Greasing tires on 77 13' \trillium

[agreco]

How often? Best types of grease to pack bearings?
Any other grease pts or lubrication needed?
Thanks All


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[Wayne Collins]

You grease the BEARINGS, NOT the tires!!!!
DO not use those "Bearing Buddies" where you can pump in grease with a gun.
they are intended for boat trailers that go in the water, so they want to fill the bearing cavity to keep water out.
Your best bet is to go to a good trailer service shop to have the wheels pulled and the bearings cleaned and inspected. Then repacked with a lithium based grease, and new seals installed.

[floyd]

Don't confuse "Bearing Buddies" with "EZ Lube".
First repack on an older trailer should be done by hand and cleaned thoroughly to avoid mixing different grease bases, then repack with a good Lithium based grease. bearings must be adjusted, tight enough so that the bearings carry the load firmly and freely without being tight enough to bind.


For those who have EZ-Lube spindles, The bearings can be effectively repacked by using them between brake inspections(assuming you have brakes).

I use Kendall Blue, primarily because it is easy to see the fresh grease coming through, and it is available in the same formula for both cans(for hand repack) and tubes (for use with EZ-Lube).

[Wayne Collins]

The point I was trying to make is to not over grease. You don't want grease oozing out and getting on the brake drums or tires.

[Darwin Maring]

Go to Advance auto and purchase wheel bearing grease. I like the red kind.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Wayne Collins

The point I was trying to make is to not over grease. You don't want grease oozing out and getting on the brake drums or tires.

Good point.... "Bearing Buddies" require pressure to "float" the washer which has the zerk. This is supposed to be enough to hold pressure without violating the inboard seal. I think I heard about 3 pounds.though I'm not sure.
Care must be taken any time a grease gun is used since it can produce as much as 3000 pounds of pressure if used aggressively against strong resistance.
I recommend lifting the wheel off the ground on an EZ-Lube axle then gently applying grease while slowly rotating the wheel. This not only distributes the grease, it also prevents the disaster of overcoming the inner seal.

When properly applied, the EZ-Lube fills the hub completely without violating the seal and without holding any pressure. To avoid a bit of a mess, it is best to remove most of the excess grease from the exit chamber before replacing the rubber plug.

[Franswa]

1- take it to a shop and have the bearings inspected, cleaned, replaced, packed and new seals installed (that's the "easy" answer that covers all the bases...cost is / could be an issue...and some like to learn/do things for themselves...)

2- do the same job yourself in your yard

3-assuming there is no evident problem towing the trailer (but to put your mind at ease)....you could pull the wheels and drums...clean and inspect the outer bearings...if they look good chances are the inners are the same....repack the outers, then using the tip of the grease gun force a little grease all around the side of the inner bearing (still in place)....put the drum back on....re-using the old/existing seal (assuming the seal and its seat looked good when you first removed the hub...if not your into #2 or #1)

4- again assuming there is no evident problem...check the hub temperature, with your hand, every time you stop...bearing failure creates a lot of heat way before the actual failure....you get into this routine and you'll know, for sure, when something is starting to go bad

number 4 is way more important/effective than any type of grease or gizmo in preventing bearing failures

no other grease points..unless equipped with "wet" spring shackles....a little dab on the hitch ball is good and on the ends of the WDH bars (the ends that go into the hitch itself...prevents binding, clanging noises)


"if it ain't broke, don't fix it" are words I live by....Happy motoring

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Franswa

3-assuming there is no evident problem towing the trailer (but to put your mind at ease)....you could pull the wheels and drums...clean and inspect the outer bearings...if they look good chances are the inners are the same....repack the outers, then using the tip of the grease gun force a little grease all around the side of the inner bearing (still in place)....put the drum back on....re-using the old/existing seal (assuming the seal and its seat looked good when you first removed the hub...if not your into #2 or #1)

I find this one a little confusing since you already have the hub off, it is a simple matter to remove the inner bearing for inspection and repack.
Removing the inner seal can be accomplished in seconds without damage.
Still I get the practical purpose of your comment.

[ckayaker]

I have one of those temperature gauge 'guns' which read the temperature when you point at something. Each time I stop I do a quick walk around checking wheel hub temps. Anything unusual gets a closer look. Handy!

[Franswa]

maybe I'm just a klutz...but I'd be afraid of damaging the seal during removal..without knowing (then put it back on and it fails shortly thereafter)

I come by that "if it ain't broke don't fix it" line honestly (the hard way)

but yeah, I see your point....

[ckayaker]

Given that the seals are cheap, I'd put new ones on any time I pulled a hub off the spindle. After driving a few miles a visual check will tell you if the seal has failed as you will see grease buildup behind the hub.