63 roadster-rear spindle bearing replacement?

I want to replace all of the rear end bushings+bearings while I have the
entire assembly out of the car. I had replaced the large bearing in the
pass. side trail arm years ago after it failed and it was a major job, as I
did it while trail arm was still on the car. I believe that is what they
referer to as the " rear spindle bearing". I notice a number of tools
(pullers, knockers, set-up) at Ecklers' that is related to the rear spindle
bearing. Any advice or knowledge about this process or what tools are
essential to this job would be appreciated. Thanx- Lib

lib wrote:
> I want to replace all of the rear end bushings+bearings while I have the
> entire assembly out of the car. I had replaced the large bearing in the
> pass. side trail arm years ago after it failed and it was a major job, as I
> did it while trail arm was still on the car. I believe that is what they
> referer to as the " rear spindle bearing". I notice a number of tools
> (pullers, knockers, set-up) at Ecklers' that is related to the rear spindle
> bearing. Any advice or knowledge about this process or what tools are
> essential to this job would be appreciated. Thanx- Lib
>
>
Ship 'em out to be done, it's just not worth the effort and purchase of
tools for the few times you'll ever do them. Getting the clearances
right requires special tools or multiple iterations of
assembling/disassembling to adjust the shim configuration, with a high
likelyhood that you'll damage something in that iterative process.

I had mine (63) done here some years ago: http://www.vansteel.com/

But strangely, I notice their website now only talks about '65 to '82
wheel bearing rebuilds... there are other reputable rebuilders, and
perhaps VanSteel can point you to someone who does the 63/64 bearings (I
don't think there's much difference, perhaps they are concerned about
damaging the arm or other 63/64 only parts that cannot be easily
replaced). Or, you could do a complete disk brake conversion while
you're at it (I'm not sure how you handle the emergency brake, though).

The rest of the bushings, etc are pretty straightforward, just follow
the instructions in the shop manual, being especially careful about
safeguarding yourself when dealing with the rear spring (ie, clamps and
chains for safety). Do the front differential mount bushings, too. If
you replace the front trailing arm bushings, that'll require you to buy
or make a tool (I made my own) to compress the assembled bushings so
that you can peen the replacement pivot tube to lock them in place. The
shock mounts are usually a bear to remove, requiring considerable
persuasion with a heavy hammer (or perhaps an air hammer would be useful
here), so one of those special nuts for that job (vansteel carries them)
may be helpful. As I recall, I just destroyed the old nuts by pounding
on them after loosening them ... I think I also used spacers to keep the
spindle holes aligned, and I reassembled using new shock mounts and
nuts, although the old mounts were probably reusable.

A rear end alignment will be needed when you've finished the job.