Packing Wheel Bearings

[Western NC]

I enjoy this site and have learned a lot from you folks. I've seen the term packing wheel bearings. On my hardly used 2006 1207, to my knowledge the bearings have never been packed. There are grease fittings on the hubs that I use. Does this do the same thing? If not can you tell me where I can get instructions on how to do it? Thanks in advance.

[ALJO]

Get the manual from the axle manufacturer, probably dexter.

[stateboy]

Those grease fitting you speak of sound like the E-Z Lube systems that are on a lot of axle packages. To do them, here's the short version of instructions to follow...

- raise the wheel off the ground
- clean the grease fitting of any dirt/debris
- attach the grease gun and begin to rotate the wheel
- activate the grease gun SLOWLY as you're inserting the grease
- continue greasing until the grease coming out changes to the color in your grease gun (or if similar color, until it looks clean)
- you're done. Clean up

If you insert the grease too quickly, you can blow out the rear seal. Then, all you accomplish is spewing grease out the rear side of the wheel. It is a good (actually, a great) idea to look behind the wheel while you're greasing to make sure no grease is coming out. That way you can see if the seals are shot and require replacing. This becomes especially inportant if your camper has brakes because the grease may find its way in there and ruin them.

All the said, some will recommend to remove the entire bearing assembly and hand pack them. Frequency to do that will vary with thread authors. The plus on this method gives you the opportunity to inspect the bearings and races (the surface the bearing rolls against) and to give it a thorough cleaning.

Comfort level and skill level tend to drive individuals to grease one way or another (or both, doing the hand pack less frequently). Following the manual is best but heeding the folks personal experiences here are a plus. Look for the most frequent or consistent approach by the masses here for best results

[KCSA75]

There's no trick to repacking your wheel bearings. If you have some basic tools it shouldn't take long.

I would suggest you take a look on YouTube. There are probably hundreds of videos. I saw one a while back specifically about trailers/RVs. But the concept is the same.

[Western NC]

Those are all great ideas. And do you have a brand or type of grease you prefer or they all basically the same? Thanks

[GrumpyDad]

Originally Posted by 36fire412

E-Z Lube systems...
If you insert the grease too quickly, you can blow out the rear seal. Then, all you accomplish is spewing grease out the rear side of the wheel. It is a good (actually, a great) idea to look behind the wheel while you're greasing to make sure no grease is coming out. That way you can see if the seals are shot and require replacing. This becomes especially inportant if your camper has brakes because the grease may find its way in there and ruin them.

On many installations with brakes, it's simply not possible to see the rear seal, so you won't know if you are ruining your brakes until it's already happened. Even with the proper double-lip seal, and with the wheel off the ground and rotating slowly as you hand-pump the grease in, it IS possible to blow grease out the back seal.

I now am one of those folks that highly recommends manually repacking the bearings instead of using the ez-lube system.

[KCSA75]

Originally Posted by Western NC

Those are all great ideas. And do you have a brand or type of grease you prefer or they all basically the same? Thanks

Go to any auto parts store and tell them what your doing. They should be able to fix you up.

I like Valvoline, but any of the major brands or even the store brand should be fine.

[ttavasc]

The manual for your axle(s) will list the recommended grease types. If you don't have a copy of the manual you can get one from the manufacturers website. Mixing grease types is not advised so if you are switching grease types you should pull the hubs and clean, inspect and re-pack with the new grease type. Also - and I'm not advocating one way or the other - if you choose to use the E-Z Lube system again I would put a few squirts of grease in zirc while you have the hubs apart to flush out any old grease still in the spindle from prior use and replace it with the new grease type.

I pull the hubs at the beginning of each season and clean, inspect and re-pack. This also provides a good opportunity to inspect the brakes, magnets, etc. and adjust them as well.

[Colorado]

YouTube is your friend on stuff like this…. Something like this, start over, new bearings, races unless yours are new, new grease. Start a maintenance record and keep track of what, when and the mileage of when stuff was done. I use a 3x5 notebook, when you sell this will increase the sale value too!


https://youtu.be/H3J4NSFTnY4

[troutslayer]

Originally Posted by GrumpyDad

On many installations with brakes, it's simply not possible to see the rear seal, so you won't know if you are ruining your brakes until it's already happened. Even with the proper double-lip seal, and with the wheel off the ground and rotating slowly as you hand-pump the grease in, it IS possible to blow grease out the back seal.

I now am one of those folks that highly recommends manually repacking the bearings instead of using the ez-lube system.

I'm with Dad here. If I used the "pump method" I'd always wonder if I blew out the seals. Besides, what if you're pumping grease into a bad bearing?

[Jagiven]

Youtube is your friend. It is an easy job. You will have to replace your inner seal. I pulled one wheel, removed the seal (claw hammer), then go to the auto parts store, and procured replacements. They are cheaper on amazon, but then you need to know what you want.

It is easy, you will get greasy. I like to use wd40, as a degreaser, to get everything cleaned up. I tend to use most most of a roll of paper towels for 4 wheels. I like valvoline grease too, but the auto parts store can help pick out what you need. I also like a couple cans of brake cleaner to clean the brake assemblies.

When I did my bearings this spring I found a cracked jam nut. Took a week to get a new one.

[Western NC]

Thanks everyone for the great advise.