Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 08-09-2017, 02:02 PM   #41
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: North of Seattle, WA
Posts: 17,283
Quote:
Originally Posted by tmfaulksr View Post
last week i purchased a 20-TON jack from harbor freight for $32 with coupon. it picked up my 32' 3-slide 5th wheel easily. my smaller bottle & lever jacks did not pick it up enough. hope this helps
I too carry a 20-T bottle jack. Don't need it for lift capacity but it has a bigger footprint so it's steadier, especially if on softer ground (like a dirt shoulder on a road).
__________________
"A wise man can change his mind. A fool never will." (Japanese Proverb)

"You only grow old when you run out of new things to do"

2018 Flagstaff Micro Lite 25BDS
2023 f-150 SCREW XLT 3.5 Ecoboost (The result of a $68,000 oil change)
TitanMike is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 02:44 PM   #42
Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2017
Posts: 43
But it is my understanding that RV wheel bearings are tapered and the front wheel bearings in my car are not that design, and I suspect that the ones in my car are sealed bearings, not meant to be greased again?
harleybiker is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 03:04 PM   #43
Senior Member
 
DouglasReid's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Maurice, LA
Posts: 4,095
Quote:
Originally Posted by harleybiker View Post
But it is my understanding that RV wheel bearings are tapered and the front wheel bearings in my car are not that design, and I suspect that the ones in my car are sealed bearings, not meant to be greased again?
You are correct, most new cars the front wheels have sealed bearings. My 2008 Silverado has sealed bearings and they cannot be lubed. The camper bearings are tapered and do need to be greased but not every year as I stated in an earlier post. Do them correctly and they are good for 3-5 years. The grease is not consumed
__________________
2012 Wildcat Sterling 32RL, Gladiator Qr35 ST235/85R16 Load rating G, TST 507 TPMS w/ Flow-thru Sensors & Repeater, Reese Sidewinder 16K Pin Box, PI EMS HW50C
2009 Chevy Silverado 2500HD CCSB LTZ Diesel, Fumoto Oil Drain Valve, Turbo Brake activated, 39 gal Aux Tank W/ Fuel Pump transfer, Air Lift Loadlifter 5000 air bags.
DouglasReid is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 03:06 PM   #44
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: North of Seattle, WA
Posts: 17,283
Quote:
Originally Posted by harleybiker View Post
But it is my understanding that RV wheel bearings are tapered and the front wheel bearings in my car are not that design, and I suspect that the ones in my car are sealed bearings, not meant to be greased again?
MOST RV/Trailer bearings are tapered Cone/Race design. Some are sealed just like Front Wheel Drive automotive bearings. The cone/race design is also used on cars, usually on the rear wheels of FWD cars.

Point being, there is no hard and fast rule as to what type bearing, cone/race or sealed, will be applied to RV's. Dexter also has a Nev-R-Lube option on their axles. As the name says, Never Lube however they are not designed to be immersed. This may eventually become the standard for Travel Trailers but not Boat Trailers. The sealed bearings can go for long distances if not subjected to abuse. I sold a FWD vehicle last year that was 25 years old and had 146,000 miles on it. All on the original sealed front bearings. The rear wheels had cone/race bearings and they too were original with only one "re-pack" around 75,000 miles.
__________________
"A wise man can change his mind. A fool never will." (Japanese Proverb)

"You only grow old when you run out of new things to do"

