rear half shaft stuck to hub

[kannonk]

Hey guys. My hub seems to be rusted to my rear shaft and I cant seem to get it the break free. I just used a puller to try and pry them apart, but I couldn't get it to work. Any suggestions? (95 TSI awd)

Thanks,
Kane

 

[96awd16g]

I tried many penetrating lubes, mapp gas and acetylene torch, bfh, and finally ruined the end of the axle with a 25 ton puller by mushrooming the end all to hell.

There's a few how-to's in the tech section about this, you can try those or you may want to try the nearest shop. Just have them break the cv shaft loose from inside the hub, tighten the nut back down and throw the wheel on. Take it back home and change your bearing! I'd say it's about a 50-50 shot of working out for ya or ruining the axle.

 

[BoostedBeaver]

Set up an axle puller (they can be rented at your local autoparts store). This will hook to the wheel studs and will apply pressure using a massive bolt. Try using a tourch to heat the shaft and use penetraiting lube while its hot to penetrate deeper. If all this fails you can try using a metal hammer to hit the end of the axle puller. This may aid in jaring some of the rust loose but heat and pressure are allways the winners. Of course if you have access to a press, this would be a great time to use it.

This happend just a short time ago to my buddy.

Eventually we ended up pulling the hub and putting it in a 25 Ton Press at a local shop. Suprisingly this was not sucessfull. We added heat from a tourch while it was under pressure and the axle finaly came out. Sadly, the hub was ruined and it had to be replaced.

Robert

 

[ouchtime]

Use an air gun on the axle puller, heating causes expansion, not always helpful, nut between penetrating oil and impact from air gun, it aughtta come out

 

[96awd16g]

Use an air gun on the axle puller, heating causes expansion, not always helpful, nut between penetrating oil and impact from air gun, it aughtta come out

I was using an impact on a 25 ton puller with no luck. Finally mushroomed the axle using the same puller with a breaker bar on it.

 

[BoostedBeaver]

When trying to press out a rusted part, the heat will help free the rust. It will also allow the penetraiting oil to penetrate deper into the groves and get into spots that may have been rusted shut before the heating.

Start with just the puller and work your way up to oil, heat, and the hammer.

I agree that heat is not always the right solution but in this case I believe it is.

Robert

 

[kannonk]

Sounds pretty much like what I tried. I had some pb blaster, and a 7 ton puller that bolted to the hub, torched the hub to try and help, and hammered the puller. I may need to take the whole knuckle off and take it to a shop I guess. Thanks.

 

[bryanwheat]

90 percent of the time, you will never get it separated from the hub. When they get enough rust in there it is basically welded together. I've used a 50 ton press on them after heating the axle hub to where it is glowing red and all i accomplished is breaking the knuckle. Sometimes you can get lucky and they aren't too stuck, but most of the time it will need to be cut apart.

 

[kannonk]

Hmm. Sounds like I should gear up for the junk yards and get some new knuckles... if they're not stuck as well. Also, the sensor doesn't want to come out either. Is there a trick to that? The bolt wont back out, and I tried prying the sensor away, but it feels like it's going to break before it comes out.

 

[BoostedBeaver]

The ABS sensors are made of plastic and if the axles are rusted shut you can more than likely kiss the sensors goodbye. I know that my buddy lost both of his sensors during the process.

Robert

 

[kannonk]

It just keeps getting better.

Well, I took out the whole shebang: shafts, knuckles, hubs, and sensors. Now to find a machine shop.

 

[BoostedBeaver]

Let us know how it turns out. It may help others in the future.

Robert

 

[masterwolf420]

there is a company that makes OEM hubs and drive shafts but drive shaft shop will get you new outer cv joint if the inner CV is still good

 

[Cox Abele]

Ever wonder why outer cv joints have a dimple in the end?

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Well, I don't know either! However, that's no reason not to use the dimple to your advantage. If you have an air compressor, get yourself an air hammer/chisel. With the correct tip, you can throw an ungodly amount of vibration through the splines and in some cases break them free easier than if you were to use a press.

For a visual, here's the tool I'm talking about. The tip you'd use is in the middle of the 3 that are splayed out. It's basically a mini jack hammer. I've found so many uses for mine it has paid for itself 10x over. Throwing a pickle fork attachment in it really helps for ball joints too and will keep you from shredding the boots..

 

[kannonk]

Hmm... interesting tool. Do you have a link for it?

 

[Golfer]

It shows an axle end

 

[kannonk]

That's what I saw too. That's why I was hoping for a link.

 

[kannonk]

The guy at the machine shop couldn't get them apart either, so he turned the half shafts into quarter shafts and pushed them through.

 

[BoostedBeaver]

So they could not be pressed out but they where pressed out??? I am not really understanding how this could work.

Robert

 

[kannonk]

The half shafts and the hubs couldn't be separated, but the bearing could be freed, so the shafts were cut in half and pushed through the knuckle the wrong way.

 

[Cox Abele]

Let me google that for you

http://www.mytoolstore.com/wilmar/m550db.jpg

 

[Doubleot]

Mine was seized together, pulled it off the car with the axle still attached, let it sit over night on a 20 ton press with tons of penetrating oil and it didn't budge at all.

You might just have to replace both, that's what I had to do.

 

[Cox Abele]

I'm pretty sure he already got it freed from the hub.

 

[kannonk]

I did. I had hoped to be able to sell the stock ones, but that isn't going to happen.

 

[Paul@RTM]

Yup, like everyone has mentioned, sometimes these things are virtually rust-seized in place and are unremoveable without something getting wrecked. I even unbolted my whole axle/knuckle/bearing assembly and put a 20 ton shop press to the sucker and it still wouldn't budge. I ended up doing what some of the other guys did and disassembled the joint and unbolted the hub and removed it the backwards way. I wrecked the axle in the process but it MAY be possible to use this method without wrecking anything, but it'd be a pain

I did. I had hoped to be able to sell the stock ones

You CAN sell the inner cups. These are needed even if you go with aftermarket axles (from Graveyard Motorsports and Driveshaft Shop for example). In fact, you may want to hang on to them yourself until you have replacements.