sam888 Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Hi all, I need advice on removing the hub nut from front wheel. First off here are the initial conditions: Hub and drive shaft are removed and not on the vehicle. I picked this part at local junk yard. Car is 1991 Subaru Legacy wagon. Nut size is 32mm accross flats. I tried using my 1/2" breaker bar while clamping part on a vise and can't seem to break it loose (going to gym and working out might take to long). I also tried to use an impact wrench (a cheapy one rated at 350ft/lbs) and no luck there either. I didn't have any wd40 on hand so I didn't try that. Question: This does remove counter clockwise right? Should I try to get my hands on more powerful impact wrench? Any tips are appreciated. I'm thinking I might just let a professional handle it but I thought I'd try some suggestions from this newsgroup first. thanks, Sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Very Long Pipe. Slow, Steady Torque. You want a pipe that will slip over the entire breaker bar, and be long enough you can hang off the end of with your own weight. This is the only way short of cutting the nut off. look for 'impossible axle nut' on the tubes and you will find a video showing this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bheinen74 Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 And if you give up, i have one with the nut already off, but the axle is seized into the hub and the end is now smooshed after using a press, all after the normale soak with penatrent, braas hammer, bigger braas hammer, nothing, take to a press, and the press did not get it either....\\ free ornament, axle was good so was hub except outer boot was tore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Take it up to a shop and slip one of the techs a 5 or a beer to pop the nut off with a real impact wrench. Normally I crack these loose before I even remove the wheel (if it's a steel wheel), So I can use the car to hold the wheel still. If it's in a junkyard I jam the largest screwdriver I have into the brake rotor and wedge it against the caliper, then stand on the end of the 4 foot pipe I slip over my breaker bar. Jump up and down if needed and it usually pops loose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bheinen74 Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 the left nut (lol) is usually the tightest. but then even if the nut busts (lol) you may have a stuck axle if you are in the midwest.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 I rarely have any trouble using my 650 Ft/lb gun. Hit the nut with hammer and chisel to jar it loose and then go ar it with your breaker bar and cheater pipe. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cal_look_zero Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Just out of curiousity, did you pry the folder part of the nut out of the axle keyway? Soak it in PB blaster overnight, in the morning when it's cold, heat the nut up with a propane torch (avoid getting the axle hot), whack the end of the axle with a hammer to shock the threads, and try to break it loose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porcupine73 Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Very Long Pipe. Slow, Steady Torque. Yes, that works for me every time. You don't even need to bother 'unstaking' the indent. I use a 32mm 6pt socket, 3/4 drive on a breaker bar, then put a 4 foot long pipe over that and slowly put my weight onto it. I haven't found one yet that can resist that. I put a small pry bar into the vent on the brake rotor to keep it from rotating. Now since yours is not mounted to a vehicle you might have some work to try to secure it down somehow to apply the required force. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sario Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Very Long Pipe. Slow, Steady Torque. You want a pipe that will slip over the entire breaker bar, and be long enough you can hang off the end of with your own weight. This is the only way short of cutting the nut off. A 10' piece of 3/4" rigid conduit has always worked for me. Although i did break a half inch craftsman extension this way once. Luckily craftsman has a life time warranty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sam888 Posted November 16, 2011 Author Share Posted November 16, 2011 Ok I think I should let you all know how this story ended but first of all thanks to all how posted with advice. I had forgotten about the many uses of the cheater bar (probably invented in the caveman era) and the inpossible axle nut video was just too funny. So I decided to remove the hub from my subaru and when I compared it one I pulled out it wasn't going to work. Apparently there is a difference between my ABS model and the non-abs. So I decided to buy bearings and seals and have my local subie shop do the technical work for me. I just finished installing the rebuilt hub and there's no noise and the car runs great. Even though I lost some money I value the learning experience and when the next bearing goes out on one of my two subarus I'll go into it with knowing that I make a totally new mistake. Thanks again and by the way if anyone is looking for a front pass side hub and axle unassembled i'll let it go for really cheap. Taken off of I think a 90 Legacy wagon. Seattle area. best, sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 future reference, you probably could have drilled the non-abs hub to match the ABS - they're the same the non-ABS one just isn't drilled out for the sensor. drill the hole to match for the abs sensor and drill and tap the hole for the bolt. it's a pretty simple set up. also could have installed the entire lump as is, reboot the axle and don't bother removing it from the hub. i do what GD says - get a larger impact gun. before i had one i stopped at a local shop and they knocked the nut off for free in a few seconds. heat also helps - heat just the nut then slam it home with some good torque. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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