2018 Flagstaff Micro Lite 25BDS
2023 f-150 SCREW XLT 3.5 Ecoboost (The result of a $68,000 oil change)
TitanMike is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 03:52 PM   #45
Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2017
Posts: 43
We travel about 4,500 miles a year with our 5th wheel (12k lbs loaded, 10k shared between 4 wheels (6,000 lb axles), and 2k on the rear of the truck). I have my bearings serviced every 2 years which every agrees should be enough. However with about 6,500 miles on upon leaving Apache Junction AZ this past March, I lost a wheel due to bearing failure. I finally got a mobile truck service company to accompany me on 3 tires 60 miles to their facility and had a new axle installed. I was very impressed, we pulled in to their place at dark on a Monday, and we were back on the road Wednesday at noon. The owner told me that I should jack up each wheel once a year and make sure there was no play in the bearings, something I had not heard or read before after 7 years of camping. The next thing he recommended were to install "bearing buddies". Of course if one has the bearings serviced once a year, hopefully they would catch any looseness in the unit. Then I suppose a bearing can fail for no obvious reason (inferior manufacturing/poor quality control). Live and learn.
harleybiker is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 04:02 PM   #46
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2017
Posts: 297
LOL you guys are too funny. The posters that swear you need to repack by hand period or doom and gloom you will blow a seal...

Nonsense. And there are too many variables.

Show me an instance of a blown seal from over-grease, or greasing using the zerks with standard hand grease gun.

a few variables. What grease are customers using?

Per dexter

1. Grease must be Lithium complex, drop point 419f min,NLGI #2, Viscosity 80 min, and EP, corrosion, and oxidation inhibiters.

2. If hubs are removed with the EZ lube feature its imperative that seals be replaced before bearing lubrication otherwise the chance of grease getting on brakelinings is greatly increased.

3. Wheel/drum/hub needs to be rotated while applying grease

4. And as my video I posted above about loose bearings on a brand new 2018 camper, and no/minimul grease, I bet very few are checking if the bearings have play and are adjusting them accordingly.


The seal is a spring loaded double lip seal design.

I bet some are using the wrong grease, and/or removing the hubs without replacing seal. Such as in doing a brake job..

So how can one possibly make such a statement about the cause of a seal thats " Blown" ???

Paranoia runs deep..

I will grease my ez lube bearings with the zerks exclusively, and will all let you know when I blow a seal..


http://www.dexteraxle.com/docs/defau....pdf?sfvrsn=10
Lawrosa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 04:14 PM   #47
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2017
Posts: 297
Also....


Quote:
Grease slinging out of an inside seal has only one cause, assuming the seal is new and undamaged. Poor quality spindle manufacturing. Does you car throw grease? Your truck? No because the machine work is good on automotive quality spindles. Basically if you look at your spindle it has a raised area at the very back that is taller than the spindle itself. This is the land for the grease seal. It must be perfectly smooth, no scratches, no rust pits, no turning marks from the machine that made it. Mirror smooth. Second it has to be the correct number of thousandths of an inch bigger than the inside diameter of the seal so that the seal is deformed when installed to its designed for use shape. On cars this is never a problem. On traliers you rarely see an axle made well and as such grease can squeeze thru between the defects in the land and the seal. The worst thing is these defects eventually eat the seal and make the leak worse. Once again on your car the land is mirror smooth and does not eat the seal in 200 thousand miles. If you don't want slung grease, check the land. Any hub you buy will have no corrective effect if the land is poor.

And the reason for the spring loaded double lip seal..

Quote:
If the seal is a spring loaded, double lipped seal, it should seal even if the spindle is a couple of thousandths out of round . Also is the spindle worn and needs a wear sleeve to repair any damage that may have been done over the years of wear?
And damage from not checking and adjusting play in the bearings.
Lawrosa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 04:16 PM   #48
Senior Member
 
beechjet16mf's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Fort Peck Lake, MT
Posts: 168
We have been using the Dexter E-Z Lube grease zerks for 4 years now, and use our trailer about 6000 miles a year, and have never had a problem. Follow the Dexter instructions, and no problems. It take me 30 minutes to lube all my axles, with a hand gun, being very carefully about how hard I pump it. You can tell when you have the new grease in it, as by the color of the grease. It will start looking like whats coming out of the hand gun nozzle.
It's a little messy, but, I cut a box to fix under the axle, and let the used grease fall into the box. Simple.
beechjet16mf is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 04:21 PM   #49
Senior Member
 
NMWildcat's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Southern NM
Posts: 9,518
Grease is cheap and I have lots of time. So I repack my bearings every year and inspect brakes and suspension. No worries, no tempting fate, and I catch most problems before they leave me on the side of the road.
__________________
Scott and Liz - Southern NM
2012 Wildcat Sterling 32RL - w/level up (best option ever)
2007 Chevy 2500HD Duramax
Reese Fifth Airborne Sidewinder
NMWildcat is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 04:28 PM   #50
Senior Senior Member
 
raytwntrvlr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Posts: 288
See how you touched a nerve... good question anyway.

