Pilot bearing puller. Cheap!
#1
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Pilot bearing puller. Cheap!
Last edited by DamonB; 08-17-04 at 07:34 PM.
#3
Racing is life!
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Looks good Damon. I believe it would work for all gens. The last clutch (1st gen) I did I left the pilot bearing alone. Just lubed it and left it. This was based on some other threads on the difficulty in removing it without a proper puller. The coments in those threads on the Auto Zone and similar pullers was that they would work with some modification.
Have you looked at the Harbor Freight generic brake kit? I was contemplating ordering both front and rear brake tools from Mazda Motorsports or getting that brake kit.
Have you looked at the Harbor Freight generic brake kit? I was contemplating ordering both front and rear brake tools from Mazda Motorsports or getting that brake kit.
#4
Dammit dammit dammit.
https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/how-remove-pilot-bearing-without-pilot-bearing-removal-tool-339030/
But I didn't spend the $16! Bwahahahahaha
https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/how-remove-pilot-bearing-without-pilot-bearing-removal-tool-339030/
But I didn't spend the $16! Bwahahahahaha
#5
Rotary Enthusiast
I've used this type before. If it's the one from Harbor Freight or the like (cheap), it's a piece of crap.
The ends are too large and the metal is too soft. I think it only worked once on one of my RX-7's, out of about 6 times I've pulled the tranny. 1X in a first gen, 2X in a second gen, 1X in a 93 and 2X in my current 94. I ended up renting a puller from a local machinery place; it worked okay.
The last time I was lucky that a friend down the street had a bearing puller identical to the one in the shop manual and the one MazdaTrix sells. He purchased it from the Snap-On tool truck.
First from what I remember, you may have to grind down some of the material to get it into the hole of the PB. Then its a matter of it catching enough to pull it out. Unfortunately, the ends arent small enough to get to the end of the bearing nor are they strong enough to tighten on the inside enough to get a good grip.
The ends are too large and the metal is too soft. I think it only worked once on one of my RX-7's, out of about 6 times I've pulled the tranny. 1X in a first gen, 2X in a second gen, 1X in a 93 and 2X in my current 94. I ended up renting a puller from a local machinery place; it worked okay.
The last time I was lucky that a friend down the street had a bearing puller identical to the one in the shop manual and the one MazdaTrix sells. He purchased it from the Snap-On tool truck.
First from what I remember, you may have to grind down some of the material to get it into the hole of the PB. Then its a matter of it catching enough to pull it out. Unfortunately, the ends arent small enough to get to the end of the bearing nor are they strong enough to tighten on the inside enough to get a good grip.
#6
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Originally Posted by cpa7man
Have you looked at the Harbor Freight generic brake kit?
#7
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Originally Posted by DamonB
Too damn big.
Before I got my Mazda pilot bearing through some kind of import company of Mazda, the way to do it was
move the pilot bearing around a little with a socket, get a compressed air powered grease gun, stick one end of the grease gun into the pilot hole, force gease thru the hole, it will usually, not always, push the pilot bearing out.
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#9
Hey, where did my $$$ go?
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Yup, AutoZone is your friend. You just pay a deposit to rent the tool and when you bring it back you get your all your money refunded. $16 is pretty cheap....but its not free lol
#10
RX-7 Bad Ass
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I've used the Autozone tool - you typically can only get one of the arms in the pilot bearing to pull it out. When the arms are new and nice, it works just fine. When the tips of the claw get worn down, it's VERY tricky to get out.
I bought the Mazda tool a while back - it's AMAZING how easy it is to pull the pilot bearing with it. Literally takes 30 seconds.
Dale
I bought the Mazda tool a while back - it's AMAZING how easy it is to pull the pilot bearing with it. Literally takes 30 seconds.
Dale
#11
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u have to grind the tips on the harbor freight one. not too hard if you have a handheld or bench grinder. the way it comes it comes from factory it is too big. oh and the arms are too short, but a couple of 2x4 sections took care of that. i guess the point is, it isn't the right tool for the job, but you can make it work if you don't mind rigging it a bit.
#12
Place your ad here...
