Wheel bearing grease to oil conversion ?
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Wheel bearing grease to oil conversion ?
Anyone tried it?? It seems like the way to go, Trucks and larger trailers use oiled wheel bearings rather than grease, simple visual inspection to see if water contaminated or low on oil. I found this link ....
http://www.trailerandtruckparts.com/...ls-_p_350.html
West marine has it t,o this place was cheaper
Randy
http://www.trailerandtruckparts.com/...ls-_p_350.html
West marine has it t,o this place was cheaper
Randy
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Good question, I own Prevost tour busses and in 2007 they changed over from oil hubs to a sealed none serviceable grease unit. Now we never see water and stuff like a boat trailer but the sealed units have been great for 200,000 miles so far knock on wood.
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I think they are going back to sealed bearings for most commercial applications. If the oil leaks it's not long before the wheel seizes or twists off the stub. Greased bearings have a much more gradual failure.
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Yes I always do a search first .... tried wheel bearings , trailer bearings, oil trailer etc. I even tried google to find the oil kits. But
thank you on the summary, that was what I was looking for...
Randy
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Oil is better than grease on terms of lubrication and cooling, but obviously harder to keep in, and faster to fail in case of a leak. (The Penske Racing truck fire last summer was due to a bearing fire.)
The kits that I saw to convert trailer hubs had a clear cap so you could inspect the oil. There's no reason they shouldn't work well, as long as all your seal surfaces are good, but that's where dunking the trailers causes problems.....
The kits that I saw to convert trailer hubs had a clear cap so you could inspect the oil. There's no reason they shouldn't work well, as long as all your seal surfaces are good, but that's where dunking the trailers causes problems.....
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#10
One thing that is overlooked is how the Castle Nut is retained. I prefer the old fashioned cotter-pin though the spindle method, but most of the new trailers with grease-zerks in the end of the spindle can't use this method. They have these Axle Tang Washers where you bend one tab over into the Castle Nut opening. I think they suck, but what can you do?
You can break off those tabs with your Crescent wrench, and so can a little pressure/twist from a heated bearing. As soon as that tab is gone, your wheel will be gone within a mile.
Next time I redo bearings I am going to double up on the Axle Tang Washer.
You can break off those tabs with your Crescent wrench, and so can a little pressure/twist from a heated bearing. As soon as that tab is gone, your wheel will be gone within a mile.
Next time I redo bearings I am going to double up on the Axle Tang Washer.
Last edited by Sydwayz; 02-23-2009 at 11:37 AM.