Wheel Bearing Maintenance Frequency

[RKassl]

OK, here goes. I don't what opinions, I want facts. The last time I had a wheel bearing service was April 2019. That year we put on less than 500 miles and in 2020 less than 400 miles. For the Spring of 2021 is a complete bearing service required. If this virus crap goes away we may hit the road, safety is always a major concern. I just don't want to waste the money if not needed.



Thanks

[Snowwolfe]

It shouldn't be needed. But if you are inclined to do it buy a bearing packer. Makes the job a lot easier.

[jimcol]

Sometimes opinions are better than alleged facts. I have strong opinions based on years of experience. Since I have no facts I guess I have nothing to offer.

[richfaa]

Originally Posted by jimcol

Sometimes opinions are better than alleged facts. I have strong opinions based on years of experience. Since I have no facts I guess I have nothing to offer.

I am with jimcol. We have had a wheel bearing failure on the Montana on I 95 returning from Florida. It was not a good experience. We have the maint done every year at the fall rally

[Hblick48]

If it was me, I'd skip checking, less than 1,000 miles on them.

Just did mine last week. Had less than 6,000 miles and 2 years since new bearings installed. Grease was dirty and one outer bearing was discolored, so I replaced it. Even with bearing packer it's a dirty nasty job.

[DadsHemi]

I put about a 1000 miles on mine before I used the easy lube, I just pulled all 4 and repacked them and replaced all the seals and it was a good thing I did. I had 1 factory damaged seal that grease was getting by and 1 hub that was loose. All the bearings need to be repacked and properly tightened. Also found a magnet wire issue. For got to say I have a total of 4,000 miles on our 5th.

[Hblick48]

Originally Posted by DadsHemi

I put about a 1000 miles on mine before I used the easy lube, I just pulled all 4 and repacked them and replaced all the seals and it was a good thing I did. I had 1 factory damaged seal that grease was getting by and 1 hub that was loose. All the bearings need to be repacked and properly tightened. Also found a magnet wire issue. For got to say I have a total of 4,000 miles on our 5th.

Been said 10,000 times on this forum....NEVER USE THE E-Z LUBE! If you do, you'll need to pull the drums to make sure grease didn't make it past the seal.

[DadsHemi]

Originally Posted by Hblick48

Been said 10,000 times on this forum....NEVER USE THE E-Z LUBE! If you do, you'll need to pull the drums to make sure grease didn't make it past the seal.

It was past the seal because the seal was damaged from the factory, the other 3 had no grease that got past them.

[rohrmann]

The other reason to pull the drums off is to inspect the brakes. Can’t do that with the E-Z Lube. If you haven’t put many miles on the rig, every couple of years would be OK. All this assuming your brakes are good. In the spring of 2019, I was inspecting and packing the bearings. Found one brake assembly totally destroyed and had no evidence that there was a problem. The parts inside were completely ground up inside the drum. That’s the real reason to periodically pull the drums, annually is recommended by Dexter.

[Khanscel]

You are correct with electric brakes. I have found problems every year I do them with my Dexter brakes which are supposed to be warranted for 5 years. But good luck getting someone to reply from dexter. Even my friends trailer repair shop can’t get them to reply

[beeje]

Originally Posted by Hblick48

Been said 10,000 times on this forum....NEVER USE THE E-Z LUBE! If you do, you'll need to pull the drums to make sure grease didn't make it past the seal.

I completely disagree with that statement. If you do it correctly you should not have any issues. I have had 3 different trailers since 2006 and all have had the EZ lube. We travel around 3-4k per year. Every spring I would jack up each wheel and pump 30-40 pumps of grease in while rotating the wheel. Never had any issues with bearings of seals. Never repacked bearings on any of them. And before you say it, my current trailer has disc brakes, so the seals are visible from behind. No grease past the seals in 5 years.

[beeje]

Also, in June of this year we had the IS installed at Mor ryde and the bearings looked perfect. I know for a fact that that the camper has been towed around 70k miles and the bearing are original. I did opt to replace them with new Timkin bearings anyway, just cause it made since since it was already apart.

[Al & Sandy]

So, beeje stated that he would "pump 30-40 pumps of grease in while rotating the wheel" and speedster100 said that he would "pump about 3 shots of grease" into the ezlube. What is a good amount of grease to pump into the ezlube?

[beeje]

Originally Posted by Al S.

So, beeje stated that he would "pump 30-40 pumps of grease in while rotating the wheel" and speedster100 said that he would "pump about 3 shots of grease" into the ezlube. What is a good amount of grease to pump into the ezlube?

I don't know what the correct number is but it's certainly not 3.

[jeffba]

If you want only facts, what does your manual say on the subject?

[beeje]

Originally Posted by jeffba

If you want only facts, what does your manual say on the subject?

If you're talking about a keystone manual that is about as worthless as tits on a bull. I did question a few people at Mor ryde about that subject and most stated for someone who only travels 2 to 4000 miles a year you can easily go three to five years as long as the bearings are packed correctly from the get-go

[jeffba]

Originally Posted by beeje

If you're talking about a keystone manual that is about as worthless as tits on a bull. I did question a few people at Mor ryde about that subject and most stated for someone who only travels 2 to 4000 miles a year you can easily go three to five years as long as the bearings are packed correctly from the get-go

Dexter Manual

[Jester]

Dexter web site has videos in detailed for those who has difficulty understanding what they read.
Besides that, has anyone ever looked at a seal?
The engineers did a fine job on designing it.
It’s designed in such a way that as pressure is applied to the inside , the rubber portion of the seal gets tighter on the axle. Therefore become more effective.
Again, if the seal is new or relatively new it should work fine.
You run the risk of damaging the seal by checking the bearing.
So many opinions based on only members personal experience . I’ll stick the the company instructions . They’re the ones that spent millions of dollars for their engineers on research and development.
Does that sound like a better idea.

[Ram Montana High Country]

I have a local shop - less than $150 ... annual for me regardless on mileage. Cheap insurance

[mtlakejim]

Originally Posted by Ram Montana High Country

I have a local shop - less than $150 ... annual for me regardless on mileage. Cheap insurance

I checked one shop nearby (that I would trust to do it right) and they were close to $400. But I do have a triple axle.

At that price I was starting to think about pulling up to Indiana to get the IS and disc brakes installed. $400 is a good start on paying for same.