So I've had it with my ranger's bearings. I've replace both driver side and passenger side outer bearings but am still getting a wobble in the front end. I've replaced all of the ball joints already. I've been reading that I shouldn't need to replace inner and outer at the same time though. Do I need to replace the inner ones if they are still good? Or is it possible that this wobble is something else?

 

Does the wobble go away when brakes are applied?

If so then its usually bearings, never heard of only replacing outer bearings, that doesn't make any sense, they work together to hold the wheel/hub on the spindle so both should be changed at the same time

If wobble happens with brakes applied then rotors are warped

 

So, usually the wobble stops when I apply the brakes, but not every time. Sometimes (on the very rare occasion) the dash shakes up and down real hard. Now, not as bad since I replaced the outer bearings.
Correct me If I'm wrong as well, but there shouldn't be ANY playing the bearings, right?

 

There will be a little, but very little
After installing new seats and bearings(make sure to "pack the new bearings"), you then tighten the spindle nut to 25ft/lb while spinning the hub, to seat the bearing, then back nut off 1/2 turn
Then tighten nut to 20 INCH pounds, probably a 1/8 to 1/4 turn
Hub should spin freely but not have much play, the new cold grease makes it a bit harder to spin

Google: Hand Packing a Bearing
Watch 2:31min video

 

Okay, also, how do I tap out the inner races? I've tried and haven't been able to. The guys at the auto parts store just said to stick a socket in there and hammer it out, but for the inner races you can't do that.

Should I replace the outer bearings again or are they fine to stay?

 

You need a punch not a socket ,Those clown at the auto part store have no clue. If you have a Harbor freight near you, they sale cheap tools. get a punch set. they come in different size. Work your way around the race with the punch and hammer. inch it out slowly. Bearing should and always replaced in pairs. Your already in there.

 

+1 ^^^, need a punch/chisel type tool to get inner races out

 

I don't have a Harbor Freight near me, but do have Home Depot and multiple auto parts stores. I will see what I can do. Also, I have had this truck for over 20 years and have never replaced the rotors or much less gotten them turned. Would it be a good idea to turn them?

 

In those 20yrs, how many time have your replaced the brake pads???? Are the Rotors Original?

 

Only a couple times. It just recently reached 150k miles. My dad left it next to a shed for several years untouched with pretty much brand new break pads. The rotors are the originals from 98.
I know you are supposed to turn them every time you replace the pads, but for some reason he refused to.

 

My advice to you, As this could be a safety issue, Is to replace the Rotors, Bearing ( Both inner and outer with race) and pads.

 

My mechanic said the rotors look fine. They gave a full inspection and said the only problem were the outer bearings. So I replaced those multiple times, thrice because of bearing failure (not my fault, I packed the bearings very well, it's like the bearing got too hot and exploded), and once because of race failure (probably from the destruction of the first 2 sets of replacements).
One day I will replace them but not anytime soon. I don't have the money for that. I do appreciate the input though. Extremely Helpful, thank you.

 

Hmmmm. All those failure on the same rotors.....Good luck. Let hope the next failure do not hurt anyone.

 

Let's hope, nothing has failed yet since replacing everything from the flukes. The inner bearings are still good but maybe they are worn down too much for the new ones.Thank you both for the help, if it doesn't work then I will ask for some more guidance.

 

The front wheel bearings on two wheel drive coil spring Rangers are unusually finicky. The inner races seem to spin on the spindle. The fit is sloppy loose. This seems to lead to loosening of the bearings over time even though the nut could not have turned. I believe the spec of 18 inch pounds is too low, allowing the race to wear off the black coating on the spindle. (You can put more than 18 inch pounds on a socket held in your bare hand.) I am currently running a torque of 30 inch pounds and have dimpled the top of the spindles several times with a center punch to tighten up the races. After six months they still seem to be staying tight. This is not a recommendation. Just an acknowledgement that problems with these bearings are not unusual. I am sure others have found their own solutions to loose bearings on these trucks. I would like to hear other solutions.

An old screw driver is a fine tool for removing outer races. Tap gently and go around the race until it falls out.

 

Unfortunately my races are the exact opposite. I tried the screwdriver method like you said and those races would not budge. Those suckers are stuck in there. I will try the punch set, but if it doesn't work then I might just have to replace the rotors and all 4 bearings. To get the outer ones out, it took a 20 ounce hammer and a deep well socket an this took forever.
Thanks for the help all! Ill update when I can get this done.

