Pilot Bearing Puller

[jsburger]

Anybody have a recommendation? In this case I need to pull an MRC 203 SSF bearing from the end bell of an A O Smith 3/4HP motor. The inner race is 5/8" diameter. I looked at the Harbor Freight offering but it says minimum is 3/4". I am not sure if I could get the jaws through the bearing.

[ChrisNeilan]

I had to pull a pilot bearing out of a crankshaft when I converted an old F-150 from 3 on the tree to an auto. Borrowed one from a mechanic friend. If I recall it was a tool that expanded to grab the bearing... That was a while ago... Try Napa

[BuckeyeDennis]

A member over at the DeWalt RAS forum had the same problem. He got these suggestions:

#1: Get a shaft the approximate size of the bearing bore (a wooden dowel, bolt, piece of round stock etc.), you'll want a fairly close slip in fit. Fill the bearing bore and the endbell recess with grease. Insert your shaft into the bearing bore and tap it down. The Shaft acts as a piston compressing the grease and the resulting hydraulic pressure on the back side of the bearing will usually lift it out of the bore. We use this method all the time to remove clutch pilot shaft bearings from the counterbore of a crankshaft.

#2: Place a cube of ice on the bearing. Let it melt. The bearing temperature will drop causing it to contract. Then warm the bell with a heat gun. The bearing should drop out. If not, keep heating it and tap the bell lightly. It will eventually drop out. Clean and easy without damaging the bell.

The OP tried a variant of method #2 first. He put the whole assembly in his freezer for an hour, then heated the bell, and the bearing did indeed drop out. But method #1 sound like a pretty sure solution to me.

I had an idea for a third method, but it is completely untested: Cut the head off of a 5/8” shoulder screw. Clean the bearing bore and glue the bolt shoulder into it. I expect that ordinary CA glue would work, but if not Loctite sells some stuff especially for bonding shafts into bores. Then use the bolt as a jack screw to pull the bearing.

[everettdavis]

Autozone and other parts stores loan tools here. If you are not buying parts from them for something you can do it in store.

Take the end bell etc. to such a auto parts store and they will have a tool to remove manual transmission pilot bearings that go that small. Alternators do as well.

If you can't take it in, you may have to pay a refundable deposit unless they know you for you to take it out of the store.

Taking it in saves two trips...... you needed shop shop towels anyway, right?

Everett

[everettdavis]

Blind Internal Bearing Pullers come in a variety of configurations.

K Tool International Pilot Bearing Slide Hammer Model # KTI70356 spreads from 1/2" to 1 1/2" and sells in the $30-$40 range.

SKF and other bearing suppliers offer various versions as well that are more expensive.

Everett

K Tool International Pilot Bearing Slide Hammer Model # KTI70356.png (77.09 KiB) Viewed 4628 times