I could be wrong, but if everything was kosher, I'd think the play you mention here should be held to a minimum by the bolt (10 mm head?) on the end of the axle shaft pinning into against the hub housing inside the hub.... IIRC, when you remove that bolt and the washers under it, you are able to then push the axle inward.
E.g., this suggests bearing play in the hub...??

With 200+ Billion electrical parts, the world most complicated machine is inside your own skull.

Question Reality.
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'89 Rnr DLX "SR4.5", 32s w/ 5.29 locked f/r blah blah