Grease gun dexter ez lube axle

[pdqparalegal1]

Couldn’t help my self—-read all 4 pages. I love a good food fight! ��. Opinions bring out the best in everyone.

[mmgolfmiester]

X2

[pgandw]

Geoff

Thank you for the summation of steps. My personal preference remains for the hand repack, although I have used the EZ-lube method when I felt short of time. However, I don't like dealing with a hub full of grease later. And sooner or later, the wheel has to be removed to physically check the brake pads.

I agree that replacing and properly seating the rear seal is key to the longevity of the work when the wheel gets removed. Thanks again.

Fred W

[BuzzWolfAR]

Because of the "seal" hysteria, I pulled the hubs to look for grease. Never found any.

Love my Dexter EZ lube bearings. I am as non-mechanical as they get. Used a manual grease gun and rotated the tires the whole time.

Had to have a friend pull the hubs, as I didn't know how.

[wrvond]

Originally Posted by wabakami

Ok, the OP sounds possibly like he/she is a nube. You "pull the hubs and pack the bearings" types make it sound so easy and clean. They are asking you for guidance.

<snip>

Geoff
.

Actually, the OP was having trouble getting the coupler to click onto the zerk fitting and asked what he was doing wrong. He never asked about repacking, removing, spinning, or anything else that (in typical forum fashion) has been beaten to death in the ensuing 45 or so posts.

[babock]

Originally Posted by raytwntrvlr

20 to 30 minutes?? You must be a mechanic. That's pretty fast.

Please post a video sometime. I would love to see your technique.

Been doing this with trailers since I was 15 and I am 59 now so yes, I am fast.

By the time you get out the Jack and pump the grease in, I already have the wheel off.

Yes, I always replace the seal.

If you are not inspecting the bearings, you aren't really doing the complete job. Similar to people who think doing a brake job is a pad slap.

I don't care if it takes an hour per wheel. Some times, doing a COMPLETE job takes longer than the EZ way.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by BriaBeck

Are you guys pumping in a tube of grease EVERY time? Or just initially to get the hub filled?

Just to fill the hub the first time.

Bearings are probably just given a spatula full of grease in the races when assembled. Extra grease is needed first time with grease gun to fill rest of hub so fresh grease is forced out to outer bearing. Unless driving with axles under water chances are the grease isnt getting contaminated and even annual "grease jobs" on the EZ Lube hubs is overkill. Think about how often the wheel bearings on a car/pickup need re-packing. Usually only done at time brakes are rebuilt. Every 40-50 thousand miles on most. (2 wd vehicles.)

[babock]

So for the EZ lube only people, how often do you pull the drums and inspect your brakes or do you guys think they last forever?

[babock]

Originally Posted by TitanMike

Just to fill the hub the first time.

Bearings are probably just given a spatula full of grease in the races when assembled. Extra grease is needed first time with grease gun to fill rest of hub so fresh grease is forced out to outer bearing. Unless driving with axles under water chances are the grease isnt getting contaminated and even annual "grease jobs" on the EZ Lube hubs is overkill. Think about how often the wheel bearings on a car/pickup need re-packing. Usually only done at time brakes are rebuilt. Every 40-50 thousand miles on most. (2 wd vehicles.)

Most vehicles these days don't have repack able bearings.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by babock

Most vehicles these days don't have repack able bearings.

Certainly not front wheels on fwd cars but the rear wheels often still use the old cup and cone roller bearing style on tears. Fronts on 2wd pickups too but 4wd's are sealed.

Depends on what kind of vehicle you have.

Chevy Silverado 2500HD which is pretty popular still uses "packable" front wheel bearings on 2WD's.

[wrvond]

Originally Posted by babock

So for the EZ lube only people, how often do you pull the drums and inspect your brakes or do you guys think they last forever?

My owner's manual says:
Bearing grease should be replaced every 12,000 miles or 12 months, whichever comes first. Remove all old grease from wheel hub and bearings first. Bearings should be packed by machine if possible. Packing bearings by machine is preferable; however, packing by hand is a viable alternative.
Brake magnets should be inspected every six months/6,000 miles.
Brake linings should be inspected every 12 months/12,000 miles.


As an aside:


Recommended Wheel Bearing Lubrication Specifications

Thickener Type - Lithium Complex
Dropping Point - 446*F Minimum
Consistency - NLGI No. 2
Additives - EP, Corrosion & Oxidation Inhibitors
Base oil - Solvent Refined Petroleum Oil
Base Oil Viscosity - 104*F+695 SUS Minimum
Viscosity Index - 80 Minimum
Pour Point - 14*F Minimum


Approved Sources:

Mobil Oil - Mobilgrease HP
Exxon/Standard - Ronex MP
Kendall Refining Co. - Kendall L-427
Ashland Oil Co. - Valvoline Val-plex EP Grease
Pennzoil Prod. Co. - Premium Wheel Bearing Grease 707L


Personally, I use Nitro Lubricants Red Lithium Complex Grease - https://www.amazon.com/Nitro-Lubrica.../dp/B01NAM6GYI

[JohnD10]

One thing we all need to watch out for...

My previous 2013 TT, when brand new and before I took it anywhere I hauled it to a local tire store (Big O) to get the tires balanced, which of course is not done to our trailers unless we have it done ourselves.

I stood there to stuporvize the job just to make sure the tire 'expert' didn't jack the trailer up by the axle (which he would have done had I not stopped him from doing so).

And then I witnessed him grab the air-powered grease gun to to give each hub a blast of grease...to which I stopped him again!

My point is this...

