For my '85 GSL-SE (stock), my power steering idler pulley bearing is quite raspy. I ordered a new bearing from Rock Auto:

BECK/ARNLEY Part # 0513954
20mm X 47mm X 14mm

After researching here and generally around the net, not having a press I found a procedure something like this:

Using a socket slightly smaller than the diameter of the bearing, pound out the old bearing with the pulley on a piece of wood with a hole in it large enough to drop the bearing. Presumably I should use a dead blow hammer? (don't own one- what would be a good weight hammer?).

Heat the pulley, sans bearing, in my kitchen oven to about 250 degrees for about 30 minutes, while placing the new bearing in the freezer for a couple of hours (or maybe overnight since I'm in no hurry on this, it's a little noisy but not broke). The difference in expansion should make for an easier fit.

Pound the bearing into the pulley (with a dead blow hammer?), on a block of wood acting as anvil, using a 2x4 between bearing and hammer, trying hard not to destroy the pulley or the bearing .

I didn't find any detailed HOWTO information here specific to our gen and don't know if there are any subtle differences.

Any sage words of wisdom here or modifications to the above before I have at it ?

Or should I just suck it in and pay a local mechanic to remove/install it on a press, as it probably should be done?

This is my first attempt at working with auto bearings.

 

It's a pully bearing and is probably just in there with a light press fit. A couple solid raps with a ball peen or regular claw hammer should remove it. According to your dimensions it has a 47MM OD which just shy of 1 7/8. A socket or something simillar will work, it should be just slightly smaller like 1 3/4, big enough to contact the outer bearing race but not bigger ovewrall. With a diameter this big, the improtant thing is to keep it straight and try to avoid cocking it in the bore which would bind it up.

 

Thanks for the encouragement

 

I need to update this. That Beck Arnley # 0513954 is the WRONG bearing, by a mile. And it is one of two bearings cross referenced for an idler pulling bearing. I put a Mazda OEM bearing into the pulley but when all was said and done the pulley was out of true and wobbled.

If anyone knows what, if anything, that Beck Arnley 20mm X 47mm X 14mm bearing fits anywhere on a 1st Gen let me know. It'll cost me half what I paid for it to return it. Interestingly, Rock Auto was not too interested in the fact that the cross reference was wrong. They said they provided measurements so I guess they think I should pull all my parts before I order, and then wait for delivery, or reinstall/uninstall.

I bought a complete Dayco 89036 pulley. I found two other pulleys, Goodyear 49033 and Gates 38037, which I believe are the same pulley because web ad material uses the same image, although slightly altered. I bought the Dayco because it was close by and I wanted to compare to my pulley. Same dimensions as the orginal. The only difference is that the Dayco does not have the same retaining cup on the back side that the OEM pulley has. The Dayco seems to work fine and is noise free.

If you replace that pulley or bearing but don't want to pay the Mazda price you should take the time to pull it and measure it. Don't trust the aftermarket cross-references. And I can say for sure it is not worth a few bucks to try to replace the bearing unless you really know what you are doing and are lucky. If I had known I could replace the whole pulley for $27 or less I wouldn't have messed with the bearing but I couldn't find what I thought was a reliable cross reference. Didn't do enough research on backing into the size...

 

Thanks to the search engine, I found this thread. I had the same problem with Beck-Arnley lying about the bearing for the idler pulley. This evening, I am going to try the Autozone equivalent of the Dayco 89036.

Thank you NeilRX7 for finding the right idler pulley part numbers.

 

The Autozone store brand Duralast idler pulley part number is 231036, and it works fine.