Tool Good quality bearing/gear pullers?

[RobinHood]

If you can put some heat to the part you are trying to get off, I would do it. I would even sacrifice a bearing / bushing / pulley / etc. if required to save the underlying component.

I have a variety of brands of pullers (Harbour Freight [PA equivalent from the US], PA, CT, OTC, Proto, etc). There seems to be a differences in steel quality used and some threads seem to gall easier than others. I am 100% with using anti-seize. Hi pressure grease is not anti seize and does not protect the threads nearly as well as proper AS.

 

[John Conroy]

I don't think OTC stuff is made in the states anymore. In my experience the only really high quality pullers come from SnapOn or Proto.

 

[Gearhead88]

Ok , I'll admit it .......... I'm a sucker for tools and gadgets , I doubt I'll ever stop looking at them , buying them ..............

If a puller is required for a job I'm on , I'll either buy it or make it. I don't like to wreck stuff while trying to disassemble it .

Sometimes though , a rule that millwrights use can be applied .... it goes like this - If it jambs - force it - If it breaks - it needed replacing anyways .

I have an extensive collection of pullers , all manner extraction devices , some name brand , some not ,

O.T.C. , SnapOn , KentMoore , Jim's , Proto , etc . etc.

 

[calgaryguy]

If you can put some heat to the part you are trying to get off, I would do it. I would even sacrifice a bearing / bushing / pulley / etc. if required to save the underlying component.

I have a variety of brands of pullers (Harbour Freight [PA equivalent from the US], PA, CT, OTC, Proto, etc). There seems to be a differences in steel quality used and some threads seem to gall easier than others. I am 100% with using anti-seize. Hi pressure grease is not anti seize and does not protect the threads nearly as well as proper AS.

Almost always use heat for stuff thats stuck, usually a map gas torch.

 

[phaxtris]

you really should be running some kind of thread lubricant every time, running the more expensive pullers dry will eventually destroy them as well, just may take longer.

 

[garageguy]

after 45 yrs as a auto tech I learned that cheap tools cost extra in time, frustration and $$$ . If your going to do your own work get the tools to do it right. Cheaper and more satisfying in the long run. OTC, Snap-on, Proto

 

[Downwindtracker2]

If you grease the threads, even the Redi-Rod on shop built pullers last. If you don't it's one use, and that's a maybe, and done. Where quality shines is on edges of the hooks and bearing splitters, they are both fine and strong. There crudeness renders them useless.

For the heavy stuff, it's port-a-power time. While I have a pump, rams , welder and maybe even a trip to the local steel shop for material, I have never at home had to. For your very heavy use it's worth considering going hydraulic. My PA pullers have worked for me.

 

[Darren]

you really should be running some kind of thread lubricant every time, running the more expensive pullers dry will eventually destroy them as well, just may take longer.

I have dozens of OTC/Snapon/Proto pullers, and always use never sieze on the threads. The only time i've had a problem is when I lent out my Snap On pitman arm puller and he didn't use lube, or had it laying in the dirt while using it. It came back completely screwed. Tried to get a new screw for it but my dealer handed me a new puller under warranty. Never lent it out again.

 

[Susquatch]

After breaking yet another princess auto 3 jaw puller I want to know if any members have a suggestion for 2 or 3 jaw pullers that are decent quality - threads that dont strip out, puller arms that dont flex easily, etc.

I've looked at some OTC pullers in the past but the $$$'s always make me pause as I dont have any first hand experience with them and dont know anyone who does.

I have some very old craftsman pullers that have been beat to death. They still work fine. Never forget to put antiseize on the threads.

The problem with these pullers is that they don't always fit well. So I routinely make my own pullers.

I confess that there are times when a puller will not work on its own no matter how well it fits. These are the times when other approaches are needed too. Farm equipment can be really really stubborn - almost as stubborn as the hairy pissy old farmer......

Puller on one end, slide hammer on the other. Cooling water inside, a rose bud on the outside. Load, penetrant, and time.

 

[Chicken lights]

I prefer using a split plate, for most bearings or pulleys. Even some pitman arms. I think I have at least three different lengths of the center bars, for versatility. There’s longer and shorter screws and different tips too, but the short leg setup is pretty common for my needs

I’ve had a 3/4” impact on that a few times and didn’t hurt anything

The split plates work great in a press, too

 

[Richard G]

I have had great luck with the PA pro-point three jaw puller. I did put it to the test on a stubborn hub bearing. I have some Snap-On which are good, OTC which are just barely OK. a Miller-Detroit which is also very good.
As I no longer make my living with these tools, I would not spend the money for Proto, Mac or Snap-On. I am always on the look out for a decently priced bearing seperator.