-2019, 07:37 AM

Thanks Chaffeekid for these video's.

The only thing I wish you would of shown was in the very beginning how you removed the front calipers.

So I have a question:
Can you just leave the brake line attached, drive out both top and bottom pins, pull the caliper off the rotor and set it aside like on a tall bucket or something right behind the hub while you do the other work repacking the bearings? Or will those caliper pistons just collapse together when you pull off the rotor and make it impossible to put back on?

I'm going to post this question on your YT channel also.

thx

Chaffeekid · 09-04-2019, 08:23 AM

Yes, you leave the brake lines attached. I clamped the lines (rubber hose) with small vice grips, they also make some brake line clamps for this purpose.

On mine, the calipers will just sit on the back of the axle, very secure, but do not allow them to hang from the brake line hose, big no no.
If you are replacing the calipers you will have to remove the banjo bolt, and the brake line anchor bolt, before removing the caliper. If you are not replacing the caliper just set it back on the axle brace. If you remove the banjo bolt you will need at least two new crush washers, these are made from copper.

Yes I kinda got the idea to make the videos half way through the project. Removing the calipers is just about the reverse of installing them.
You have to use the little alligator pliers to pinch the ends of the pins together and then drive them through from back to front.

No, the pistons will not move out, (DO NOT LET ANYONE PRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL WHILE YOU HAVE THE CALIPER OFF) it will be a snug fit, what you can do to make it easier to reinstall, is use a big C clamp, (for wood working) and a piece of wood, lay the wood across the face of the pistons and snug the C clamp down, forcing the pistons back into their bores, and the caliper will slide back on.

It may take a few taps with a hammer to get them off after the pins are removed as the caliper pistons will be in contact with the brake pads.
Hope this helps.
Gunny Jim

twinboat · 09-04-2019, 10:08 AM

I would never pinch off the brake lines with anthing. If your going to do that, you may as well let them hand on the hoses.
I consider pinching them abuse.

To be safe, tie the calipers up, so they can't fall and damage the hoses.

If you need to remove the lines, let the fluid drain. It's probable due for a flush anyway.

I use the brake pad and C clamp to push the piston in, no block of wood needed. If the fluid is 5 or more years old, open the bleeder before pushing the pistons in. You dont want to push contamanated fluid back thru the system.

marjoa · 09-04-2019, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chaffeekid

Yes, you leave the brake lines attached. I clamped the lines (rubber hose) with small vice grips, they also make some brake line clamps for this purpose.

On mine, the calipers will just sit on the back of the axle, very secure, but do not allow them to hang from the brake line hose, big no no.
If you are replacing the calipers you will have to remove the banjo bolt, and the brake line anchor bolt, before removing the caliper. If you are not replacing the caliper just set it back on the axle brace. If you remove the banjo bolt you will need at least two new crush washers, these are made from copper.

Yes I kinda got the idea to make the videos half way through the project. Removing the calipers is just about the reverse of installing them.
You have to use the little alligator pliers to pinch the ends of the pins together and then drive them through from back to front.

No, the pistons will not move out, (DO NOT LET ANYONE PRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL WHILE YOU HAVE THE CALIPER OFF) it will be a snug fit, what you can do to make it easier to reinstall, is use a big C clamp, (for wood working) and a piece of wood, lay the wood across the face of the pistons and snug the C clamp down, forcing the pistons back into their bores, and the caliper will slide back on.

It may take a few taps with a hammer to get them off after the pins are removed as the caliper pistons will be in contact with the brake pads.
Hope this helps.
Gunny Jim

Thanks both of you. Chaffeekid and twinboat. Understood.

One last question:
As you can see in our signature we have a 2102 rig and it currently has 26K miles on it and we are Fter's., putting on about 5K-8K/yr. So going forward, with my understanding I should repack front wheel bearings @ 60K miles or every 4 years or so according to Ford specs. As you can see we are over 4yrs. and below 60K currently. Coach runs great, nothing unusual happening, tires wearing fine, wheel temps fine etc, etc. Is this something I should do soon...like this winter....or not worry about it till I reach about 50K or so in the next 2 or 3 years?

Your opinions are greatly appreciated.

twinboat · 09-04-2019, 02:09 PM

Pop the cap. If the grease looks normal, without being white or moisture bubbles inside the cap, drive on.

Chaffeekid · 09-04-2019, 02:10 PM

Everything being equal at this time I would let that old sleeping dog lie.�� Tire wear or shimmy of the front end would be a give away. Next time you have the front tires off the ground one hand at 12:00 the other at 6:00 o'clock on the tire push and pull in a rocking motion. Any movement indicates the bearings need to be inspected.
As for clamping the hose that's the way I do it, every mechanic I've seen service the brakes on my 18 wheeler that I drove for 1.2 million miles did it the same. If you want to do it a different way, go for it.