Posted By : Chris Taylor,
02-Aug-2007, 11:24pm
Play in wheel bearings should be the same wherever on the wheel you grip it and rock it back and forth. Steering play is only at "quarter
to three" and most suspension problems are detected at "6 o'clock." Unfortunately play in the wire wheel splines will occur at most
positions of the wheel as well.
There SHOULD be just detectable play in the front wheel bearings, that's how they are designed to operate although other front bearings
(esp front wheel drive cars) have huge preloads and are rock solid. You should find that there are two holes in the stub axle for the split
pin., giving you more options for optimum adjustment of the castellated nut.
As well as the trunnion, I'd have a quick check of the upper ball joint, and if you do strip it all down again, check for any burrs on the
castellated nut and plain washer behind it, and for any signs of the bearings races spinning on the stub axle.
I'm afraid that at this point my money would be on the wire wheel splines. You could try swapping adaptors and wheels front to rear to see
if there is any difference, but NOT side to side as you need the correct handed retaining nut/spinner thread! However if there IS play in
the splines, swapping front to rear is not a cure, or even really a short term fix; suggested just for diagnosing the source of the
problem.