Originally Posted by Jeep_Guy

Guys, Thanks.

I was upgrading from the stock ones to new CNC ones. I ran over to HOBBYTOWN in Schaumburg and bought 2 new packages of bearings...then tried again. I have done bearings in the past on rollerblades, so I knew to keep as much surface area of my "pressing" tool on the bearing, and that a screwdriver would just gouge the bearing. So I ended up using a deep well socket to press the bearings.

Here is what finally let me insert the inner bearing:
I boiled a pot of water on HIGH and let the hub come up to temp with the water. I then pulled it out quickly with long channel locks, and popped the bearing in VERY quickly before the metal cooled and shrank back to its original size. This worked PERFECTLY.

Thank goodness that this is winter....and there is no rush to get things fixed. I am just enjoying having the time to do the upgrades that I want before spring. Thanks again for your help/input. I am sure that I will pose more questions soon.