Unless you are having a real shop that you trust do anything with your axles...stand there and watch every move they make!




Footnote:

That very same TT did have a wheel bearing burnout not long after being 'OK'ed' by my dealership at just under 4000 miles and barely 2 years old that almost resulted in a marshmallow roast on the 101 bypass around Phoenix near Grand Avenue and when all was said and done turned into a $4000+ repair (and extended warranty refused to cover) and also was the end of the line for that camper and my friendship.

Traded it in (at a different dealership, of course) one week after getting it fixed for my current 5'ver!

[wrvond]

Somebody earlier mentioned the lack of "first hand" brake contamination. I have first hand experience with this:.


A big believer in the EZ Lube axles, I religiously added grease through the zerk fitting on all four wheels. Followed instructions precisely - raised wheel, rotated wheel, used mechanical grease gun, slowly operated lever, etc.
Then one day, in the mirror, I noticed the front driver's side tire smoking every time I stepped on the brake. As soon as I got home I pulled that drum for inspection. Couldn't find anything wrong with it. Pulled the other three hubs and found each was absolutely coated inside with grease. Of note here is that even though grease was apparently getting past the seal, it was still coming out around the hub, too.
Took everything down to parade rest, cleaned every surface, replaced the seals and brake shoes. Packed the bearings by hand using Nitro Red Lithium, lubricated the springs, pins, magnets, etc. with white lithium grease as per the manual, and everything has been fine since.


I inspected the seals very closely and could find no cuts, nicks, tears or deformation of any kind on any of them. Grease that was injected was warm, ambient temperature was usually 78*F or higher.

Since I have to pull the drums to inspect the brakes and magnets each year, I just set aside a day to go through all four wheels and repack the bearings by hand. Reassembly is very straightforward with little opportunity for error - tighten castle nut to 50 lb-ft., back castle nut off, tighten to finger tight, insert cotter pin - if cotter pin hole and castle nut don't line up, back castle nut off until cotter pin can be inserted.

[BriaBeck]

Originally Posted by babock

So for the EZ lube only people, how often do you pull the drums and inspect your brakes or do you guys think they last forever?

That's a little snarky there, don't you think?


Look, you can do whatever you want to. It's your time, your labor, your materials, your money. No skin off my back.



If doing a full teardown every 12 months or 3000 miles floats your boat, happy sailing.


I just trust in life experience, confidence in the engineers that designed the system, and carefully observing the performance of the system to guide me on when a teardown is warranted. If everything is working well, why do you need to tear it all apart? Now, if it gets up to 30K miles and it's never been apart, I might decide to dive in and take a look just to see what's going on... but having been in aviation as an airline pilot for the past 30ish years, I know that the mechanics cause more problems by doing inspections than anything else. If my airplane has just come out of an inspection, I can almost guarantee there is going to be a malfunction somewhere.


If it ain't broke, don't fix it.



Have a great day

[babock]

Originally Posted by BriaBeck

That's a little snarky there, don't you think?


Look, you can do whatever you want to. It's your time, your labor, your materials, your money. No skin off my back.



If doing a full teardown every 12 months or 3000 miles floats your boat, happy sailing.


I just trust in life experience, confidence in the engineers that designed the system, and carefully observing the performance of the system to guide me on when a teardown is warranted. If everything is working well, why do you need to tear it all apart?


Have a great day

It was a question. I am not saying it has to be every year.

If you really trust the engineers that designed it, why not follow the owners manual that says to take off the hubs and inspect the brakes and repack the bearings. You have read the Lippert owners manual right?

[BriaBeck]

Actually, I have Dexter axles.


And, do you faithfully follow all of the owners manual recommendations on each and every one of your pieces of equipment?


When was the last time you changed your brake fluid in all of your vehicles? Do you faithfully follow that schedule?


If you do, kudos to you...

[JohnD10]

Originally Posted by BriaBeck

Actually, I have Dexter axles.

You do know who owns Dexter Axle...right?

If not I'll tell you...

Lippert!

[babock]

Originally Posted by BriaBeck

Actually, I have Dexter axles.


And, do you faithfully follow all of the owners manual recommendations on each and every one of your pieces of equipment?


When was the last time you changed your brake fluid in all of your vehicles? Do you faithfully follow that schedule?


If you do, kudos to you...

Change brake fluid every 2 years and that includes boat trailers with hydraulic brakes. ABS systems are so expensive on certain cars, why would you not do it.

And yes, I follow the recommended intervals at a minimum. In fact, usually exceed.

[dieselguy]

wabakami … sorry for taking so long to reply. My son works on RV's in the KCMO area … my brother in the Tulsa area. I work on them on the side in the Wichita area. One our most repeated jobs is replacing brake linings on TT's and fivers that have been soaked in grease by owners or a few dealerships attempting to use the EZ Lube invention. If you read back, I didn't say the invention does not work … I just don't care for the odds of success nor do I care for pressing used grease into the front bearing. Some owners are at ease with the placebo that 4 or 5 pumps from the grease gun 2-3 times a year keeps them rolling down the road … you and I both know 5 pumps doesn't get you anywhere with the EZ Lube. I'm glad you and others chiming in here have had good luck with it. Like also mentioned … we're getting a bit astray from the OP's intent. "Not SO EZ Lube" always draws a good crowd of combatants.

[BriaBeck]

Originally Posted by babock

Change brake fluid every 2 years and that includes boat trailers with hydraulic brakes. ABS systems are so expensive on certain cars, why would you not do it.

And yes, I follow the recommended intervals at a minimum. In fact, usually exceed.

Well, good on you!!


Here's your Gold Star!