[Spridgets] FW: wheel bearings Follow-up

[Glen Byrns]

The outside surface of the ones in my car look as you describe, but the two 
faces that meet the bearing races are carefully machined to a flat serface. 
Their intention seems clear.  When torqued together, the axle nut, outer 
bearing inner race, spacer, and the inner bearing inner race become a 
"solid" metal axle that greatly exceeds the original axle diameter.
Imagine a 10" long  mild steel bolt that you can bend in your bare hands. 
Now fill the length of the bolt with a stack of 1" fender washers and snug 
them up tight with a nut at the very end (say...45 lbs torque).  Now grab 
the 1" diameter "thing" you just made and try to bend it.  No chance. 
Though the logic took years to sink in, I now see the intention of the 
original design.

Glen Byrns


> I read through all the archived posts on this topic.  The spacer things
> look like they were cast by a blacksmith out of pot metal...no precision
> at all.  I can't believe they have any value as a "sandwich" in there
> between roller bearings under compression of 45# torque-- although I