Rear Hub Nut

[Malcolm16]

Austin 12 - 1930.
Replacing the rear brake linings and new felt seal - rear hub is now on so how tight should the large nut be. With the Austin 7s I know its usually a socket and very long bar - are Austin 12s the same.
Thanks
Malcolm

[Shortstroke]

Yup, they need to be tight or the halfshafts and hubs are ruined! I’ve had to replace mine due to people in the past not knowing how it all works.

[Martin27]

Yes. TIGHT.
But make sure the tapers are clean first. Dirt/foreign bodies trapped in there will spoil the tapers. Also, just like the 7, check you have clearance between the key and the bottom of the hub keyway. Then its a well fitting socket, 2 foot bar and stand on it.

Martin

[austinbrit]

Does this apply to front hubs as well?
Paul

[Martin27]

No. The rear hub nuts need to be very tight as all the drive torque is transmitted through the taper (NOT the key which is only there to stop the shaft spinning in the hub whilst you are tightening the nut). It is important that the tapers are kept fully engaged as any movement here will spoil the tapers, damage the keyways and probably shear the keys. It can result in cracks developing on the halfshaft keyways and catastrophic failure of the halfshaft.

The front arrangement is different. The hub nut clamps the two bearings with distance piece between against the shoulder on the stub axle. It only needs to be "normally" tight, not "very" tight. Sorry, I don't have any torque figures for this but you'll soon get the "feel" for what is tight enough. Don't forget the split pin. Tighten until the split pin holes line up and don't be tempted to slacken the nut to get the holes to line up.

Martin

[austinbrit]

Thanks for that, I thought the front was different.
If in doubt always ask.
Cheers
Paul

[Pauly10]

Hi
Would the rear hub nuts on a 1929 Clifton be right or left hand thread depending on nearside or offside.
Thanks
Paul

[1931princess]

Hi, I can tell you that the rear off-side hub nut on my 1931 car is left hand threaded, but I can't say it's the same for all models. I would assume it is though. Tom

[austinbrit]

Yep on my '29 A12/4, left hand thread on offside and right hand thread on nearside.
Paul

[Pauly10]

Hi Tom and Paul, thanks for information on rear hub nuts.
Regards
Paul