Yeah, I can see how the autozone tool wouldn't work that great if it's not brand new. But I've rented one about 6-7 times, and it's worked great every time. I suggest anyone trying to tackle this project go there and try it first. If it doesn't work, then you haven't lost anything, other than the few minutes it takes to go there and sign it out.
#13
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Originally Posted by dcfc3s
I've used the Autozone tool - you typically can only get one of the arms in the pilot bearing to pull it out. When the arms are new and nice, it works just fine. When the tips of the claw get worn down, it's VERY tricky to get out.
I bought the Mazda tool a while back - it's AMAZING how easy it is to pull the pilot bearing with it. Literally takes 30 seconds.
Dale
I bought the Mazda tool a while back - it's AMAZING how easy it is to pull the pilot bearing with it. Literally takes 30 seconds.
Dale
Yeah, but it was like $100.
worth it though.
#14
like JMunilla said, the ends were too big to fit in the hole straight out of the box. but after a little grinding to the edges (they give you at least a 1/8" lip to cut away at) it fits and gets the job done for pretty cheap.
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i tried the harbour feight one. the metal was so soft that it just rounded off the edges. i ended up cutting the bearing out. anyways in my opinion its a total waste of money.
#16
RX-7 Bad Ass
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Originally Posted by pomanferrari
Yeah, but it was like $100.
worth it though.
worth it though.
It's worthwhile for me, as I knew I'd be using it on multiple cars. It's a hard sell if you just have your car and don't forsee working on other people's RX-7's.
But, if you've ever struggled with the wrong tool, you'll appreciate it. It's a joy to use. The day I got it we were digging around the garage looking for old eccentric shafts that still had the pilot bearing so we could remove it .
Dale
#17
Rotary Enthusiast
Originally Posted by apexkw
i tried the harbour feight one. the metal was so soft that it just rounded off the edges. i ended up cutting the bearing out. anyways in my opinion its a total waste of money.
#18
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Originally Posted by broken93
Dammit dammit dammit.
https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=339030
But I didn't spend the $16! Bwahahahahaha
https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=339030
But I didn't spend the $16! Bwahahahahaha
Originally Posted by black_sunshine
Want another tip? How about a really simple way to pull the pilot bearing? Okay, load some soaking-wet paper towels into the hole. Take a dowel that fits nicely and hit it fast and hard. If that doesn't work, take a piece of all-thread, two nuts, and a washer that would normally fit inside the pilot bearing hole (not the pilot bearing!). Grind two sides of it down so it will slide-inside the pilot bearing. Now, put your nut on the all-thread, and the washer behind that. Slide the washer in at an angle, and hold it there. Put a deep-well socket (I used a 13/16" sparkplug socket) over the all thread, and put the last nut on the top of the socket. Hold the end of the all-thread with a pair of pliers, and crank the nut down with a wrench. Voila, it comes out as easily as it goes in.
#20
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Originally Posted by Tom93R1
You can also rent one for free from AutoZone. I wonder how well those work.
The Autozone tool's "teeth are slightly too large and too deep. i had to use a bench grinder to modify it to work. Once modified, it works great.
BTW. "Old School" guys used to pack the pilot bearing orifice with grease. Then insert the clutch alignment tool and hit it with a hammer repeatedly. the hydolic pressure would push the pilot bearing out.
#21
RX-7 Bad Ass
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Originally Posted by the_glass_man
Where's the best place (cheapest) to buy the official Mazda one?
I wonder if you can just buy the end of the tool without the slide hammer - that would save some dough.
Dale
#22
Cheap Bastard
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Originally Posted by Rotarded
BTW. "Old School" guys used to pack the pilot bearing orifice with grease. Then insert the clutch alignment tool and hit it with a hammer repeatedly. the hydolic pressure would push the pilot bearing out.
#23
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Originally Posted by adam c
My guess is that the old school guys didn't care if grease went all over everything, and that they didn't have plastic clutch alignment tools
I have done it successfully this way once, with a plastic alignment tool. It does not splatter around, just gets all over your hands and tools. Correct, it's very messy though.
#24
Rotary Enthusiast
How many tries did it take, and did it pop all the way out? I tried that method once, using paper towels with water, then grease. It didn't work; didn't even budge (the seal was already removed). I use a transmission input shaft instead of plastic alignment tool.
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