It was shaping up to be a typical Sunday evening garage session, the kind where ambition meets the ticking clock of the weekend’s end. Fresh from liberating my car from a neighbor’s garage, my own shop beckoned, promising the freedom to dive into a project without the pressure of a deadline. My trusty Austin-Healey was calling, and the philosophy of “Owner Bonding” through rolling restoration was my guide. Instead of a full teardown, I planned to tackle the front end, starting with replacing the wheel hubs and other components. Like many car enthusiasts, I believe in getting hands-on, often thinking specialized tools are just an extra expense. Armed with this mindset, I dedicated a Sunday evening to overhauling the Healey’s front end, confident I could handle it with my innate mechanical know-how.
Jacking up the car and removing the wheel knock-offs were straightforward. Then, the real fun began. During my prep work, I’d noticed the grease cups on the front wheels looked like they needed a special tool for removal. Dismissing this as an unnecessary complication, I forged ahead. However, those seemingly simple grease cups nearly brought my entire project to a screeching halt.
Necessity, they say, is the mother of invention. Combine a Sunday evening closing in (around 7:30 PM, hardware stores firmly shut) with the nagging feeling of another weekend slipping away without progress on the beloved Healey, and you have the perfect recipe for some creative problem-solving. Panic started to set in. The issue was clear: those grease cups had to come off before I could proceed with the front end rebuild. Examining the threaded studs on the grease cup, I discovered evidence of a previous owner’s struggle – mangled threads courtesy of some ill-advised vise-grip pliers. Sound familiar? We’ve all been there, inheriting someone else’s “clever” solutions. Just to be thorough, I tried the vise-grip approach myself. Nope, no luck for me either. Time to let the frustration subside and tap into that wellspring of ingenuity. Suddenly, an idea sparked – the mental lightbulb flickered on!
Crafting a DIY Grease Cup Puller Tool
The solution, as it often is, was simpler than I initially thought. On an Austin-Healey, the thread size for the grease cup studs is 5/16″ 24 tpi. First, I needed to address the mangled threads. Using a 5/16″ 24 tpi nut, I carefully chased the damaged threads, cleaning them up enough to be usable. Once the grease cup was off (using my soon-to-be-fabricated tool), I could fully restore the threads with a 5/16″ die. To build my DIY grease cup puller, I rummaged through my workbench’s “bits and pieces” bin and gathered the following:
- 1 – 1/2′ x 3″ bolt
- 1 – 2 1/2″ square piece of 1/4″ steel
- 1 – 1/2″ flat washer
- 2 – 1/2″ nuts for the 1/2″ x 3″ bolt
And here are the tools you’ll need to transform these parts into a functional grease cup puller:
- 5/16 “x 24 tpi tap
- 17/64 drill bit
- 1/2″ drill bit
- Center punch
- Electric drill or drill press
Alt text: Close-up view of a grease cup attached to a car wheel hub, illustrating the component requiring removal and the challenge of accessing the hub center.
Step-by-Step Tool Fabrication
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Prepare the Bolt: Find the center of the 1/2″ bolt head as accurately as possible and mark it with the center punch. Dead center is ideal but not absolutely critical. Secure the bolt to prevent it from spinning and drill a hole into the hex head. The hole should be at least 3/4″ deep, with 1″ being preferable to ensure the tap doesn’t bottom out during threading. I recommend starting with a small pilot hole and gradually increasing the size until you reach the correct diameter for your tap (17/64″ in this case for a 5/16″ x 24 tpi tap).
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Tap the Bolt Head: Using the 5/16″ x 24 tpi tap, carefully thread the hole you just drilled in the bolt head. Ensure the threads are clean and well-formed to properly engage with the grease cup stud.
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Prepare the Steel Plate: Mark the center of the 1/4″ steel square piece using a center punch. Locate the center by finding the intersection of diagonal lines drawn from corner to corner. As with the bolt, start with a pilot hole and progressively enlarge it to maintain control when drilling metal. The final hole in the steel plate should be 1/2″ in diameter.
Alt text: Components laid out for a DIY car wheel center cap hub tool: a bolt with a tapped head, a square steel plate with a central hole, a washer, and nuts, ready for assembly into a grease cup puller.
Assembling and Using Your DIY Puller
Now it’s time to put your homemade car wheel center cap hub tool to work!
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Assemble the Puller: Thread the bolt with the tapped head onto the stud protruding from the grease cup.
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Position the Steel Plate: Slide the square steel plate with the 1/2″ hole over the threaded part of the bolt, positioning it against the splined hub. The hub will act as a stop for the plate.
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Add Washer and Nut: Slide the 1/2″ washer onto the bolt, followed by one 1/2″ nut. Thread the nut down against the washer and steel plate.
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Extraction: Tighten the nut on the bolt. As you turn the nut, it will push against the steel plate, which in turn pulls the bolt (and thus the grease cup) outwards from the wheel hub. If you need extra grip to tighten the bolt onto the grease cup stud initially, use two 1/2″ nuts locked against each other on the bolt. Tighten the bolt onto the stud, then loosen the two nuts and remove one. Tighten the remaining nut down to begin the extraction process.
Alt text: Demonstration of the DIY car wheel center cap hub tool in use, showing the puller assembled on a wheel hub with the grease cup being extracted, highlighting the tool’s functionality.
Conclusion: DIY Solutions for Car Wheel Hub Maintenance
This basic puller design can be adapted for various situations. You could substitute hardwood for the steel plate, or adjust the bolt length depending on the specific hub and grease cup you are working with. The core principle remains: removing grease cups without resorting to expensive, specialized tools – if you can even find them these days. I’d much rather invest my money in essential Healey parts than in tools I might only use occasionally. This DIY car wheel center cap hub tool gets the job done efficiently and affordably, proving that with a bit of ingenuity, you can overcome challenges and keep your classic car – or any vehicle – in top shape. Good luck with your projects!
By John E. Palmer
