[bluuzman]

Hi,

I just bought new front brake rotors for my

[moondoggie]

Good Day!

The rotor is held onto the back of the hub by the lug bolts. You must remove the hub/rotor assy. from the truck, knock out the lug bolts, then separate the rotor from the hub.

Removing the hub/rotor assy. from the steering knuckle can be interesting. The factory shop manual simply says, "remove the hub." There are four bolts that thread into the hub through the steering knuckle. When I removed these four bolts from my trucks, BOTH my pickup & Sub, I'd bet you could have safely driven the truck with the bolts out - the hubs were Minnesota-welded to the steering knuckle. I made my own slide hammer adaptor, to adapt my Snap-On slide hammer to the lug bolt pattern. I slide-hammered both hubs at least 20 minutes to get them off - I couldn't write my name for a couple days from the vibration. JK (& others) have suggested loosening the four bolts, then air-hammering them to get the hub loose. I don't have any air tools, so couldn't do that.

I would NOT, by the way, suggest duplicating my slide hammer idea. There's a reasonable chance of starting to separate the hub assy, causing its ultimate failure. I had a hub fail recently in the pickup (bearings got noisy), & when I used my slide hammer to remove the hub, it separated into the two pieces they pressed together when they mfg. this hub. It struck me that maybe I caused this failure after slide-hammering this hub twice while doing brakes. (On the other had, 225K miles ain't all that bad...)

Blessings!

[bluuzman]

Thanks very much for the advice.

This may turn out to be much a larger project than I thought. The other brake rotors that I have removed so far they were all mounted on top of the hub with a couple of screws and by loosening them the rotors have in practice come off very easily.

Might be better to visit the local US-car service and ask them to do the job and use the time on riding my bike instead ;)

-ari

[moondoggie]

Good Day!

The only part that I had a hard time with was removing the hub/rotor assy. from the steering knuckle - the rest was no problem. If they don't use road salt in the winter where you are, it might not be an issue. I know RJ (who lives in IN - very little winter compared to here in MN) said his came apart without much trouble. Of course, he's 6'5" & 220 or more - he probably could have pulled mine off the knuckle by hand! ;)

BTW, I subsequently removed all the rust off the outside of the hub & the inside of the knuckle, then smeared anti-seize all over both. The next time I did brakes (~ 2 years later), the hub was coming loose as I loosened the four bolts, & dropped in my lap after their removal.

Blessings!

(signature in previous post)

[bluuzman]

..well, I let you know how it goes. The rotors by the way did not seem so bad but I get significant pulsation on braking, which I believe should disappear after brake service / rotor replacement.

The truck was imported from Texas just a few months ago and is completely rust free. They do use salt on the roads here, and I know just like you what it does to our vehicles.

-a

[BobND]

If the rotors are not worn beyond safety limits, check around for a shop that can "turn" them while still on the vehicle.

[Robyn]

I have had 2 95's and now have 2 94's
The hubs are usually not bad to remove unless as mentioned earlier.
Be careful with those 4 bolts as they are a washer head and are usually a witch to remove. Use a 6 point socket so you don't round the corners.
The nut must be removed from the axle end too. the hub should with a little persuation come out. Slide knockers are usually needed.
I just did one of my 94's friday and the hub slid right out by hand. Hmmmmm the truck Gods were smiling on me that day.
Drive out the studs, clean things up and replace. Be sure to wipe out the hub area and put a generous smear of grease on the area as well as the bolts shanks and threads so they will come out next time.
The rotors on these critters are junk and will warp if you get them hot.
I love my Gm's but I'll take a good old straight axle with the old style brakes any day. easier to work on and far tougher.
best of 4x4 luck to ya
RC

[bluuzman]

Hi all,

I did the rotor replacement over the weekend. Just bought a 6-pack of beer and started working (it did not last but I had something else too keep me warm too).

Thanks to you all, I roughly knew what to do and the brake disc/hub assemblies did come very easily out. No need to hammer or anything. Just be careful not to drop them on the toes after loosening the 4 knuckle bolts. The biggest issue was to get the wheel bolts out. I almost lost faith but then decided to try a bigger hammer..

Maybe my Texas truck had not experienced Minnesota Welding but here at the arctic circle it sure will....

Anyway, if the problem to get the hub off was the CV/drive axle stuck in the hub I would recommend a proper tool instead of hammering. I doubt the hub assembly itself gets stuck to the knuckle as the disc shield made of sheet metal is mounted in between....

Thank You all Truck Owners sincerely giving me tips. My brakes are perfect now!

The previous owner had really worn out the rotors, left down to 28mm, the right to 26,5mm. The min. specified is 30.9mm. If the rotors cost you about $100 a pair, why to "save"... These were sure grinded or machined as there were no signs of excess wear, just the thickness.

-ari

[moondoggie]

Good Day!

"...if the problem to get the hub off was the CV/drive axle stuck in the hub I would recommend a proper tool instead of hammering." Yeah, never mentioned that - I've never had the axle stuck in the hub.

"I doubt the hub assembly itself gets stuck to the knuckle as the disc shield made of sheet metal is mounted in between..." I assure you that beyond any shadow of a doubt, the hubs on both my trucks were rusted into the steering knuckle. Once disassembled, it took me considerable scraping & sanding to get it cleaned out. Fortunately, I decided to try anti-seizing the OD of the hub & the ID of the knuckle, with results documented previously.

I don't know how the moisture gets in there, but it does, & the road salt accelerates the rust. The seal that seals the outer of the hub to the knuckle, inboard, looks fine, but maybe they're not actually working anymore, I don't know. As poor a mechanic as I am, I probably dinged them, allowing the moisture in. On the other hand, they were stuck fast by rust, both trucks, before I ever got there.

Congrats on your success. There's some level of satisfaction in knowing it was done right, because you did it yourself, plus you saved considerable $.

Blessings!

(signature in previous post)

[tommac95]

bluuzman--
What rotors (source/brand) did you use for renewal?
I fitted new NAPA 15K mi ago, and they're eroding quickly.

[bluuzman]

WAGNER Part # BD61918
Front; 8600 GVW; w/8 Stud Whl.
...

I bought the rotors from a local auto part shop here. I have just put 200miles on them so can not really tell anything about the durability, but they work just fine ;)

Rotor quality seemed quite nice, though there were some sharp edges left however. You could easily cut your fingers (no warnings btw)

-ari