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LL QS 10.0 GREASING THE BEARINGS

Started by knc1014, June 09, 2016, 01:20:33 PM

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knc1014

We have had our camper for almost a year now.  Made about 6 local camping trips over the past year.  Again they were all local.  The farthest one was just over 100 miles away.  But we are getting ready to take it on a 650 mile trip each way.  We will add grease to the bearings prior to leaving, but does anyone know if we are suppose to grease them while traveling?   They are the regular 12" little tires on it.  I have seen some say that they grease them every 6-8000 miles.  But when traveling 650 highway miles all in the same day, will they need to be greased while traveling like this?  Speeds 70 miles an hour, do I need to be worried about them heating up?  Or should they be ok until we get to our destination?

I looked in the manual, and it says nothing other than to have it serviced once per year.  We have a boat trailer that we grease often but that is completely different since it gets dipped in the water and never travels farther than about 30 miles at a time.

Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated!  We are super excited about this trip!!  Unfortunately I will be traveling alone with a child and to be stuck on the side of the road really isn't in my plans.   ;)

sandyu

I just grease them well at the start of the year. I've taken mine across the country and back a couple times no problem.

No worries, you have about as maintenance free camper as you can get.

catmanriff

good question. My 10.0 is almost a year old. Is there a grease nipple there to use a gun on? I haven't looked

daplumbr

If you have the Dexter Torsion axles with the E-Z lube hubs, here is the info on what to do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XT0RKDGgDm8


daplumbr

[quote source="/post/22026/thread" author="@knc1014" timestamp="1465489233"]We have had our camper for almost a year now.  Made about 6 local camping trips over the past year.  Again they were all local.  The farthest one was just over 100 miles away.  But we are getting ready to take it on a 650 mile trip each way.  We will add grease to the bearings prior to leaving, but does anyone know if we are suppose to grease them while traveling?   They are the regular 12" little tires on it.  I have seen some say that they grease them every 6-8000 miles.  But when traveling 650 highway miles all in the same day, will they need to be greased while traveling like this?  Speeds 70 miles an hour, do I need to be worried about them heating up?  Or should they be ok until we get to our destination?

I looked in the manual, and it says nothing other than to have it serviced once per year.  We have a boat trailer that we grease often but that is completely different since it gets dipped in the water and never travels farther than about 30 miles at a time.

Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated!  We are super excited about this trip!!  Unfortunately I will be traveling alone with a child and to be stuck on the side of the road really isn't in my plans.   ;)  [/quote]You'll be fine for thousands of miles with just greasing the bearings once in your driveway. No need to add while you travel. Be sure to check the tire pressure and look over the tires (both sides of each) for damage/cracks/bulges. 

runningdave

I have a 2015 6.0 with a rear deck, no brakes, Dexter EZ lube. After almost 2 years of ownership and approximately 10k plus miles, i visually checked the wheel bearing grease and it still looks red in color and wheels turn smooth as butter.  Should I pump in new grease?  Did LL add red colored grease from the factory or is this from Dexter axle? I checked compatible greases from Dexter's web site and not sure which one to use.

I checked all my paperwork from LL and nowhere does it mention anything about service to the wheel bearing grease.  

daplumbr

[quote source="/post/25806/thread" timestamp="1478802920" author="@runningdave"]I have a 2015 6.0 with a rear deck, no brakes, Dexter EZ lube. After almost 2 years of ownership and approximately 10k plus miles, i visually checked the wheel bearing grease and it still looks red in color and wheels turn smooth as butter.  Should I pump in new grease?  Did LL add red colored grease from the factory or is this from Dexter axle? I checked compatible greases from Dexter's web site and not sure which one to use.

I checked all my paperwork from LL and nowhere does it mention anything about service to the wheel bearing grease.  [/quote]I guess you didn't get the Dexter Axle Operation/Maintenance Manual with your 6.0? It's a good idea to shoot some grease in those bearings after that many miles. Without complete disassembly, you really can't see how the grease is doing on the rear races and those are nearest the rear seal and so may be more contaminated than the front. The recommended grease is lithium based NLGI #2. I use Mobil 1 Synthetic in all bearings. 

