Trying to set up axle end play on 48 8N

Doug Pitts

New User
Tractor had extensive play in rear wheels. It is evident that there were others before me attempting the good the bad and the ugly. Bought new hubs, bearings, seals,etc. Upon disassembly discovered one axle beyond repair. So starting from zero I instaled the left axle using two thick shims and one thin plus gaskets and all seals. After installing all components and tightening axle nut the end play in and out is about 1/8 to 3/16. I have not installed the right axle yet. I have tried to work this out checking the sources available to me short of this post. J & D productions videos, I&T manual, Ford 8n shop manual, Oldfordtractors.com, web. I am lost. Any help appreciated.
 
Try taking a shim or 2 out and see what happens. You add shims to get more play and take them out to remove end play. Ading or subtracting shims is how you adjust the end play
 
(quoted from post at 20:37:29 05/06/14) Tractor had extensive play in rear wheels. It is evident that there were others before me attempting the good the bad and the ugly. Bought new hubs, bearings, seals,etc. Upon disassembly discovered one axle beyond repair. So starting from zero I instaled the left axle using two thick shims and one thin plus gaskets and all seals. After installing all components and tightening axle nut the end play in and out is about 1/8 to 3/16. I have not installed the right axle yet. I have tried to work this out checking the sources available to me short of this post. J & D productions videos, I&T manual, Ford 8n shop manual, Oldfordtractors.com, web. I am lost. Any help appreciated.
ou are trying to do the impossible! You can't set it without both axles installed. The "play" is the gap where the two axles butt ends.
 
In addition to JMOR"s excellent post, the axle nuts being TIGHT should have NO effect on endplay.

In fact, the nuts, and even the hubs don"t even have to be in place when setting the endplay.

The procedure in the old shop manuals is directed at ex mule-farmers with no special tools.

If you can beg, borrow, buy, or steal a dial indicator and set the endplay at EITHER axle to between .002" and .006" with the shim pack thickness about the same on both side it"s as good as it can be!

The link below shows a magnetic-base dial indicator being used to check crankshaft endplay, a setup very similar to whar is needed to check axle shaft endplay.
Example
 
Thanks for the good information. I couldn't get my head around the fact that the two axles actually touched. Maybe I'll actually get some grass cut this weekend. There was so many things wrong when I opened it up surprising that it would move under it's own power when I started. Thanks again one and all.
 
Here's the steps I used when overhauling our 1950:

Clean and inspect bearings and races. If either show wear or pitting - Replace them now. Remember to pack the outer axle bearings before installation - They see no lubrication otherwise as they are sealed off from differential fluid. I like boat trailer wheel bearing grease.

Assemble both axles with; hub, seals, bearing retainer and brake support. You won't be able to torque the 2" axle nut properly until the rear wheels are back on. Do the next person who pulls the hubs a favor and coat the axle splines with anti seize or boat trailer bearing grease. Lubricate the machined surfaces of the axle to make installation/removal easier – You will pull them a number of times while checking clearances.

Setting Clearances: (It doesn’t matter which side you do first, this is just how I did mine)

Starting with the right side trumpet: Put one fiber shim/gasket between the bearing retainer and the brake dust shield. Then put a thick steel shim bracketed by two fiber shim/gaskets between the brake dust shield and the trumpet flange. Reinstalling the same number of shims that you removed. Use Permatex® Form-A-Gasket® No. 1 sealant at each potential leak point – It may be overkill but I sealed between each shim in the stack. Slide the assembly in place and torque down the six nuts/bolts that hold the axle to the trumpet. You will likely have about a 1/4" slop when you pull/push on the axle. That's normal.

Now move over to the left side. Assemble all the parts as before except do not use any sealer on the shim stack until you obtain the proper clearance. I started out with the same number of shims/gaskets as the right side and wound up changing to a thinner steel shim and adding one more gasket to get the correct clearance. What you're shooting for is the axles will easily turn opposite of each other without end play as you push/pull on each axle.

I also held off installing the left, outside axle seal until I had the clearance set - You will have to pull the left axle out several times to get it right and I wanted to minimize the risk of chewing up the seal.

Also, seal between the metal flange of the seals and the mating surface you are bolting or driving it into.

The exploded parts diagram can be difficult to visualize the order of assembly – It should go something like this:

1. 8N 4229 Paper shim
2. 8N 2255 Brake dust shield
3. 8N 4229 Paper shim & steel shim combination (always bracket steel shims with fiber)
4. 8N 4284 Axle shaft gasket
5. 8N 4124 Bearing retainer assembly
6. 8N 2212 Brake backing plate
7. 8N 4248 Hub seal, retainer & gasket assembly
8. 8N 1171 Axle hub
9. 8N 4293 Washer
10. 8N 4179 Nut and snap ring assembly

Note: The four serrated shank, headless bolts are inserted into the bearing retainer after installing 8N4248 seal retainer assembly. In addition to the headless bolts, you should also have 4 hex head bolts with two being longer than the other. The shorter of the two are installed in the same direction as the headless bolts - The two longer ones go through the trumpet flange and secure the bearing retainer to the trumpet.

I recommend you hold off installing the axle nut snap ring until later. The hubs and axles will continue to loosen up as they get to know one another. Check the torque each time you use the tractor for any length of time - When they will no longer tighten up after use, then put the snap ring in place. Failure to keep the hub/axle properly tensioned cause the hubs, and to a lesser degree, the axles to wear.
 

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