Thread: Swivel Hub Preload and shims

I am pretty sure that a 95 Defer has the same system as an RRC ( not Railco bushes), so it will only be the bearings that wear.
Regards Philip A

Originally Posted by toc_bat

is it the actual swivel pins that wear or the bearings or both? bye

Either can apply. Considering first the older setup with a railko bush at the top and the tapered roller bearing at the bottom. Wear on the fibre thrust washer results in free play on the bearing (and if let go, lines of wear on the races in the straight ahead position). Adjusting preload brings it back to spec. The actual bush is a tightish fit on the pin, and any wear on either the pin or the bush will result in wobble. This can only temporarily be removed by adjusting the preload. But significant wear on either the bush or the pin is unlikely except over a very long period, provided they are lubricated properly. After all, there is a large area, and not much movement. But having free play in the vertical direction will exacerbate wear.

The later type with roller bearings top and bottom will last indefinitely without attention, provided they are properly lubricated and never have any free play. Preload should be sufficient to ensure that even under the most severe bump or rebound conditions no free movement develops. (As an example, the wheel bearings on my 110 have done over 500,000km - consider how many more turns these have done than have the swivel bearings.)

For both types, allowing free play to continue will quite rapidly damage tapered roller bearings, especially on corrugated roads, and lubrication failure will rapidly damage both types, especially if the lubricant is replaced with water or mud.

John

thanks for the informative replies, when i 'changed' the swivel pin fluid i realised they were almost dry, maybe 50ml in each, and after filling up one of them has a minor leak so the next thing is to try to seal the leaks, and hence i suspect maybe the bearings will need attention or replacement, are both the top and bottom the 606666 bearings?

bye and thanks again

(As an example, the wheel bearings on my 110 have done over 500,000km - consider how many more turns these have done than have the swivel bearings.)

The difference is that swivel bearings just sit there still most of the time with the steering at straight ahead, and impacts are made continually on a still bearing, causing them to form ridges coincident with the position of the bearing rollers.
You cannot compare wheel bearings with swivel bearings.
Regards Philip A

Hi all,

Just a question about the bearings involved, the part number 606666, am I right in saying it is a land rover part number, and not the bearing number? If so what is the number for the bearings, so I can maybe get them from the bearing shop before the job.

The bearings are not a common bearing, as they have a far greater angle on the cup than a normal rotating roller bearing as they must take much more side thrust than a normal roller bearing . More like a steering head bearing on a bike.
There are aftermarket ones but usually available from a LR specialist.
Regards Philip A

I read somewhere that the swivel housings were recommended to be filled with oil, this was prone to leaking so the later recommendation is the one shot grease method. Is this true? What do people use? Both my owners manual and workshop manual state EP80 or 90 oil.

Also if the whole thing is filled with oil, why would you pack the bearings and cv joint with grease? Isn't the oil bath there to lubricate these?

bye all

Originally Posted by PhilipA

The difference is that swivel bearings just sit there still most of the time with the steering at straight ahead, and impacts are made continually on a still bearing, causing them to form ridges coincident with the position of the bearing rollers.
You cannot compare wheel bearings with swivel bearings.
Regards Philip A

Yes I can. Unless the impact exceeds the fatigue limit of the metal, which will not happen if there is no free play, when impact loads are likely to, the ridges will only be formed by wear due to lack of lubrication or contaminated lubricant. I did my swivels at about 400,000km, and the lower bearing races were unmarked - railko bushes needed replacement, and swivel pins had no measurable wear.

I stand by my contention that properly lubricated roller swivel bearings will last indefinitely.

John