Now if you want to see the fur fly just ask whether you really need 4WD or diesel in your new PU.

One last point. I bought a 5 x 10 cargo trailer in 2006. I have pulled that sucker all over the country and finally decided to pack the bearings. I have religiously felt the wheels to see if there was any heat build up and just kept on truckin.
Welp, when I took the hubs apart I found the Chinese bearings on both sides to be in fine condition. So I cleaned them up real good and hand packed them and knocked in new seals and put them back together.

Guess I have been lucky
__________________
2015 Flagstaff Super V 26VFKSS Emerald... SOLD
Now camping with a new SOB Winnebago pulled by a 2021 Ford Ranger.
raytwntrvlr is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 05:14 PM   #51
Member
 
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Texas
Posts: 32
Quote:
Originally Posted by jeffnick View Post
It's not likely you can blow out seals using a hand grease gun with an E-Z Lube axle. The grease you put in the zirk enters the hub behind the inner bearing, pushing existing grease out of the hub around the zirk.

On a TT, once a year is fine. Jack up the wheel and spin it as you pump grease in. Pump until there's grease coming out around the zirk. If the grease coming out looks contaminated (milky, gray or with particles) check the bearings.

Grease is not consumed, so it's not really all that necessary to pump grease into a properly packed bearing, but doing so will possible alert you of an impending bearing failure by allowing you to see what the grease in the hub looks like.

How often do you 'regrease' the front bearings in your car?
I know most RV's say they repack their trailer wheel bearing once a year. But if you properly packed your bearing & going thru the same dust, rain, mud & snow as your front truck bearing. Question: Do you once a year repack the truck bearing? I believe most people do not. Vehicle bearing can go 20,000 - 30,000 miles. So what is the difference in trailer/truck maintenance bearing schedule? If you install a Temp/press Monitor on each tire & use temp gun at each stop. I see no need to repack each year. I agree with jeffnick statement & question.
utahlucky is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 05:18 PM   #52
Senior Member
 
NMWildcat's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Southern NM
Posts: 9,518
Quote:
Originally Posted by utahlucky View Post
I know most RV's say they repack their trailer wheel bearing once a year. But if you properly packed your bearing & going thru the same dust, rain, mud & snow as your front truck bearing. Question: Do you once a year repack the truck bearing? I believe most people do not. Vehicle bearing can go 20,000 - 30,000 miles. So what is the difference in trailer/truck maintenance bearing schedule? If you install a Temp/press Monitor on each tire & use temp gun at each stop. I see no need to repack each year. I agree with jeffnick statement & question.
Again, MOST towables do not use sealed bearings, whereas your truck does. Huge difference.
__________________
Scott and Liz - Southern NM
2012 Wildcat Sterling 32RL - w/level up (best option ever)
2007 Chevy 2500HD Duramax
Reese Fifth Airborne Sidewinder
NMWildcat is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 06:03 PM   #53
Member
 
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Texas
Posts: 32
You are right, most towables do not use seal bearings. With property installed rear seal, cleaned & repacked bearing & nut and grease cap fit tightly, should go at least 20,000 miles. Use of a tire temp/press Monitor & temp gun & once a year jack up & spin each tire & listen for any rough noise & try to move the tire for any major movement should will keep trailer in travel mode.
utahlucky is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 06:04 PM   #54
Member
 
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Texas
Posts: 32
Agree.
utahlucky is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 06:31 PM   #55
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 48
EZ lube axles

