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86-93 Brake Rotor Replace/Hub removal from spindle

Last Updated: Feb 24, 2015
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So i replaced my brake pads, rotors, and got my calipers back into working order today, and it was semi involved so i decided to take pictures while i did it so if anyone doesnt know how to do it this should be a simple enough picture guided walk through on how you can do it yourself. was very simple, i had never changed rotors before that required removing the hub from the spindle and this was a good experience.

Note: i did do each side one at a time

i only took pix of the passenger side, instructions will be the same for the driver side...
and i am missing the last shot with the pads and caliper back on...







this is the only bolt on the caliper(pictured above), the top of the caliper is just a slide bar, remove the bolt and the cailper will lift out (pictured below) of the way and once clear of the rotor and pads can be slid off the slide bar(pictured second picture down)






my upper bump stops that keep my truck from sitting any lower have been removed and made a handy open place on the lower control arm to be able to place the caliper on each side while i did the brake job


pop out your old pads and toss them aside





there are 2 big 21mm (same size as the lug nuts, and pictured above) bolts that hold the caliper/pad mounting bracket to the spindle, remove these and the mount comes out (pictured below)



pop off the wheel bearing dust cap, remove the cotter pin and metal nut cap from spindle, do not remove spindle nut at this time, it will be finger loose, not uber tight, doesnt need to be, the metal nut cap and cotter pin keep it from coming off while driving




pictured above is the poor man's air impact gun, and this is why you dont remove the spindle nut yet, 14mm bolts keep the rotor attached to the hub and if you crack them loose now its easier to do, unless you have an impact gun, then pull the hub off and just pop all the bolts loose.



if you leave the hub on the spindle and pop all the bolts loose it makes popping the rotor off the hub real easy, i used a hammer and tapped on the rotor once i had loosened all 6 bolts that mount the rotor to the hub and it separated from the hub


now remove your spindle nut


and remove your outer bearings and pull off your hub


remove the 6 bolts retaining the disc rotor


put new rotor on and snug up the 6 bolts


put your hub back on the spindle, repack the bearings or replace them (i just repacked mine, as i'm broke, and they were still intact and the grease was still pretty clean surprisingly)


the caliper slides on the mounts on both sides i cleaned up with some sandpaper, as these sticky slide points caused the calipers to close more at the bottom and not so much at the top causing uneven brake wear


cleaned up caliper mounting slide bar bolted back in, at this point pop your pads back in, use a c clamp to open the caliper piston back up and remount the caliper and button everything up.



i know this isnt a hard job, but the idea of pulling the spindle for the first time frightened me a little, and thats why i didnt change or resurface my rotors last time i did my front brakes, this time i wanted it done right... and thanks to autozone rewards i got my pads, a package of grease, brakleen, and 2 rotors for about $47

Credits

Created By: 91extcab

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jimbeater   +1y
good write up. they are pretty straight forward to do. when i did the fronts on my lowered 92 b2200 i removed the spindles (worried me a bit, i had never done this before either and was in the same boat... had the money for the brake parts, no more left for new bearings and grease if something didnt go right.

anyways one addition: i guess it depends where you live and how bad rust can get in your area (and how long the stuff has been on the truck also), but i wd40'd where the spindle attaches to the rotor, and still had to 'murder' the thing with a BFH (big f'in hammer) to get the two to separate. make sure you are hammering on the rotor, with the hub on a piece of wood or something that wont wreck it much. and make sure those bolts are out (the ones that hold the two together) before you start killing it... obvious, but double check.
91extcab   +1y
i left the hub still bolted to the spindle and backed out the bolts retaining the rotor to the hub and beat it off with a hammer myself... i like PB blaster, way better than wd-40 for rust attack, but i was out of it, and i only had problems trying to get the drivers side off, it was rusted on pretty good, the passenger side i had cracked loose recently to replace wheels studs and that one came off without any problems.
91extcab   +1y
and a small package of grease at autozone was less than 2 bucks and i packed the bearings by hand... it was even "wheel bearing grease" in a little yellow plastic packet, right next to the registers...
baha   +1y
Nice write up thanks!
91extcab   +1y
i didnt think we had one, and since i was doing it figured i'd take pictures... it was fun doing this write up, i might just have to do more... lol
v8mazda4ever   +1y
not bad bro good pics now did you mention that the poor mans air rachet gun may cause knuckles to get torn up so wear gloves if possible LOl. good work Leland. You probably saved acouple guys on here some money they might do it them selves now.
91extcab   +1y
i expect to break knuckles on my truck everytime i have to turn a wrench... its the price i pay for a reliable ride... lol
kovz   +1y
Great write up. This will be useful to me in a couple weeks when I get around to changing the pads and rotors on my truck. I ordered all my parts from RockAuto.com.
91extcab   +1y
^^^^^
im glad it will help you out, thats what i was hoping it would do

dang it baha where is that thanks button i was asking about... lol
rbridges   +1y
I just joined to say thanks for the write up. I wasn't sure how to remove the spindle. I thought I was doing something wrong, but I realized I just needed to beat the heck out of it.

Thanks again for taking time to document the procedure.
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