Triumph Repair: Spitfire MK3 Front Stub Axle Bearings/Hub seal

Question

With seal  

without seal   Dear Mr. Howard,

Good day.

I am currently renewing the front bearings on my Spitfire MK3 but the new hub seal does not allow the hub unit with bearings to position correctly. The seal seems to be very thick. And the brake caliber cannot fit. Pls find attached relevant photos.

Please advise if i can trim it to the proper thickness and
I wonder if the seal (which is a felt packing) was designed to also act as a distance piece (bearing-hub-vertical link) because as it wears the clearance at the castle nut will increase.

Your help will be highly appreciate.

Best regards,
Andreas

Answer

SpitfireFtHub.jpg   Hi Andreas,

The seal (felt) must rotate with the wheel hub. In your first picture the metal cup is facing the opened end out. The felt seal should be pushed inside of the cup and the cup pressed into the wheel hub after the bearing is greased and put into the wheel. I found two different styles. One style had the felt seal ride up to the spindle on a shoulder sticking out from the spindle and the face of the felt against the spindle itself. The other style had the felt in a recess in the wheel hub with the cup open part facing the seal and wheel and the cup pressed into the hub. The later is the type you should have. I will draw the design I believe you have and post it in this program for you to better see how it is suppose to go together.

Howard