 

You appear to be talking about the outer races for both the inner and outer bearings. I changed both of mine in the original hubs and they came out by using an old screw driver as a punch. They can be hard for DIY folks to get out, so most folks leave them alone if they are still smooth. You can even buy the inner race and the roller cage with no outer race, and use the old outer race. New hubs come with both outer races already installed.

My issue was with the inner race of both bearings being sloppy on the spindle.

I would guess that the overheated bearing on your truck in the past came from over torqueing. The spec is in INCH pounds and we generally work in foot pounds.

I have trouble visualizing how bad bearings could make your dash jump. It sounds more like a wheel problem. Pry the pads off the rotors so you can spin the wheel and watch it close for wobble. Even if they look good, switch them to the back and see if the old rears work better. My next guess would be the front shocks.

 

So, I just put the new inner bearings in and it helped the problem a little, but not much. So all four bearings and races in the front are brand new.
I'm still having the problem of wobble in the front. So what you all are saying about the rotors being warped would be my next guess.
But I did replace the shocks during COVID, so it is possible they didn't get quality checked and I'm running with bad shocks, right?

 

Warped rotors are only felt when braking

Take vehicle in for an alignment, if there is a problem they will find it

Whats the history on this Ranger?
Have you had it for many years and wobble just started one day, and then got worse
Or was there a wobble since you got it

Have the tires been checked, balanced, a band inside a tire can break and that will cause a wobble, and it can happen to a new or old tire
You can rotate tires front to back, if its a "bad" tire then steering wheel won't wobble but you will feel a vibration from rear in the seat

Worse case is the frame is bent from previous accident, need a 4-wheel alignment if correction is even possible

 

So my Dad has had this ranger since 2001. He drove it for many years before he stuck it in a small area behind the house. It sat there for several years never being driven for any reason except trips to the dump. I've wanted his truck since I was 4. Anyway, this pasted year i pulled it out of storage and found it with many problems: Bad steering gear, Bad ball joints, bad shocks, bad valve cover gasket, dead alternator, shot shocks, dead engine cooling system..

I have replaced all of that except for the Valve cover gasket. I took the vehicle for an alignment after finishing the steering gear. It is aligned. This weird wobble didn't start until after the bearings were replaced the first time. The first 2 sets failed, which caused the races to fail.

Now at one point a golf cart ran into the bed and bent the frame, but that was when my dad had it and he had the frame worked on.

The other thing I can think of is the brake pads are stuck in a close position to the rotor to where the rotor is rubbing up against the pads. Is that possible?

 

Given all the work you have done it seems to me that the problem must be with the rims or tires on the front. My suggestion would be to move the front wheels to the back and try the rears up front to see if there is any change in the problem. When the rears are jacked up see if there is any side play in the rear end. Sloppy spring shackles can make a truck dart around.

 

Why were the bearings replaced the first time?

Pads are always in contact with the rotors, but just rubbing and are free to move in and out with the caliper when it has no internal pressure, foot off the pedal
When brakes are applied pads are clamped and caliper is locked, can't move in and out easily, and that's when you would feel warped rotors

Yes, +1 on moving front tires to rear
Also look at the Date Code on the tire

Look for the DOT mark, required by Law to be on each tire made, may just be on one side
For Tires made after 2000, the last 4 digits are the date code, first 2 digits are Week it was made, last 2 digits the Year it was made
1315 would be 13th week of 2015
2503 would be 25th week of 2003, 20 YEARS OLD, lol

Tires generally last 10 years, most tire sellers say 8 years, but I think 10years would be maximum drop dead age I would trust a tire
Nothing to do with tread remaining, the rubber compounds simply deteriorate and bands separate

 

The bearings were replaced the first time because of an inspection I got on them with my mechanic.
It was bogus and I don't have the original bearings anymore.
​​​​​​@nelbur, I will try it. It is a good idea, those shackles and brackets have never been replaced and I think are currently flaking rust away.
The tires were literally just replaced a month or 2 ago. They are brand new, now the rims are the originals.

 

While we are trying to think of anything that can make a truck steer funny, what pressures are you running in your tires. High pressure can cause squirrely steering especially on fairly aggressive tire tread. Your pressure should not be over 30 psi. Some folks see the max pressure on the tires and don't realize that that is a "do not exceed" pressure. Several times I have bought new tires and had bad handling until I got home and checked the pressure and found it to be way high. High pressure reduces the contact patch to the point where each tire is contacting the road through only a few tread blocks that squirm around when you are cornering.

 

Swapping tires front to back will move the WHEELS and tires both, so do that FIRST

While its a long shot, anything that is NEW means its something that was "NEVER ever tested", not "it works"
New things now-a-days have a much higher failure rate than 40 years ago