Wheels in front axels much hotter then rear axels ...

Goomph · 08-03-2011, 05:35 PM

I recently found out that the front axel (well wheels in the front axel) are much hotter then the rear axel ... I am guessing that the front axel are doing majority of the breaking and the rear brakes needs to be slightly adjusted.

Did anyone experience the same thing ? Do you check your wheels when you stop for gas refueling tea/coffee breaks etc ?

backin15 · 08-03-2011, 05:55 PM

I always check the temp of the tires and hubs when I stop after a long pull. I think it is a quick and easy indication of the health of the component.
Do you have the independent torsion flex axels or leaf springs? If you have the torsion flex they do not equalize the load between the axels and the nose of the trailer may be too low causing the front axel to have more weight on it than the rear.
If not the brakes certainly could be the cause, you could also be lacking grease in the hubs. When I serviced my hubs for the first time I was surprised how much grease they took and how far out of adjustment the brakes were.

Goomph · 08-03-2011, 06:08 PM

Thanks for the quick answer ...

They are torsion axels. The trailer is sitting very level .... I doubt that the bearings need to be repacked as it is only a year old ... But one never knows. When I bring it home from storage, which is maybe 3 miles I can feel the heat difference easily. I think I should stop without braking and see if it is caused by the brakes or by simply rolling.

I noticed this only recently, when the trailer was brand new we traveled a lot but both front and rear wheels were same temperature when I touched them. Of course that means nothing

LOL

crocus · 08-03-2011, 06:46 PM

Have you greased the axle bearings?
I imagine you have the grease nipples under the little rubber caps on the wheel hubs?

youroo · 08-03-2011, 07:04 PM

If the wheels heat up in (3) miles your have other issues,E brake pulled,very low tires,bearing need replaced? You need to get your hands dirty.

Youroo!!

Goomph · 08-03-2011, 07:16 PM

They do not get HOT HOT in three miles ... just that the front gets relatively warmer than the rears ..... I got a temperature reader today, I will see what the temperatures are this coming weekend. I sure hope it is not both the bearings in a trailer one year old

I will check if there are grease nipples ... E-brake is not pulled, I checked that .... And it would heat up all four wheels equally if that was the case not just the front ones.

Thanks for the opinions folks .... Looks like I believe I will have to get a nice jack and take of those wheels and look inside the drums and see what is going on and repack the bearings .... So much fun * 4

How do we jack these things up which has a torsion axle again ?

crocus · 08-03-2011, 08:18 PM

The best way to jack up a trailer with the torsion axles is to use a hydraulic jack. I put it between the wheels, jacking under the subframe that carries the axles. I also put a foot-long solid bar between the jack and the frame to distribute the weight a bit. Those subframes are not very heavy-duty, to say the least. I'd hate to bend something.

backin15 · 08-04-2011, 12:11 AM

You probably have Ultra Lube axels. If so there will be a grease fitting under a rubber cover in the center of the hub. Check out the sticky in the general tech and repair section of the forum. Mine was only a year old and took 2 tubes of grease!

DAISY BOYKIN · 08-04-2011, 04:30 AM

First adjust all four wheel brakes, if that does not increase the heat distribution to all four wheels. You may have a bad brake magnet in one of the rear wheels.

I had mine in the shop four time before the problem was found over 3000 miles of travel. The right rear brake system had a bad magnet.

Good luck on your brake trouble shooting problem.

jimh · 08-04-2011, 08:27 AM

post #2 really covers it.
if u read the post abt ultra lube axles, u will find that the factory greases those bearings sparingly.
i would be more inclined to go along with the grease or weight distribution as being the cause of the temp (i'm thinking more here abt the trailer riding a little lower in front putting more laod on the axles. ur post says that is fine). the brakes can be out of adjustment and work fine; the magnets will just travel a little farther. on the newer trailers (sense my 2002), u may also have self adjusting brakes.

jimh · 08-04-2011, 08:36 AM

oh, the reference to repacking seems to be taken to mean pump grease into the axle until fresh grease comes out around the nut. i always thought of it as taring down, cleaning and hand packing. that is still the way i do it but i add a couple of shots of grease every couple pulls as insurance.
when u pump grease in, it goes in between seal and inside bearing. read how others have done this. the key word is slowly. believe the procedure is a sticky under general tech and repair.

**Herk7769** · 08-04-2011, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by backin15

I always check the temp of the tires and hubs when I stop after a long pull. I think it is a quick and easy indication of the health of the component.

