bearing question

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WhiteMoose

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Sometime last week I lost one of the grease fittings out of my trailer hub. I don't know weather it was before or after I backed the trailer down into the river a couple times this weekend. Do I need to repack my bearings or something now? I assume the hub filled up with water with the grease fitting missing.
Also, I can NOT find a new grease fitting that fits! Mine are slightly smaller then the 1/4" ones. I thought maybe the threading was different but it is definitely a hair smaller. Is it metric? If so, where can I get them? Has anyone else had this problem?

Thanks
 
I couldn't find anywhere to order them online that didn't require a quantity of like 50 or a massive S&H charge, but I went to the local Fastenal store and they were able to hook me up with a 10 pack for about $3.
What about water that may have got into the bearings? Should I do anything about it or just fill them up with grease?
 
If you had them full packed with grease, little or water may have gotten in.

Do you have the self greasing hubs that push the old grease out? If so, just pump out the old stuff & watch for water coming out and how milky the grease looks.

If not, then probably need to pull the cover off & see if the grease is milky looking. If so, repack. If not, pop the cover back on, top off with some fresh grease in & away you go.
 
You don't need to repack.Water gets inside every time you put the trailer in the water.That's why you should grease trailers that go in the water a little more than a trailer that never sees the water.Bearing buddies are the way to go for a trailer that sees alot of water.I also use a grease that's a little more tolerable of water.Its blue but the name doesn't come to me right now but I'll look and post.Its the same grease I use on my I/O lower unit to grease the u-joints,blue in color.Boat trailers should use a grease thats different than cars since most of us don't back our cars in & out of the water. [-X
 
I am by no means an expert but if you are getting water in you bearings then the seal is leaking. If you continually pump grease into the hub it will eventually come out of the rear seal hense causing it to leak. If you pump grease every time you go to pump out water and old grease that is bad. If you have bearing buddies just give the bearings a good coating of grease when installing then pump grease just until the spring starts showing a little pressure. You shouldn't have to grease any more unless the seal is leaking.
If there is any question at all about water in the bearings take the hub off repack or replace the bearings. And very important clean the spindle where the seal sets and install new seal. This should be a totally sealed bearing system no grease comes out and no water/dirt comes it.

If you are having trouble with a bearing buddy or cap comming off, clean the hub really good where the cap goes and look for a small crack in the hub. If cracked replace hub.
 
So to make my statement more understandable.When you back your trailer in the water it could be as deep as 3 feet.Water creates pressure on the seal which isn't there normally out of the water.Those seals are not designed to take water pressure,just to keep dirt & water out while driving down the road.Lil John is right where you don't want grease to come out of the seal,but if you don't have bearing buddies there is usually air or some sir in your hub which water will eventually find its way in that's why I said you should grease a little more often & make sure the grease is water proof.With the water proof grease you shouldn't have to take the bearing apart other than once a year to clean & repack.

This is what I do & have been doing for 40 years & has never failed me.So I guess each to his own.
 
If you'll read my post it refers to BEARING BUDDIES!!!! When you grease till the piston comes out a little it creates positive pressure so the water pressure dosen't get by the seal. No one is ever too old to learn or try something new.

Had the same bearings in my trailer for 7 years and no water. No failures. No taking apart.
but to each is own.
 
The wheel bearing grease that I use is Kendall super blu L-427.I also check my bearings every year.Better safe than sorry when you least expect it.
 
if you fear you have gotten water in your bearings i would take the hub off clean everything and repack. it only takes 10-15 min for each side and a new seal is only a few bucks. I'd also recomend marine grease. the stuff is like gum when you compare it to regular grease, very water resistant


i always top the buddy's off before leaving the house no matter short/long trip since 8" wheels work them to death. I r&r them every 6 months to make sure everything is good. nuttin worse than a dead trailer on the side of the road
 
I use a lithium grease in my boat trailer bearings to avert any potential water problems.

That being said, you do not want to mix and match random types of grease in your hubs. It's always best to clean out and repack with a specific type if you don't know what is in there.

I'm not a big fan of the spring loaded bearing buddies. I've not had a set of them yet that didn't fail at some point. Usually 2 to 3 years, max.

Most trailer manufacturers have gone to the type with the zirk that threads directly into the axle shaft and the hub is simply covered by a rubber cap. You can pull the cap and pump grease until the cows come home and completely fill the hub (and push out old grease or water) without fear of busting or jacking out your rear seal. The rear seal is not designed to have much positive pressure put on it. You can load one up pretty good by pumping a bearing buddy until you collapse the spring (which is what a whole lot of people do).
 
Thanks for the help guys. So I took the cap off and started taking everything apart and cleaning. The grease looked more like mud then grease. The seals got all beat up trying to get them out, so I assume I have to get new ones.
Would you all concur that these bearings are shot also?

IMG_1216.jpg


IMG_1218.jpg


The 2nd picture shows the inner and outer bearings from the same wheel. The outer bearing is rusty and burnt looking and the individual bearings are loose and seem like theyre about to fall out. The inner bearing still looks pretty good I think.
This isn't the wheel that I lost the grease fitting out of. I'm expecting that one to be even worse.
 
Those bearings are toast and just goes to show that yes, water does get inside bearing buddies. :wink:

There's nothing water tight about most of them, especially the cheap ones.
 
That's why it's important to use a GOOD grease & inspect bearings once a year.Make sure you also replace the races that are still in the hub,they are probably pitted also.
 
Indeed. And this trailer is only a 2004. I'm going to try to re-pack the bearings once a year.

Do the racers typically come with the bearings when you buy them? They were a pain in the nutz to get out!
 
That's why it's important to use a GOOD grease & inspect bearings once a year.

My trailer is a 1999 model. I took the caps off for the first time ever two months ago when I put bearing buddies on. My buddy who is a mechanic helped out. The grease looked fine, he couldnt belieive it! We popped the BBs on and pumped them full of grease and off I went.
 
Another thing I noticed is that there is a pretty big difference in the seal quality from brand to brand. I first got some National brand seals from O'Rileys and messed them up trying to put them in, so I had to run to Napa to get some more. The Napa brand seals were a little more expensive but the rubber on the inside is much thicker and better quality then the seals I bought at O'Rileys.
 
Quackrstackr said:
Those bearings are toast and just goes to show that yes, water does get inside bearing buddies. :wink:

There's nothing water tight about most of them, especially the cheap ones.

I called Wesco boat trailers today and they said same thing I did. If you are getting water in your bearings, you have a problem and you need to fix it. It should be a sealed system. Also said most bearing buddies leak because people pump too much grease in them and blow out the seal in the back. If you add grease and top it off every time you go it will blow out the seal. Call anyone who deals with boat trailers and knows what they are talking about will tell you the same thing. Call around. We can argue this till we're blue in the face or you can call a professinal as I did and ask for yourself. You might just save youself a bearing problem on the way to the lake.
 

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