Just completed doing brake and backing plate replacement on the Monty. I did this because of a noticeable decrease in braking performance. What I found was troublesome because it indicated a lack QC on both Dexter and Keystone. First, when I pulled the hubs off, I found the left front drum was full of grease. (I have never used the zerk ftg. to lube) First time removed since new. What I found was a nick at the edge of the axle where the seal slides over it. Had to be from the factory and must have damaged the seal when installed.
Second, I wanted to inspect the wiring connections that were concealed in the belly pan that splits the front and rear axle wiring. When I removed about 4 of the self taping screws for the belly pan I was able to gain access to the wiring connections. They had about an extra 6' of gray brake wire stuffed in there and when I pulled it out and exposed the crimp connection, one of the ground wires pulled out of the crimp sleeve.
on Keystone!
I ended up re-wiring everything, soldered & shrink sleeved all connections.
Upon re-installation, I decided to get a better quality seal. Went to a local bearing distributor and bought Timken shielded double lip seal. Timken part # 412920 in case anyone is interested.
Photo below show the Timken compared to the Dexter seal.
Also, found that the rubber plugs in all the dust caps were deteriorating.
Ordered new ones from Dexter Parts Online. $6.52 for all four and that included shipping.
Just wanted to share my experience here in case anyone is experiencing braking problems, these could be a couple things to look at.