Welcome to the forum, by the way!

runningdave

Thank you Merlin!
I finally got around to greasing the wheel bearings and you were correct in that they needed to be changed out.  As I pushed the new grease in, the old grease that came out became darker and less red.  I even started to see tiny shiny particles in the translucent old grease as it expelled from the middle of the hub.  I used the valvolene grease as it's listed as a compatible grease on Dexter Axle's website.  It contained moly, so i knew when all the old stuff was out... as the moly is just dark graphite colored.

Also one more oddity... the left and right wheel bearings had different color grease.  left (driver's side) had red colored grease and the right (passenger's side) had purple grease.  Weird that the factory would do this.

charliem

Quote from: @runningdave" source="/post/26406/thread" timestamp="1481644027Also one more oddity... the left and right wheel bearings had different color grease.  left (driver's side) had red colored grease and the right (passenger's side) had purple grease.  Weird that the factory would do this.
:D  [font size="3"]Maybe your unit was built during the transition from LL to Thor? [/font]
Any 20 minute job can be stretched
to a week with proper planning

Charlie
NW Florida

pinstriper

Or maybe they have more than one grease gun laying around the assembly area.
Let's eat, Grandma !
Let's eat Grandma !
Punctuation. It saves lives.

2014 14DBS
2013 4Runner | 2006 F-150 5.4 V8 (ruh ruh ruh)
2015 Hobie Outback

tinkeringtechie

Your axle must be on backwards. Red grease is supposed to be on the right and only turns clockwise. Purple grease goes on the left and only turns counter-clockwise. Boy those LL guys are a bunch of nuts  ;)

In all seriousness though... could it be that one was contaminated and the other not? Rust, water, etc... can make the grease turn different colors.
2014 Camplite 21BHS

2013 Toyota Sequoia 4WD 5.7L

pinstriper

Quote from: @tinkeringtechie" source="/post/26410/thread" timestamp="1481647442Your axle must be on backwards. Red grease is supposed to be on the right and only turns clockwise. Purple grease goes on the left and only turns counter-clockwise. Boy those LL guys are a bunch of nuts  ;)

In all seriousness though... could it be that one was contaminated and the other not? Rust, water, etc... can make the grease turn different colors.


Whereinthehell have you been ?
Let's eat, Grandma !
Let's eat Grandma !
Punctuation. It saves lives.

2014 14DBS
2013 4Runner | 2006 F-150 5.4 V8 (ruh ruh ruh)
2015 Hobie Outback

tinkeringtechie

[quote timestamp="1481686981" source="/post/26419/thread" author="@pinstriper"]
Quote from: @tinkeringtechie" source="/post/26410/thread" timestamp="1481647442Your axle must be on backwards. Red grease is supposed to be on the right and only turns clockwise. Purple grease goes on the left and only turns counter-clockwise. Boy those LL guys are a bunch of nuts  ;)  

In all seriousness though... could it be that one was contaminated and the other not? Rust, water, etc... can make the grease turn different colors.
Whereinthehell have you been ?[/quote]I'm still here... I check the site daily, but you guys do such a good job of answering everyone's questions that I don't usually have much to add  :)
2014 Camplite 21BHS

2013 Toyota Sequoia 4WD 5.7L

davidb


I usually lube my axles every 2500 miles, it's a messy job. Have plenty of paper towels ready. The Dexter EZ Lube system is great.

Remove the plastic plate on the end of bub with small screwdriver or butter knife, then remove the rubber plug, you will now see the grease fitting.

Pump fresh grease in and the old grease will ooze out, scoop out old grease (yes with your fingers) and repeat until you only have new grease coming out.

I used to replace bearings on my boat trailer every few years, but boat trailers bearings are submerged in water when they are hot when launching the boat, then re-submerged cold in the same day.

I carry two spare sets of bearing kits and the tools to change them in the trailer. (large hammer, punch, wood block, grease gun)

When stopping for fuel, check the temperature of each axle, if one is extremely hotter than the others it is a sure indicator it will be failing soon, this is especially important after installing new bearings in case the hub bolt was tightened too much.


https://www.walmart.com/ip/Mag-1-MG620014-14-oz.-High-Temperature-Disc-Brake-Wheel-Bearing-Grease-Red-Pack-Of-10/47662253


djmiller

[quote timestamp="1481646574" author="@pinstriper" source="/post/26409/thread"]Or maybe they have more than one grease gun laying around the assembly area.[/quote]We do not add grease to the axles.  They are pre-lubed at Dexter.