Axle Bearings Revisited: Could I be SO LUCKY? Now BRAKES?

[ron]

[p]I finally read thru some of my saved material.  [ Info I got when I purchase my LivinLite/first trailer ever], and now I think I have determined the following.  [ I was overwhelmed with all the material so the axle manual did not get read until now ............. actually I did not know I even had it. ] [/p][p]
[/p][p]My Dexter Axle number is 3284459.  This is on a paper sticker on both axles.  I did not do a complete check looking for numbers stamped into the steel. [/p][p]
[/p][p]My axles have a little chrome cover on the wheel hub that can easily be pried off, and inside it reveals a black rubber cover.  [/p][p]
[/p][p]Question one:  Should I pry these off and then use a grease gun and insert lithium grease?     The manual says to do this, while rotating the tires, until the old grease is forced out around the grease fitting?  I also know to get the tires off the ground and check for smoothness, side to side motion, etc.  [/p][p]
[/p][p]Question two:  HOW does this look and feel?  Are we talking a pump or two on my mini grease gun, or several pumps?  I have 3000 miles and 15 months on the trailer.[/p][p]
[/p][p]Question three:  Can I blow something out with just normal pressure, and not being overly stupid? [/p][p]
[/p][p]Question Four:  If all of the above is correct, and done properly, does this mean that I DO NOT have to do that inner and outer bearing total removal, knocking out the inner bearing, and packing them with grease and such?    If this is yes, I do not have to do that, you will probably hear a Tennessee yell over the mountains. [/p][p]
[/p][p]I vaguely remember doing this when I was a kid to very old cars.  [/p][p]
[/p][p]I have this basic question into my dealer, but I wanted to try and get this verified by this great group. [/p][p]
[/p][p]A tentative ................. YIPPEE!!! [/p][p]
[/p][p][strong]Oh yes, BRAKES[/strong].  If one drives very gently, anticipating stops and using brakes minimally while towing, and not driving in the Alps---------- how many miles can one expect on a set of brake shoes?  25,000 or more, just like a car?  [/p][p]
[/p][p]Many thanks to Charlie and all. Exploring Carolina:  was this what you tried to tell me at the rally at TableRock SP?  I was just too overwhelmed to take this in at the time.  [/p]

[solds88]

[p]Ron,[/p][p]
[/p][p]1) Yes, you must remove the black rubber covers in order to grease the bearings. I also recommend that you watch the EZ LUBE video again as it shows you exactly what to do.[/p][p]
[/p][p]2) More than several pumps. If you are going to use a mini cartridge, have more than a few on hand. I use a large grease gun, like the one in the video. [/p][p]
[/p][p]3) Yes, it is possible to blow out a grease seal if you do this in cold weather. The manual don't tell you this, but it is much better to do this in hot weather. Also, leave your grease in the sun to soften it up. Slowly pump in the grease as you rotate the wheel. [/p][p]
[/p][p]4) How long before the bearings need to be replaced?? A month, a year, 10 years?? This is difficult to answer. Proper greasing does not guarantee long bearing life. Chinese bearings suck, at best. I have found blue bearing rollers ( an indication of poor tempering or inferior steel ?) in axels that were full of grease and had been properly maintained. The main reason to check them periodically is to minimize the chance of having a bearing problem in the middle of the desert, on a Sunday afternoon. I know that this is not the answer you wanted to hear, but........... [/p][p]
[/p][p]Brakes, I have never tallied the mileage, I just inspect periodically and replace as needed. Some of the other members may have a handle on this?            [/p]

[joanne]

Brakes: I'm at around 15,000 miles on my axles and brakes, but most of the miles are highway (MN<->UT). The brakes look fine to me. I would expect 25k miles or more.

Bearings: I don't use the grease fittings at all - I figure that the risk of introducing incompatible grease, bits of crud/dirt, or of messing up the seals is too high; and even with added grease, I still want to pull the drums off and inspect the bearings and brakes one every year or two anyway. The grease from the original packing or your re-packing will outlast your inspection interval, so I see no need to add grease through the zerk.

FWIW, I've repacked each bearing once during the 3.5 years and 15,000 miles since new. None of the bearing needed grease or re-pack, but because the hubs were off for inspection anyway, I re-packed them. At 11,000 miles swapped one bearing as a precaution - it had a slightly different surface texture. Odds are it was still good though.

I never re-use seals though - if I pull off the hub for any reason, I replace the seal.

[ron]

Actually, I just watched a few YouTube videos an d it looks as if I need to flush out the old grease, thus the recommendation from James for several tubes.  Thanks.

If this is incorrect, please let me know.

To Michael, thanks for reply, but removal of bearings is probably beyond my ability at this point.  I would like to pay and see an expert do it first.

[tinkeringtechie]

Doing a repack is the only way that you can actually inspect the bearings. It's also a much more effective way to remove the old grease. I suppose pumping in more grease would be better than nothing, but it's not the best solution.

Think of the "EZ" method like changing the oil in your tow vehicle by just pumping in new oil until the oil spilling out the top doesn't look black anymore. There are still contaminants in the oil pan and you can't swap out the filter unless you drain it (similar to how you can't swap out the seal).

If you're going to put in the effort to jack up the trailer wheel it only adds like 15 minutes per wheel to pull the hub off and repack. Another issue with going the "EZ-lube" route is that you'll use way more grease and end up with grease in places that it doesn't need to be (like through the entire spindle cavity).