Hi All, Why do little tasks always turn into major projects? My dad and I were checking to see if some Budd wheels that came off a 1979 Ford F350 would fit our 1984 Chevy K20. They do. Sorta. The bolt pattern and the center hole are the same. But the dishing on the Budd wheels causes some 'differences of opinion' between the rim and the tie-rod end. While checking on this, I noticed that I had wheel bearing issues on the driver's side. That means checking the other side too. The brake rotors were rusted and worn WAY BEYOND spec. The pads were looking pretty awful too. $251.47 in parts from Parts America. The correct socket for the spindle nuts, both sides: Inner and outer wheel bearings, grease seals, rotors and pads. Not too bad. I had made a bit of a blunder. I had the front wheels and hubs off while the truck was in the doorway of the shop. Can't leave the shop open overnight. So I had to slap the worn out bearings back in and mount the Budd wheels on backwards (the current wheels are a pain-in-the-posterior to bolt on). And bring the truck fully into the shop looking major fugly. And about as unsafe as possible (no brakes, didn't re-install the calipers yet) and 3 lug nuts per side. Next day, warmed up the shop and got cracking... Safety first! Driving the wheel studs from the hubs and old discs << A couple of pix didn't transfer >> The hub and brakes reassembled: Much nicer! I freed up the adjuster in the steering box. No play in there now. The rest of the front end is nice and tight. With the exception of the upper ball joint on the driver's side. It is dry and just enough slop to give a 1/4" if play at the top of the wheel. I bought new upper and lower ball joints Sunday morning. The expected snow put that repair on hold. Ready for Sunday's snow... When ^^^^this picture^^^ was taken, we were expecting 1-3". There was nearly a foot of that stupid white [stuff] on the ground 36 hours later. I'll post another thread about me and the truck fighting it. The snow had won round 2.
