Community Forums

paddykern · 03-28-2017, 06:55 AM

I use the zerk fitting and pump grease in until clean grease comes out.
Check wheel for play and ease of rotation.
Seven years without a problem and I put several thousand miles on the pop-up every year.

IC2 · 03-28-2017, 07:00 AM

I suggest you go to the Dexter website and wander their technical library. The IB on bearings will tell you to disassemble, inspect and relube every 12,000 miles or every 12 months. This a Dexter CYA statement for many folks who don't travel much but those of us who pull many miles, is a good rule of thumb. As far as using the Zerks - I'm of the opinion that pumping that hub full of grease is a good way to 'blow' grease out through the seal and end up on the brakes and drum as many can attest to with their brake repairs and associated cost. A poster above said that 4 pumps of a grease gun works for him - it doesn't and when you once see how this system works, you will then understand it a bit better. That little admittance hole on the spindle relies pressure to force grease into the bearings - which may possibly take the path of least resistance which may be that seal That E-Z Lube hub, when first assembled is darn big and will use close to a full tube of grease to fill and probably in the neighborhood of 200 pumps.

This is what a Dexter 5200/6000 pound capacity spindle looks like with the grease admittance hole:

Of course, if you really want to use the Zerk and potentially grease parts other then bearings, your choice along with many others and are happy doing so --- until some of them aren't

grmaestas · 03-28-2017, 10:25 AM

I appreciate all of the replies/opinions. I am a concrete finisher by trade. Not a mechanic, I have no patience for mechanical maintenance if it involves dismantling and reassembling major components,especially if it can become a safety issue. My previous TT,was 25+ years old, I owned it for 2/12 years,the previous owner stated he repacked the bearings prior to me purchasing the unit. 12 trips, approx. 3,500 miles later I sold it,just before I planned to have a friend help with the bearings. My point is,repacking the bearings by hand EVERY year? Overkill for my situation,I probably will tow less than 5k miles per season. Over the past weekend,I injected grease into the hubs, over 50 pumps per hub,no grease coming out of the hole...worried,I had our equipment mgr. from job pull a wheel to inspect,everything looks good,it took an additional 20-30 pumps to actually get the old grease to come out. Thank you all, I will be monitoring them closely over this next season until I find my comfort zone.

hclarkx · 09-26-2017, 11:00 AM

My Dexter axle easy-lube hubs were either 1) overpacked from the factory; 2) the seals leaked from day 1; or 3) there was grease on the spindle that was pushed rearward by installation of the brake drum (i.e. by the seal). The result was grease on the back side of the seal which eventually drifted to the brake pads and resulted in almost total brake failure 1500 miles from home. And with only 3000 miles on the TT.

I would not trust even new seals to contain grease injected by the easy-lube zerk fitting. Any excess grease could get through a weak seal (from age or quality control at the factory or your maintenance place). There is no reason to have the cavity between the bearings full of grease if the proper grease is used (its firm enough to stay in place).

I've been doing my own brake work for over 60 years and probably 2 million miles and have never had a bearing failure. I use a heavy enough grease and apply it to the roller bearings only. Any other grease is wasted. To the extent that the rollers "work" grease away from the bearing, that is going to happen regardless of how much grease you put in the cavity between the bearings. Good grease does not "flow" so the bearings never go dry.

BTW, and this is just my own approach, I prefer a heavier grease than the very light, almost runny stuff that was in the Dexter bearings from the factory. Check the grease in your car's front bearings. I'm betting it's thicker than what is in your Dexter axles. And how long does it last? How often do you re-pack your car's front wheel bearings? Ever? The Dexter bearings are no different.

IC2 · 09-26-2017, 11:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hclarkx

..............BTW, and this is just my own approach, I prefer a heavier grease than the very light, almost runny stuff that was in the Dexter bearings from the factory. Check the grease in your car's front bearings. I'm betting it's thicker than what is in your Dexter axles. And how long does it last? How often do you re-pack your car's front wheel bearings? Ever? The Dexter bearings are no different.

Be really careful as to what you use as 'heavier grease'. Dexter published a spec and it's pretty good as far as what you need. I'm using the recommended Mystick (Citgo) high temp lithium complex brand and I can assure that it will not run - just get it on your hands. These little bearings used by axle manufacturers are heavily loaded and some heavy grease can separate will not handle the road hammering. Then there is the fact that I've been doing bearings since .... well even longer then you and have never had a failure. I too will not use their spindle Zerks as the only grease needed in a hub is for rust prevention and that's a film of .062 or less

Oh and what I used in the US Army for 4 years as a wheeled vehicle mechanic was about as viscous as Vaseline but those vehicles had huge bearings in contrast to a towed RV

lynnmor · 09-26-2017, 02:51 PM

I agree with the previous two posts with one correction, trailer bearings can fail even when you did everything right because they are now the cheapest Chinese junk money can buy. I measured and inspected failed junk and found out of tolerance angles, poor finishes and incomplete ground surfaces. I will not put a trailer in service without changing to a quality bearing.

IC2 · 09-26-2017, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lynnmor

I agree with the previous two posts with one correction, trailer bearings can fail even when you did everything right because they are now the cheapest Chinese junk money can buy. I measured and inspected failed junk and found out of tolerance angles, poor finishes and incomplete ground surfaces. I will not put a trailer in service without changing to a quality bearing.

If you want to waste your valuable time, wander back to my several posts on crappy Chinese bearings.You will also find that mine are US made Timken - over $130 worth for 6000 pound axles/hubs. Yes, they too will fail but at least Timkens (and most likely the rest of the 'known brands') start out within design tolerances

.

hclarkx · 09-27-2017, 12:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IC2

Be really careful as to what you use as 'heavier grease'. Dexter published a spec and it's pretty good as far as what you need. I'm using the recommended Mystick (Citgo) high temp lithium complex brand and I can assure that it will not run - just get it on your hands. These little bearings used by axle manufacturers are heavily loaded and some heavy grease can separate will not handle the road hammering. Then there is the fact that I've been doing bearings since .... well even longer then you and have never had a failure. I too will not use their spindle Zerks as the only grease needed in a hub is for rust prevention and that's a film of .062 or less

Oh and what I used in the US Army for 4 years as a wheeled vehicle mechanic was about as viscous as Vaseline but those vehicles had huge bearings in contrast to a towed RV

I agree fully, I should have said "slightly heavier." Or said nothing. That said, I am now using a grease that a neighbor friend (a grease distributor of some kind) gave me. It reads very much like the Mystick but feels slightly thicker though that could be because it is fresh and has not been heated multiple times by downgrades too steep for the compression hill holder.