Times Two

I touch the hubs (not the caps) with a finger tip. They should be warm to the touch but not hot. If one is hotter than the other three it means a brake or breaing is having a problem.

Goomph · 08-04-2011, 10:45 AM

Warm to the touch the front ones are NOT ..... More like hot to the touch ... After a long trip, they were almost untouchable ...

Bearings to be greased to start with .... Sigh .... I am glad I check them every time I take her out .... Now I am worried the bearings might have died ....

**Herk7769** · 08-04-2011, 10:52 AM

The bearings may be "over tight" or you could have dragging brakes on that axle.

SaskCampers · 08-04-2011, 11:05 AM

Our unit is a year old and it amazed me how much grease I put in the EZ lubes. Also the brakes were wayyy out of adjustment. I carry a digital temp gun and check the truck and trailer tires and the trailer hubs every time we stop for the 2 minutes it takes.

Goomph · 08-04-2011, 11:20 AM

I can't see the bearing getting tighter, will they ? .... in my previous checks they were all same temperature, well more or less, nothing to alarm me ...

I guess it is one of these three :

Lack of grease ....

Brakes started to stick and are dragging ...

Bearings are shot for some reason .....(lack of grease most probably)

My plan of action is,

Grease the heck out of all four ....
Take her for a 15 minute ride and stop without using brakes
Measure the temperature and make comparisons ... (I purchased a temperature reader)

- if the front temperatures are higher, take apart the front bearing and do whatever is needed.

- if the temperature is more or less same for all four, it is not bearings
take her for another ride and use the brakes liberally and take a temperature
- if the front temperature is higher it is the brakes, take care of it.
- if the temperature is more or less the same, all it needed was some grease.

Of course latest next spring I have to take the whole thing apart and check regardless because of this ...

How does it sound ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by herk7769

The bearings may be "over tight" or you could have dragging brakes on that axle.

**Herk7769** · 08-04-2011, 11:24 AM

The "over tight" would have been when the bearings were installed. There is a cotter key (or fold up tab) that prevents the castellated nut from turning once the nut is properly installed.

Lack of grease (or baked on grease) means you need to pull the wheels on that axle; inspect; repack; and reinstall them. Use care when you fill your EZ lube hubs to you do not pop the rear seal and get grease on your brakes.

Goomph · 08-04-2011, 11:35 AM

Oh ok, you are saying it must have been overtightened at install time. Since this issue developed recently, that is not the case then. That's what I was trying to get at. Unless the cutter pins were somehow sheared .... Possibilities are endless

I need a 12 ton hydraulic jack ! I know where they sell them dirt cheap

Quote:

Originally Posted by herk7769

The "over tight" would have been when the bearings were installed. There is a cotter key (or fold up tab) that prevents the castellated nut from turning once the nut is properly installed.

Lack of grease (or baked on grease) means you need to pull the wheels on that axle; insect; repack; and reinstall them. Use care when you fill your EZ lube hubs to you do not pop the rear seal and get grease on your brakes.

**Herk7769** · 08-04-2011, 12:02 PM

12 ton? 24,000 pounds might be overkill.

You are only lifting half the camper at any given time.
A 6 ton bottle jack can lift 12,000 pounds (plenty for a 15,000 pound camper).

I am sure you know, but use shoring under the jack to prevent sinking into the asphalt and a short square metal bar to distribute the lifting force along a section of frame (to prevent spot overloading).

Support the axles with appropriately rated jack stands BEFORE you get under any part of the camper.

jimh · 08-04-2011, 12:20 PM

if u jack up the wheel, rotate it, and wiggle it. if u can feel any play, i wouldn't expect it to be too tight.
if u can hold ur hand on the bearing housing, it more than likely is ok. i forgot where that magic temp is that u can't hold u hand on something hot...it seems like it is somewhere around 120 or 130 F.
the bearings on each axle on mine run different temp. if each hub on the same axle is running abt the same, i would suspect the load and not be concerned. i wouldn't think u would have both bearings fail.

try the grease first before u disassemble anything. that will most likely solve ur problem. before u add the grease, read the post abt ultra lube axles in the general tech and repair section on this forum.
if u actually get to the point of disassemble, keep in mind that that is going to disturb the seal. sense it is a yr old, i wouldn't try and reuse the seal if u disturb it. when u retighten the nut, u want to snug the nut while rotating then back off 1/4 to 1/2 turn to allow for expansion. on mine, i went 1/4th then a little more till i could line up the carter pin.

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