Boat trailer bearings…

Where do you guys take your boat trailer to have the bearings re-packed? I’m in the north west metro.

I go right to the auto parts store or the marine dealer. Pick up some bearing buddies and install them, its very simple, and get yourself a grease gun with marine grade grease and pack them yourself, the buddies have a zerk fitting making it just about effortless to maintain your bearngs.

Keep in mind that I don’t know a whole lot about these, but I already have zerks and periodically fill them when I notice the plunger(?) is in.

I thought that every so often I needed to have the bearings pulled, inspected and reset on the spindle?

Are you saying that since I have the zerks that a preventive measure is not needed?

I would repack every year it not worth it not too. even with bearing buddies. i have see some that fail .not cheep for Axel .and to be stranded. check with your local auto shop

I’m not a big fan of bearing buddies. I would remove them from any trailer I own. Bearing should be inspected and serviced/replaced annually if you do any serious amount of travel or frequently load/unload your boat. Best time to do the service is in the fall. Any water on your bearings during storage will cause rust.

If I were you Francis, I would open up the yellow pages and start calling all the dealerships around your area today. I would not be surprise to see a long waitng list developing already!

-J.

i repack mine every fall to make sure the moisture is out of them. bearing buddies do not take care of this you need to pull the hub and repack the bearing i would say yearly because water gets into the grease. a couple dollars in grease is way cheaper than having the boat towed of the highway because of a bearing failure. there have been alot of posts on repacking bearing. i think if you do a search you will find what you are looking for.

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Keep in mind that I don’t know a whole lot about these, but I already have zerks and periodically fill them when I notice the plunger(?) is in.

I thought that every so often I needed to have the bearings pulled, inspected and reset on the spindle?

Are you saying that since I have the zerks that a preventive measure is not needed?

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Preventative maintenance is always a good thing. I made the wrong assmption that you didnt have buddies now. The buddies will greatly reduce the chance of damage to the bearings.. but no moving part last forever. The life of your bearings will be dictated by the capcity and load of your trailer, and upkeep of the grease. Properly installed bearings that are not overloaded will usually last many years.

Yes, if your not familliar with working on these types of things, have a shop do the inspection, or just have the bearings replaced while they have it apart if they are inexpensive(you are already paying the labor if they are taking it apart).

Having a bearing go out on the road is nothing good. It can cause damage to the trailer, even loss of a tire to damage anything on the trailer(your rig).

Idont know where to recommend, I would call around and make an appointment somewhere. Many auto servicing facilities or tire companies might be able to do this for you also

Agree. I repack every fall and I replace the entire bearing/races sets every 2nd or 3rd year. Cheap insurance. It’s a 2 beer job!

-J.

This is what I do. You are wise to look at them every year, I don’t anymore. Have you checked them every trip to see if they are hot or warm. Most of the time if they are warm they are too tight, back them off a click. Jack the trailer up and spin the wheel, if it feels smooth as silk and has a bit of end play chances are you are good to go. If you feel anythig or hear anything take it apart and inspect. Last of all clean all of that grease out of the inside of the wheel. Believe it or not that causes many of the tire cupping problems. If still not satisfied bring it down and we will check em togeather.

I used to replace my bearings every year just to be on the safe side. However now instead of buying bearings and taking the time to assemble and pack them I instead have been buying new hubs with the bearings already installed and ready to go. A new hub costs me less than $40. New bearings cost me around $20 and I have all that labor and mess to deal with. With new hubs I also don’t need to worry about getting a good seal.

I do use Bearing Buddies. I’ve never had a problem with them. It is so easy to give them a quick squirt of grease. Too-many people overfill Bearing Buddies. You are only supposed to fill them to the point where the inner plate begins to compress the spring and not so the spring is completely compressed. When you overfill them the pressure causes seals to break.

Eyehunter

Thank you for all of your replys.

I’ve found a place near home and Cabela’s that has a 2 day turn around or same day if an appointment is made.