I have read through all 6 pages of posts. Many great ideas with how to do this job. I feel confident with using the zerk fittings to lube the axles, Dexter put them there to avoid having to pull the wheels and hand pack them. The only tip I would add to doing this job safely and not damaging the rear seals is to move your trailer for a short distance first, then make sure you are choosing a hot day to do this bearing service, and lastly lay your tubes of grease out into the hot sun before pumping it into the hubs. This will allow the seals to experience less stress when pumping in the new grease as it flows much easier when warm. If you spin the wheels as you pump, then the grease pushes its way into the hubs evenly and smoothly. I lubed my new axles using the zerks soon after buying the trailer. I was shocked to see how much grease went into the hubs before it actually began to push out the old! New axles I think should be lubed soon after purchasing based on my experience.

cseeger22
04 Chevy Suburban Quadrasteer
2016 Wolf Pack 24pack14 Toyhauler
4 Hobie Mirage Revolution kayaks on trailer
LT235/75R15 Nokian Rotiiva AT tires
cseeger22 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-09-2017, 08:48 PM   #56
Jack of All Trades
 
RJHuser's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Williston, Florida
Posts: 317
For those talking replace axle bearings with US made bearings, and specifing Timken, better look real close at the bearings you get. Very, very few small bearings, like your axle bearings, are made in the USA anymore. Even Timken makes many of their tapered roller bearings overseas (China, India) or Mexico especially after Gambrinus was shuttered around ~2012. Further, many of their boxed bearings with "Made in the USA" on them are not. They are assembled in the USA, but not completely made here. The housings/carriers are, but the bearings themselves are made overseas. Only the few still wearing "Timken" and "Made in the USA" on the housing/carrier are made entirely here and the number of those are dwindling.

Rick
__________________
Rick & Debbie; Brandy Schnoodle & Bucky (Dexter & Fritz R.I.P.) the Doxie "Kids"
2015 Jayco Pinnacle 36RSQS 5'er
2018 GMC Sierra Denali 3500HD, 6.6L Diesel Dually; B&W Companion 5'er hitch
ScanGauge, TST 507 TPMS
RJHuser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-10-2017, 01:51 AM   #57
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 236
Dexter EZ Lube axles: lube how often?

I have the buddy bearings in my utility trailers and my Toy Hauler. Just because I'm paranoid, I greased the Toy Hauler wheels the day I bought it, and sure enough, it took an entire tube before they were filled. As far as how frequently, I hand pump grease into the easy lube Zerks before every trip. That means 4-5 times a year and I've never had an issue. I may try to force myself to cut back though after reading this.
rblack22 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-10-2017, 05:33 AM   #58
Member
 
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 50
Quote:
Originally Posted by LLMRPh View Post
What exact grease do you all use? And what kind of jack do you use? I'm a girl and a pharmacist .... not a mechanic! But I am pretty good being a "handy woman" if I know exactly what to do and have the right tools (and good You Tube videos!) ... although I'm not quite picturing myself jacking up my camper. . I have molybdenum grease I used with my brand new grease gun on my Blu Ox hitch zerks! [emoji51]
Go to your local farm supply store and get the best synthetic grease that they have. You will be fine
Charles Allen is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-10-2017, 06:17 AM   #59
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 236
Quote:
Originally Posted by Charles Allen View Post
Go to your local farm supply store and get the best synthetic grease that they have. You will be fine


Tractor Supply Store?
rblack22 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-10-2017, 06:43 AM   #60
Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2017
Posts: 86
Quote:
Originally Posted by rblack22 View Post
I have the buddy bearings in my utility trailers and my Toy Hauler. Just because I'm paranoid, I greased the Toy Hauler wheels the day I bought it, and sure enough, it took an entire tube before they were filled. As far as how frequently, I hand pump grease into the easy lube Zerks before every trip. That means 4-5 times a year and I've never had an issue. I may try to force myself to cut back though after reading this.


Do you jack it up before every trip to grease it? Just curious. I'd love to feel comfortable greasing it via EZ Lube without jacking it and spinning the wheels. But I'm a rule-follower generally speaking.
LLMRPh is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
axle

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Forest River, Inc. or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 08:00 AM.