On my 79 F-250 with a D44 up front I recently replaced ball joints on drivers side due to obvious slop and clunking after a recent inspection. I got it all back together and it is much better but I still have play if I grab the top of the tire and push/pull in towards the engine. I suspect wheel bearings but before I tear it apart again I wanted to ask you guys what else would cause this. Should I just replace inner and outer bearings or are there additional parts recommended? What about the hub/rotor assembly? I compared to passenger side and it has zero play so I know something is worn but not sure what.

 

Probably wheel bearings, may just need repacked and adjusted. you won't know until you get in there.

Ball joints can cause problems too, but normally you can't see it by just pushing the wheel with weight on it.

 

Thanks. I’ll do some searching on the adjustment process. I’ve done a lot of automotive work over the years but messing with a setup like this is something I’ve never done.

 

I second wheel bearings. A simple way to check is to jack the vehicle up and wiggle the wheel. If it has play from all positions its a bearing, if its only top to bottom its likely a ball joint, if only side to side its likely a tie rod end.

I have a f150 so Im not sure if its different, but you may want to look into replacing the track bar bushings as well.

 

Thanks. I just replaced ball joints so I’m hoping it’s bearings. Those ball joints were not fun to deal with and I’ll be happy if I never have to do that again! I found a few articles with specific steps on how to do D44 bearings so hopefully I can get it done.

 

To adjust the bearings just run the inner nut up tight then back it off and tighten it back up until you feel a little tension. how much is hard to describe and I've never measured it , just get all the slack out and then give it a tiny bit more. remember the outer jam nut will tighten it slightly more as it takes the slack out of the inner nut threads.

If you get it right you won't feel any slop.

 

Did you adjust the ball joints correctly?

 

Probably not based on your question...I pressed in and then torqued the retaining nuts on the upper and lower joints to spec but was unaware of any other type of adjustment. If there is anything else then I didn’t do it. Hopefully I didn’t miss something here. Those ball joints were a bear!

I checked the play again with the wheel on and truck jacked up and I cannot see any play in the new ball joints. Before I replaced them I could see play in both. I still see an excessive amount of play if I grab the top of the tire and push in and out along with a clunking sound.

I’m going to pull the locking hub to access the spindle nuts and make sure everything is tightened as described above and in several videos I’ve been watching. If this adjustment procedure doesn’t help then I suspect new bearings are needed. At that point I’ll probably replace everything including spindle, all bearings/races, and hub/rotor. I’m sure not all are bad but I’m not confident in my ability to figure out which parts are the issue and from what I’ve seen this job won’t be too expensive.

 

Unless a bearing totally fails or something your spindle should be fine. the hubs should be fine to as long as the races are set good and tight. if the race is loose at all then you need to replace the hub. these are not wear items unless something really goes wrong.

Check your stub shaft good though, if the pocket bearings get bad it can eat into the shaft and it will allow the stub shaft to ride on the locking hub which in time will cause problems.

Bearings normally won't wear enough to cause your problem unless they're totally wiped and that will be obvious. if they look and feel good they probably are.

 

Under the top ball joint nut, inside the hole there is an adjustable sleeve. You are supposed to pull it out with a special socket. Upon reassembly, after installing ball joints in the spindle, insert and use upper nut to pull spindle up tight and torque lower nut to 100 ft lbs I believe, then remove upper nut and install sleeve with special tool and torque to 50 ft lbs, Then install upper nut and torque to 80 ft lbs. If i didn't get the 100 and 80 mixed up. Been several several years since I have done one. I run a Dana 60.
have someone move wheel and you look behind it. If spindle is not moving, your good, you should be able to tell if it is wheel bearing by the rotor moving instead of the spindle.
Good luck.

I got em backwards lower to 80 and upper to 100.

 

Awesome info guys! Thanks for the help. I had no idea about the sleeve on the ball joints. Not sure if I totally screwed that up but I jacked the truck up one more time and the movement is not at the ball joints. It’s in the hub somewhere. I’ll pull it apart and find out. Maybe I didn’t get the torque on the inner nut right when I reassembled after ball joints or maybe a bearing is trashed. I don’t know much about the history of the truck so hard to tell. I can say that when I went after the ball joints I believe they may have been 40 years old because just getting the parts off to get the knuckle removed was a chore due to rust, dirt and debris. The three cone shaped washer/spacers (not sure what they are called) on top of the knuckle almost beat me!

