I am replacing all of the bearings wheel-to-wheel in the rear end of my truck. I noticed while disassembling that the pinion gear required very little "encouragement" to come out. So once I pulled it out and pulled the seal I noticed that the outer pinion bearings slide on and off of the pinion gear very easily. I could slide them on with two fingers and if I turn the gear upside down the bearings will actually slide off just from gravity. I have never worked on Ford stuff before but I don't think this is normal. Any help? Thanks!

 

So what did you see or how did it go ? Becaue I'm about to do the same thing on mie and any advise would be appreciated ! By the way I'm from Denton, its north of Dallas and Fort Worth

 

The smaller bearing closest to the pinion nut should slide on and off. The larger bearing, next to the teeth is pressed on. There are shims under the larger bearing so be careful not to damage them when removing the bearing.