The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Do I need New Roller Bearings?

Was a cold morning when I started to off I noticed a rotational scraping sound from the front of the truck. The sound started at around 15mph and the frequency of the scraping sound got faster as speed increased. I put the truck in neutral at 30 mph and the sound was still present. It could not have come from the motor or transmission, so I am thinking wheel bearings are shot. I did not drive long after hearing the noise. If it is the bearings, where can I find a good replacement that won't bust my wallet. I priced roller bearings, and the cheapest I found was $98 for the left and right front wheels (inner and outer bearings). Do I really need roller bearings, or can I stick with ball bearings? I appreciate any help y'all can provide. Thanks!

Pull the hub before you start worrying about things. It could be you have dirt in the brakes or a lining came loose from the shoe. If you do have a bad bearing and you can find ball bearings cheaper, go for it. There is nothing wrong with reusing a bearing that looks good. Whatever bearing, even a good used will last a very long time with today's grease and you probably don't drive that much anyway.

might be worth checking the brakes when you take things apart to grease those bearings, might just be dragging shoes cuz of dirt buildup ball bearings work fine if kept greased and correctly tightened, and if you need'em, they're available at your FLAPS

Bill

And if you do pull the drums off, it would make sense to repack/grease the bearings if they're in good shape. Regarding tapered versus ball bearings: Recently I did the tapered upgrade purchased from Classic Parts. They're made in China. Hope they hold up well.

I'm going to investigate the problem first. This weekend, I'll pull the drums apart.