wheel hubs stuck on axle

[JasonMorton]

So i started taking apart my rear axle to change out the three axle bearings and have everything loose on the axle but I can’t get either of the rear wheel hubs off the axle. I have taken out the screw from the hubs and heated them up and sprayed them with wd40 and everything in between. Any ideas what else i can do to get these hubs off? Im also going to send my axle out to get straightened by Rodney so everything needs to come off anyways. Also does anyone know if the Birel’s have the narrow or wide axle bearings and also how do i tell which i have exactly?

Thanks in advance guys!

[Rodney Ebersole]

Jason,
Spread the hub a bit with a hammer and a large tapered end of a screw driver. Don’t get carried away driving it in as mag hubs are brittle. Clean up the axle with sand paper or even a file where set screws dent it.
Once your bearing carriers are off take the bearing out and find the part number on them.

[Jon Romenesko]

And if Rods suggestion doesn’t work, take that big screwdriver and put it at about a 45° angle (maybe greater) at the end of the ‘split’ in the hub. Tap it lightly with a hammer to try and motivate the hub off the axle. Again, don’t get too carried away as you could damage the hub/axle. Try to keep the screwdriver as square on the end of the split as possible and avoid the axle. You can also try using a rubber mallet at the ends of the hubs if you don’t want to risk things with a screwdriver.

By ‘narrow/wide’ bearings, do you mean diameter? All you really ever see are 40mm and 50mm axles unless you’re dealing with kid karts. 50mm is roughly 2inches in diameter. If the kart is newer (within the last 5 or 6 years), then I’m willing the bet it has a 50mm axle.

[Greg Welch]

Get a bigger hammer 😀

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