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~440 Hertz road noise goes away on veer left


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So I am used to noise in my 35 year old Jeep :smile:, but I am noticing one that maybe I can get rid of.  I am noticing a roar, well a minor roar but I don't know a better word, as I am cruising along once I get up to 35-45 MPH.  It is in the ballpark of an open A on my guitar, so around 440 Hertz.  I don't notice the frequency being much different as I go faster, possible a little, but not much if any.  As soon as I veer to the left just slightly it disappears, an comes back just as quickly when I return to straight down the road.  It doesn't do the same if I veer right, that is veer right the noise is still there and it goes away if I slow down below 35-ish.  I don't know how long this particular noise has been there cause, as noted, there all always noises of some kind.  I may try swapping the two front tires just to see if anything changes, but though I'd go ahead a post this and see what the experts say.

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while you've got the front end jacked up, rotate the tires around and around and listen for wheel bearings.  also shake the tire with your hands at the top and bottom, then the sides to check for any play. 

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It probably has something to do with your right front wheel/tire/bearings. When turning left it loads that one harder. and because the noise goes away only when a higher load is applied there is probably an issue on that corner. I would guess a wheel bearing is starting to go out.

 

Or the opposite is true and is unloading the left tire causing the bad bearing to be quiet.

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The front right wheel can be wiggled a bit, so will be working on those bearings soon.  May still be some tire noise also, but resolving the bearing issue is on the top of the list either way.  Will probably just repack both sides but I'll work in a test drive after doing the right just to see what changes....

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5 hours ago, AnotherOldJeepGuy said:

The front right wheel can be wiggled a bit, so will be working on those bearings soon.  May still be some tire noise also, but resolving the bearing issue is on the top of the list either way.  Will probably just repack both sides but I'll work in a test drive after doing the right just to see what changes....

Bad wheel bearings are considered a critical safety issue.  If it's loose and making noise it's highly likely it is gone.  Repacking may buy you a little time for a diagnostic but examine it carefully.  Seizing on the spindle will do considerably more damage and add unnecessary expense. 

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Understood!  At this point I don't know if the noise is the bearing, or the tire, or both.  Will see what I see once I get it apart, probably tomorrow.  I won't be going very far in the Jeep until at least the wiggle is gone!  For what it's worth, I didn't notice any noise or roughness when I spun the wheel.

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noted the comment on bearings seizing on the spindle....

seeing in your sig yours is 2wd,  so there is a conventional spindle (IIRC) and not a bearing pack.

so you could pull the hub and check the bearings by removal of caliper and the castle nut under the spindle cap.

 

the 4wd are a press fit bearing pack and most do not have the press or adapters for the press to remove the bearings without damage to them.

'simpler' to replace the bearing pack in most cases.  these are usually sealed bearings.

 

on 2wd should be 'regular' tapered roller bearings and their matching cup,  look for 'fretting' of the rollers and in the surface of the cup.

bearings probably not too expensive but try to look for top shelf quality bearings and get the seals while at FLAPs,  as well as good bearing grease.

 

good luck.

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While I in there, I will probably go ahead and replace the pads.  They are 4 years old and look to be about 3/16 pad left.  Rotors are the same age so if they are anything like rotors from my high school days, they should be good for 2 sets of pads.  I tried to measure, but I don't have the right caliper to get it just right.  With the version I have, it measures 7/8 thick, but there is a tiny ridge on the outer edge that is included in that measurement., probably adds a a total of around 1/16 to the actual measurement from my guestimate.

have.jpg.19d8b37c591d8cd008b39c076e9b69e6.jpg

havenot.jpg.bb96cac4d7fc4aa7d3bb777dc55be65f.jpg

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guess talking about an outer 'lip' on the edge of the pad....

 

in a small section take a file and knock the lip off then your measuring caliper's flat surface can access the flat part of the pad.

 

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these days aftermarket rotors tend to come brand new already at their minimum thickness.  don't be surprised if it measures as a bit "less than ideal". 

 

rule of thumb, if it looks to your eye like a normal rotor's thickness and the surface is smooth, it's good to go. :L: 

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oops,  thought he was measuring pads...   rotor lip bit more difficult...  but a regular anvil micrometer will bridge the lip... but if no divider style measuring caliper, then probably no micrometer either.

 

the jaws on the vernier may be relieved near the beam.. that may bridge the ridge

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No got that kind of micrometer either, but I am going with @Pete M's version and say it's OK. 
But what I do got is more trouble courtesy (I assume but can't prove) of the shop that worked on it for me last time in 2021.  I should have started working on this myself a lot sooner, even with my shade tree degree I know better than to force a connect to this degree.  But that's under the bridge at this point.  It was very difficult to remove the "hand tight" nut, and you can see why.  I have a fairly large die "wrench" but I don't know if I have a bit big enough (pardon my terminology which is most likely wrong, but I think you can tell what I am attempting to say:grrrrrr:).  I am guessing that reviving these threads is questionable, but at this point I don't have much to loose trying.

Threads.jpg.1c0f4c2184c89f53fd7382e34ba89887.jpg

 

Also while I am at it, I can't really see where to try removing the rear seal.  I have identified 2 guesses for comment before I dig into this and cause damage I can't fix.  A?  B?  Other?

It doesn't look anything like the one in the good video I watched (https://youtu.be/Yj6f8crrwZ4), or what I think I remember from the 80s, so I am wondering if the shop that "customized" my threads also installed some kind of rotor that is pre-loaded with a bearing that is not intended to be accessible?. 

AorBorC.jpg.207f792c44d6e78c0132c2372113fbee.jpg

 

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Slide the rotor assembly back on the spindle. Install the nut with your fingers far enough it will hold threads.  Pull out and down (kinda hard to describe the motion) as you do this you will feel the inner bearing bump against the nut. Now use the rotor as a "reverse slide hammer" by giving it a good yank. This will remove the inner seal and bearing.

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on most of the stuff i worked on in the past, took a drift and from the outside of the hub, put the drift on the inner bearing and gave it a whack or two

the seal and bearing should drop out...

 

If you want to pry, do it at "A" ,  B is the seal lip,  it's gonna be trash anyway and if I 'know'  i have the replacement I'll go in the opening with a seal removal tool and pry er out,  even a big screwdriver will work as a lever

 

the threads...  hmm,  yea a die may work, but you could also take a triangular 'swiss' file and restore the 'vee'...  but the outer diameter of the thread has already suffered.

this bearing nut is not torqued to an extreme amount,  and the cotter pin will keep if from loosening from rotation, but there is the risk of the nut letting go linearly and no longer retain the hub...  sort of depends on how the nut interacts with the root of the thread on the spindle.

 

how much risk...  I won't say....  but them are some boogered threads.

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19 hours ago, AnotherOldJeepGuy said:

Can anyone tell me the correct thread on the spindle?  I need to make sure I get it right since I probably only have one shot at fixing the threads at best.

Link on Rockauto for spindle nut.  Has the size for the die you want.

 

https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=15655&cc=1181720&pt=1616&jsn=506&optionchoice=0-0-0-1

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8 minutes ago, rokinn said:

Link on Rockauto for spindle nut.  Has the size for the die you want.

 

https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=15655&cc=1181720&pt=1616&jsn=506&optionchoice=0-0-0-1

Thanks, figures, I just got new pads in the mail from rock auto today, ordered before I knew the surprise that awaited me.:brickwall:

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