bearing Dilemma

[Alfred Knittel]

My front bearings on my T2 1959 cab are not fitting, It seems like the bearing are smaller then the spindles. Thought it was the bearings were wrong so I got more, And the some thing. At a lost , dose any one have the same problem? The spindles is 30.30 to 30.19
an the bearing 29.60 or about. still smaller. what to do, the same on the two spindle.

[Phil Planck]

Had the same problem last year. Apparently current bearing standard for the I.D. is tighter than years ago. 2 solutions: Use some fine emory to make the spindle a little smaller, or do the same to the I.D. of the bearing. I chose to alter the bearing as I felt I could keep concentricity better.

[Jacques Lefriant]

what is the generic no of the bearing?

[Alfred Knittel]

I got one set from Stoddards. Didn't work, So it order a set from Sierra Madre same thing Smaller then the spindles, bearing No 900-059-001-00

[Jay Darlington]

Mine are the same CZECH 3206 A from Stoddard
Jay D.

[Jacques Lefriant]

30206A? i should have some NOS FAG ones around that i can measure with an intermike or bore gauge do you have the old ones?

[Brad Ripley]

What's the question?

[Wes Bender]

Brad - started here: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=43894

Edit: This post is now superfluous since the moderator combined the two threads.

[Martin Benade]

Phil, you succeeded in sanding the inner race enough to fit? I thought they were way too hard for that.

[Greg Scallon]

FYI. When I did this I used emory cloth to decrease the spindle radius a fraction until the bearing fit. Worked perfectly and wasn't that difficult.

Good luck!
-Greg

[GregVandenbussche]

Got mine 2 years ago from Napa, no problem fitting them

[Phil Planck]

Probably the best solution is to emery the spindle down. That way all future bearing replacements will not be a problem, which could be why the NAPA bearings above slid on easily. I chose to alter the bearing, but if there is a next time, I will alter the spindle. I was able to get purchase on part of the bearing in my vise jaws and wrapped some emery around the appropriate size socket to open up the I.D. slightly.

[Jay Darlington]

I have a couple sets of drums one had FAG 30206 bearings and were 29.6 id the others had ball bearings but I don't have the inner race. i'll keep looking
Jay D.

[Jacques Lefriant]

A 30206 should have a 30.0 bore
j

[David Baugh]

Your T2 came from the factory with three-piece ball bearings. For reasons that escape me, the factory decided that the inner bearing inner race needed to be an interference fit. This didn't cause any problems, as the race could simply be pressed (driven) onto the spindle. There were no problems removing the brake drum, because the seal was large enough to fit over the inner race, leaving the race on the spindle, where it could be easily removed with a bearing puller in the unlikely event that it needed replacement. As I'm sure you noticed, the roller bearing inner cone ripped the seal out when you removed the drum.

If you decide to emery down the spindle (as I did about 35 yrs ago), take a close look at the spindle the next time you remove the inner bearing cone. You'll very likely find that the contact areas between the spindle and the bearing are not what you would like for them to be. It is virtually impossible to keep the spindle surfaces parallel and concentric. I ended up replacing my damaged spindles, and learning to live with the interference fit. This is one of the reasons why I converted to disc brakes on the front of my car. It is no longer necessary to remove a brake drum to examine my brakes.

If someone comes up with a solution, I'd love to hear it. Maybe Jacques has the answer!

Dave