First real OMG!

[twinboat]

Here is what this site says.

https://www.etrailer.com/question-78054.html

Expert Reply:

You just need to pack the bearings on hub and drum assembly*# 8-276-5. There's no such thing as too much grease for bearings! If it is an EZ lube hub with a grease zerk fitting at the end of the spindle you will know there is enough grease once it starts oozing out.

The hubs on My tow dolly are full of grease and haven't overheated.

[wingnut60]

"Filling the hubs with grease causes the bearings and hubs to run hotter as the grease does not allow the heat to dissipate. They are all shipped that way now and as long as the bearing is filled no more grease is needed."

Surely you don't believe this....

[plasma800]

Ugh now you’re making me want to pull my wheels...

But if I did that, I’d have to put on disc brakes... the part that makes me the most nervous there is the wiring into the plug because I don’t know where all mine is routed exactly just yet..and how do i know which actuator will work perfectly with my on board brake controller... time to go back to bed.

[Mudfrog]

Don't think i saw it mentioned but if you don't know what the original grease is, then it's probably not a good idea to just add from another tub. Some are not compatible with others so it's a good idea to clean the bearings of the old grease before repacking with new. You don't want to mix different greases, especially one with a different base.

[Fred and Bonnie]

I thought trailer lug nuts were supposed to be torqued before each trip?

Fred

[Stever53]

Originally Posted by SpiritDoc

Haven't been able to find a dealer for them up here. I'm still looking.

Try Les Schwab they have them.
Safe travels

[Arch Hoagland]

I carry an IR gun and shoot my tires/wheels every time I stop.

Suggest you do the same, can't hurt.

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by Fred and Bonnie

I thought trailer lug nuts were supposed to be torqued before each trip?

Fred

You retorque them once, after having them off at 50 to 100 miles.

The OPs lugs didn't fall off. The bolts holding the brake backing plate did.

[BRex45]

Originally Posted by wingnut60

"Filling the hubs with grease causes the bearings and hubs to run hotter as the grease does not allow the heat to dissipate. They are all shipped that way now and as long as the bearing is filled no more grease is needed."

Surely you don't believe this....

I can see it now, in the back page ads of RV mags, "Hub radiators to keep all that hot grease cool"

Comes in sets of 4 or 6 for all of your trailering needs.

[gpounder]

Your first post was about a trailer and a truck. I was not clear which you had problems with. My comment about a wet axle was for the truck.

Trailer hubs are completely different and should be well packed with grease to the point the grease pushes out when greased. The art of putting together a trailer hub is in working the grease into the bearing AND tightening the nut just right. The nut needs to be snugged up first with an extra 1/4 turn , rotate the drum, feel the resistance then back off about 1/8 to 1/4 turn. Feel the resistance change and if you got just a discernible amount of play, that's it. Done right and it should last forever. Oh yeah can't have the brakes dragging that will mess up the feel.

[Off Road]

Originally Posted by plasma800

Ugh now you’re making me want to pull my wheels...

But if I did that, I’d have to put on disc brakes... the part that makes me the most nervous there is the wiring into the plug because I don’t know where all mine is routed exactly just yet..and how do i know which actuator will work perfectly with my on board brake controller... time to go back to bed.

Your fine. If you believe all the worry worts on here you would never go camping. Repack the bearings every 1-2 years depending on how many miles you drive each season. When I pulled mine after owning the trailer for a year, and having put over 5000 miles on it they looked brand new and the grease and brakes were just fine. With your truck you won’t need disc brakes either. They are nice but not necessary.

[AZGypsie]

This happened to our family many years ago but it was the boat we were towing that lost a wheel! My father was a labor leader and the union was in the midst of combatting a wildcat strike! The boat trailer had been tampered with while parked in front of our house in preparation for the trip! We had already had to put our pick up in the shop because it had been stolen and messed up pretty badly. We were on our way to Mexico for a weeks vacation and made it about 15 miles short of the border when the wheel went sailing by and, those of us in the Cabover felt the thunk of the trailer dropping to the ground. My dad managed to keep everything upright and got us stopped, but the boat trailer was a mess! My dad dropped the trailer by the road but had to go back into Tucson to get a new leaf spring, U bolts for the leaf spring and assorted other parts necessary to repair the trailer. (I will never forget the gouges that the u bolts left in the asphalt where the trailer had been dragged and how much, or little, of the u bolts were left after the abuse!) Dad got back to the boat and trailer, put everything back together only to discover that a very important lock nut had been left sitting in a can of solvent back at the garage!

We crept slowly into Nogales until my dad located a junk yard. It was now well after dark, and they were closed, so my dad pointed the truck lights into the junk yard and lo and behold, here came a pack of dogs hell bent on earning their keep! So, from somewhere in the trip supplies, my dad hauled out food he could throw to the dogs while my kid brother jumped the fence to locate and steal (what a bunch of damned rednecks we were!) a lock nut!

It took us 8 hours to make 65 mile trip! One never to be forgotten!