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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Rear wheel stud replacement

I need to replace the wheel studs on my rear hubs as they are currently shortened for knock-on wheel adaptors & I want to switch to alloys.

What length studs are recommended for 5.5 x 14 alloy "Minilite" type wheels?

Can the hub removal & replacement be achieved with the axle in place?

Can the brake back plate be left in place?

What hub puller or techniques have others used successfully to remove their hubs?

While they are off I'll replace the bearings etc, what advice do others have for doing this?

Are there any special tools other than a 1 7/8 socket / spanner required?

I've scoured the archives & seen the related recent "oil in the drums" thread but any additional information would be appreciated.

Thanks

Paul
P R Clark

Hi Paul,

By axles do you mean the entire axle/diff assembly or the halfshafts? If the later, yes they will need to come out, so you will have to drain the diff oil.

Brake backplates can stay on. If I remember rightly, you should be able to leave all the brake mechanisms on too.

RE: bearings, seals and gaskets, if I recall there was some discussion on gasket thickness on the other thread? I (and a few others) think that the gasket thickness is critical for reducing play.

My hub puller is a large rubber mallet.

Hope this helps,
Malcolm
M Le Chevalier

Instead of a hub puller I have always removed hub by bolting halfshaft on backwards and gently doing up wheel nuts.
However as your studs are shorter this may not work.
R Mcknight

Oh yeah... Make sure your garage is wide enough to be able to remove the shaft before you start. The average British single garage isn't! ;-)

Malc.
M Le Chevalier

I have standard length studs with alloys but they are only just long enough. You can't over-do the length because the nuts are domed so there is a risk that they could bottom out.Personally I would judge it when you have the wheel to hand.
Graeme Williams

Thanks for the insight provided in your responses.

In summary the rear axle can be left in place but the half shafts removed. The brake back plates can also be left in place.

I need to source the correct gasket material, any suggestions for this or other suppliers for the bearings etc?

I'll make sure the garage is wide enough and arm myself with a large rubber mallet. Oddly that approach is not mentioned in the Haynes WSM.

Cheers

Paul
P R Clark

The large rubber mallet was meant half in jest. I can't remember how I actually got the hubs off. Probably a hub puller!

Once you pull the half shaft, you will (should?) see that the half-shaft to hub interface is sealed with both an O-ring and a gasket.

Bearing kits should come with both of these, but the gaskets from various suppliers are of varying thickness. Some are near cereal packet thickness, others thin paper. The thickness of the gasket becomes important after you have replaced the hubs, as it controls the play of the hub/half-shaft assembly.

So, with hubs replaced, insert the O-ring, the gasket and then the half-shaft and nip it up tight with a stack of washers on the studs and a couple of wheel nuts. If the gasket is too thick you will be able to feel play in the hub/half-shaft assembly if you pull-push it in-out of the axle casing.

If so, try a thinner gasket and repeat.

I ended up ditching the gasket altogether as there was still detectable play with a very thin paper gasket. I just have the O-ring to seal. I think this indicates the hubs are pretty worn. But on the plus side, I think it is less things to go wrong and less leak paths (i.e. you have hub -> O-ring -> shaft, two interfaces, instead of hub -> O-ring -> gasket -> shaft, three interfaces).

I often wonder if this contributes to peoples half-shaft failure. If there is play, then the splines at the end of the half-shaft would slide along the splines in the diff and cause wear... hmmmm...

Hope this helps.
Malcolm
M Le Chevalier

""The thickness of the gasket becomes important after you have replaced the hubs, as it controls the play of the hub/half-shaft assembly.""

What it controls is the clamping of the bearing between the hub and the halfshaft. If you can feel 'play' it is the bearing moving within the hub or, more accurately, the hub moving on the bearing.
Dave O'Neill 2

I've always used the reversed half shaft method as mentioned by R Knight the only requirement being clearance to the nearest wall. Cheap and easy.
Martin Washington

Dave... Aye, that! Whatever it is, something moves about! :-)
M Le Chevalier

This thread was discussed between 13/08/2015 and 14/08/2015

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