Learned my lesson the expensive way

[Scrapper]

Originally Posted by Larry-NC

That wasn't a joke. In the 60s it wasn't unusual to clean bearings or other greasy parts with gasoline. And we really did clean contaminated brake shoes that way--and they worked fine. I have done it to my own cars in those days. Yes, we do know better now.

Those were also the days when brake shoes (for drum brakes, of course) contained asbestos and the neighborhood auto parts stores would "arc" them to match the curvature of your freshly machined brake drum. And the machinist had no face mask on--and might have been smoking. Nowadays the shoes are asbestos-free and you can't even find anyone that has the machine to do it. You just install the shoes and wait for them to wear to match the drum.

Larry

I wasn't joking either.

If you put ball bearings in a muffler, it'll make one heck of a racket. If you have the right size muffler and bearing it will make it whistle.

Put a spark plug at the tail pipe on a car made before catalytic converters, then connect a ignition coil to the plug with a switch. When your driving down the road turn the switch on you'll shoot flames out the pipe.

I thought every shade-tree mechanic knew those tricks.

[Skyliner]

OP, I don't think what happened was a mistake. I'm of the opinion that your seal was failing anyway.

With that said, I drive my trailer for about 10-15 miles before I regrease them to make sure the old grease is warmed up and easier to push out.

I manually pump the grease in VERY slowly and if I don't see grease almost immediately then I stop and pull the hub and manually repack them and check the seals and bearings

I only grease my bearings every 2 years and haven't had a problem yet though many do it annually.

Packing bearings by hand sucks but this tool really helps me get it done right https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_877850_877850?cm_mmc=Google-pla&utm_source=Google_PLA&utm_medium=Automotive%20 >%20Engine%20%2B%20Automotive%20Repair%20Tools&utm _campaign=Lisle&utm_content=158100&gclid=EAIaIQobC hMIqpOxmcSf2gIVR7nACh3CdAAmEAQYBSABEgLMEvD_BwE

[timfromma]

Originally Posted by Skyliner

OP, I don't think what happened was a mistake. I'm of the opinion that your seal was failing anyway.

With that said, I drive my trailer for about 10-15 miles before I regrease them to make sure the old grease is warmed up and easier to push out.

I manually pump the grease in VERY slowly and if I don't see grease almost immediately then I stop and pull the hub and manually repack them and check the seals and bearings

I only grease my bearings every 2 years and haven't had a problem yet though many do it annually.

Packing bearings by hand sucks but this tool really helps me get it done right https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_877850_877850?cm_mmc=Google-pla&utm_source=Google_PLA&utm_medium=Automotive%20 >%20Engine%20%2B%20Automotive%20Repair%20Tools&utm _campaign=Lisle&utm_content=158100&gclid=EAIaIQobC hMIqpOxmcSf2gIVR7nACh3CdAAmEAQYBSABEgLMEvD_BwE

My camper is only 2 years old so I'd like to think the seals didn't wear out on their own.

[andymil]

I checked my brakes last fall and after putting each drum back on, I used the EZ lube. I pumped the grease in slowly while turning the drum.

After following this thread, I had to know if this was a mistake. Today I pulled all 4 drums and all seals were in place and no grease got past any of the seals.

The trailer is sold and waiting for the new owner to pick it up, but since I had time to check them, I feel better knowing he won’t be heading down the road with grease on the brakes.

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by andymil

I checked my brakes last fall and after putting each drum back on, I used the EZ lube. I pumped the grease in slowly while turning the drum.

After following this thread, I had to know if this was a mistake. Today I pulled all 4 drums and all seals were in place and no grease got past any of the seals.

The trailer is sold and waiting for the new owner to pick it up, but since I had time to check them, I feel better knowing he won’t be heading down the road with grease on the brakes.

I've never used a grease gun on wheel bearings, and I don't think I would ever do so on a hub with drum brakes, but I have a question:

How do you know when to stop? Too little and the inside bearing isn't refreshed. Too much and you might push a seal out or push grease past it. What is the magic method to know when to stop?

Larry

[PhoneDude 8289]

Originally Posted by Larry-NC

I've never used a grease gun on wheel bearings, and I don't think I would ever do so on a hub with drum brakes, but I have a question:

How do you know when to stop? Too little and the inside bearing isn't refreshed. Too much and you might push a seal out or push grease past it. What is the magic method to know when to stop?

Larry

Guess you could alternate color of grease.

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by PhoneDude 8289

Guess you could alternate color of grease.

There are two reasons I wouldn't want to do that.

1. When you have pumped enough grease to see the color change, you have already pumped a bunch into the brake drum.
2. Wheel-bearing greases are produced from a couple of different bases. They are not compatible. If they are mixed, the lubrication quality is substantially reduced. If you don't know what grease was used, or you have to change greases, you are advised to wash all the old grease off and repack from scratch.

Larry

[andymil]

When pumping grease into the EZ lube axle, the inside bearing is the first to get “refreshed”. The grease enters the cavity between the seal and the inner bearing. This is why pumping the grease too fast can push the seal out. It goes through the inner bearing then moves to the outer bearing. When grease is pushing past the axle nut, there is enough grease in the hub (possibly too much).

If you want to completely change the grease, you should disassemble the hub and clean the axle, the inside of the hub and the bearings. Then either repack everything by hand or use the EZ lube. From now on, if I use the EZ lube, I will pull the drum off after I’m done pumping grease in, just to make sure the seal didn’t get pushed out or grease didn’t get past the seal.

I also wipe excess from around the nut and leave the cap empty to allow for a little expansion.