Fitting rear bearings and collars

Everytime I've done the rear wheel bearings on S200KYS I've taken the shafts round to my local garage and paid them to fit the new bearings for me, presuming they had the required press to do it. Getting friendly with the two guys that run the garage they said surely I could do my own bearings, to which I said I didn't have a press, and that's when they told me how they do mine..





A suitable length of seamless pipe - 19" and 29" I used, although the longer one would do both shafts - and a lump hammer!

The bearing and collar are a tolerance fit and 'just' need knocking onto the shafts... I started with the smaller shaft and did the bearing on it's own until it was nearly home, and then the retaining collar afterwards... But on the longer one I did them together which seemed no more effort but saved hitting the bearing directly with the pipe.

Not too bad a job

Note the stout block of wood with stout battens on top arranged so that the wheel studs weren't in contact.

Satisfying to do-it-yourself, and saved a few quid too

I heated the retainer in the oven..
Baked them at 150 degrees for an hour.

Also just used a pipe to knock them on.
Didn't bother driving 5 minutes to a press i can use.

I considered that (heating the retainer in the oven) but was (unnecessarily?) worried about heat transferring to the bearing?...

This is good info but whats best way to remove them
Grinder/slitting disc ??

Nice solution. It's not a job I've ever had to do on the Jimny, but faced with that problem I would tap it on with a punch, moving about 1/3 of the way around the bearing with each tap so it went on evenly. If using a pipe make sure the end is cut perfectly square or, better still, rotate it a bit with each hit.

jackonlyjack wrote: This is good info but whats best way to remove them
Grinder/slitting disc ??

The best way is to use a bearing extractor under the bearing and pull against the end of the shaft, but you need either an extractor with chains on, or a boxful of adaptors to make it long enough.

Suzuki say to grind down the retainer ring to thin it (it will change colour in a stripe as it gets thin because it heats up more from the grinder) both sides then split it with a chisel and pull the bearing off.

I ended up smashing the bearing and doing the same to the inner race.

S200KYS wrote: I considered that (heating the retainer in the oven) but was (unnecessarily?) worried about heat transferring to the bearing?...

Maybe if it's red hot it could transfer heat to the bearing. but you put the bearing on first so that risk is minimal.
I put the axles in the freezer as well.
(remember to put your fish and chips back in the freezer, or in the oven hot from the retainer, when you take the axles out.)

With cold axles you put the bearing on the axle. then when you put the hot retainer on the cold axle, the retainer gets cold like lightning fast and gets stuck half way down on the shaft..
You end up knocking it in anyways.

But you will get finished just in time for the fish and chips


For removing it's like facade says: grind/cut/chisel.
Take care not to grind/cut the axle or flange/brake plate.