I’ll let you all know what I find. Again I really appreciate all the replies and info.

 

Finally got to pull the hub locker off and check the spindle nut. Sure enough it was too loose. I followed the procedure to get the proper load on the bearing and put it all back together and everything is nice and tight now. No more play in the wheel. Not sure where I went wrong the first time but obviously I didn’t get the nut tight enough or I didn’t get the lock washer right to keep it from backing off. Either way it’s fixed now. I really appreciate all the advice and tips. Thanks!

 

I would re-read the book on the bearings just so you know. There is not supposed to be ANY preload on the wheel bearings. The final specification after the full adjustment procedure is .001" to .010" FREEPLAY. If it's under too much tension or preload when it's done, you risk burning up the bearings especially on longer highway trips where things can build up heat.
Did you use a torque wrench and one of the wheel nut sockets specifically for this? The type with the 4-prong ends. Kind of a spanner nut socket, but typically just called a "hub nut wrench" or "bearing nut socket" or some variation on that theme.

As we've found here the books (even the Ford shop manuals) vary slightly over the procedure, by year and model of truck. But they (almost) all agree on the final result. Most people can't check the end play because most don't have a dial indicator and mounting system. So we have to trust the method and the parts in those cases. Me, I measured the first few times and found my play right at .005" to .006" almost every time. Felt good about that.
For reference, even if you go to some of the videos put out by the Timken bearing company, even big rigs that use tapered roller bearings end up with that same .001 to .010" specification. But the procedure varies, as you can imagine!

I guess what I'm saying (in my usually long, roundabout way) is to not just trust YouTube videos, and consult a book. If you don't have one yet, you should get one if you're going to do your own maintenance.
And wheel bearings are a quite regular maintenance item. With all the work you did for the ball joints, did you re-pack the wheel bearings? Without knowing it's history, this would be a must. Just like replacing all the fluids even if the PO said they did it already. Most PO's think "all fluids" means engine oil and radiator coolant. If you're lucky they include automatic transmission fluid too. But most still think (for some reason) that lubricant in differentials and transfer cases and manual transmissions is "lubed for life" stuff. And that way of thinking will eventually get you in trouble.

Good luck.

Paul

 

Thanks for the input Paul. I found a procedure in several places that laid out the sequence. I did not find it published in anything reputable so I did exactly what you warned me about and followed YouTube and forum posts. I torqued the inner nut (yes, using the special pronged socket) to 50 ft lbs and then backed off 1/6-1/4 turn to get the lock washer to line up with the protrusion on the inner nut. Then installed outer nut to 100 ft lbs. This resulted in minimal resistance when turning rotor but also eliminated the excessive play that I had from before. I wish I knew what I did wrong the first time. My guess is that 50 ft lbs on the inner nut was not enough to get everything seated all the way before I backed off the 1/6 turn. I don’t have a dial indicator setup so I can’t measure play. Probably (obviously) something I need to get.

I did repack the existing outer bearing when I did ball joints. I didn’t do the inner since it remained captured in the hub while it was off. I also did this per YouTube and forum instructions.

I drove about 20 miles after I got it all back together and then pulled back in the shop and did a touch test on the hubs. Both sides were equally cool to the touch. I know it’s not scientific but makes me feel that I didn’t get it so tight that I was building heat excessively. I may pick up a dial indicator this week and check the play. I’ll let you know how good or bad I did.

Again, I appreciate it. I’m always learning and usually the hard way!

 

Sounds to me like you nailed it. Likely watched the correct videos! I've seen some crazy procedures they came up with on their own, but very few that were remotely following the steps outlined in the books.
A 2wd car or truck might be completely different and dead simple, but these extra steps really help keep your front driving axle happy.
Your touch-test may not have been scientific, but it was a true test. Accurate enough and old-school to the bone. Wheel bearing hubs get hot for two reasons. One is spending some time on the brakes and the heat soaks into all the metal parts. The other is bearings that are too tight, or lack grease, or have other issues.
The hot brakes are the only one that's acceptable!

You'd be surprised how often, even to this day, that even pro mechanics try to get by with just using the old "hammer-n-chisel" method of tightening the nuts. Not likely you'll get to 100lbs that way!
And you can always tell. The notches in the nuts are buggered all to heck.

Enjoy your new tight front end!

Paul