Grease Your Bearings!

[eamarquardt]

Angib Wrote: Ahhh! Takes me back to the days of my mate's Kawasaki 500 two-stroke triple, the ultimate speed machine of its day with an engine at least twice as powerful as the chassis could handle. That had a plate welded to the frame under the seat with three threaded holes in it - to carry the spark plugs that got you home, since clearly it was too much to expect that one set would get you both there and back.....

Andrew

I only had a 350 triple. Decided if I wasn't going to kill myself (ther front wheel would lift in second gear when you hit the power band) I needed to get rid of it. Didn't need to carry spare plugs as it worked ok.

Cheers.

Gus

[alloffroad]

I towed a new-to-me trailer 200 miles last weekend and I made sure to give the bearings a good cleaning and repack. I found that a 10 minute soak in hot water and liquid dish soap (Joy) losened the old greas then I spun them with the garden hose and then imediatly sprayed the with WD-40 to disperse the water then packed them. When I got home with the trailer I checked the spindle and it was not even warm.

[mechmagcn]

G-Force:

What's been your the experience with the oil bath hubs, either original equipment or conversion kits?

I have quite a bit of experience with oil filled hubs on heavy duty trucks, but none on the lighter axles used for light duty trailers. From what I have read, the manufacturers don't recomend the oil filled hubs for occasional use because the oil will run off of the bearings and then they rust. I have pulled hubs from heavy duty trucks and trailers that have sat for years and have yet to find severly rusted bearings, so I think it is a good idea.

[Gerdo]

Right before my 500 mile trip to Salt Lake City I squirted some grease into my TD bearings. It has the grease fitting in the center of the spindle which goes to the inside bearing and pushes the old grease to the outside bearing. I did add till some pushed out the outside bearing. I also jacked up the axle and spun the tire while greasing. I checked the temp of the hubs ar stops and they were cool to the touch.

I have to take a picture of what is left of the utility trailer bearing that went out on me. Not much left, just a few rings.

[starleen2]

Glad I read this thread - I pulled off my wheels to grease the bearings and found Minimal grease around the bearings (new trailer) well I cleaned them off real good and cleaned the hubs – replaced with fresh bearing grease. No I tow with confidence.

[Nitetimes]

.....I spun them with the garden hose and then imediatly sprayed the with WD-40

I'm not sure exactly what you did here but just a little friendly advice to those of you cleaning and repacking your bearings.
DO NOT spin the bearings after you clean them, bearings should never be spun without lubricant on them it creates minute pitting in the polished surface that you can't see but will eventually lead to premature bearing failure.
This info was from a bearing supplier we had a few years back.
I know it's fun to spin them with an air hose and dry em but you really need to restrain yourself unless you want to find yourself bearing-less along the road some day. Let them air dry and avoid water.

[bobhenry]

.....I spun them with the garden hose and then imediatly sprayed the with WD-40

I'm not sure exactly what you did here but just a little friendly advice to those of you cleaning and repacking your bearings.
DO NOT spin the bearings after you clean them, bearings should never be spun without lubricant on them it creates minute pitting in the polished surface that you can't see but will eventually lead to premature bearing failure.
This info was from a bearing supplier we had a few years back.
I know it's fun to spin them with an air hose and dry em but you really need to restrain yourself unless you want to find yourself bearing-less along the road some day. Let them air dry and avoid water.

And they will explode

Yeah I'm serious . As a mechanic for a number of years I kept telling the new boy on the block Don't spin them with an air hose. Did he listen ?
After one let go and embedded a chunk of the cage in his cheek and just barely missed his eye HE DID .

Aerosol brake cleaner is the best way to clean them up. It evaporates quickly and leaves no residue.