You pretty much get the point that WD 40 isn't sufficient for the wheel
bearings... Here's a little advice from experiences from the past
weekend... Don't use cheap grease, get the best grease that you can
possibly get your hands on! Don't mix synthetic grease with non-synthetic!
If you have bearing buddies, don't count on them getting grease to the
inside bearings, take the hub apart every fall, after you take the boat out
for the winter and re-pack the bearings. This will ensure that he bearings
are dry and well greased while sitting over the winter.

As for jacking the trailer... attach it to the car. If you jack from the
axle, get as close to the wheel as possible, don't jack on the middle of the
axle. I would prefer that you don't jack from in front of the wheel. You
don't need to go too far forward of the wheel to get in front of the centre
of gravity, and then a ton of weight will be exerted on the tongue of the
trailer when the wheels come off the ground.

I had one of my hubs overheat this past weekend. I didn't bother to pack
the back bearing after pulling the boat out last fall. They were brand new,
only 400 miles on them, and I packed them when I put them in, so I didn't
bother. I also think that the seals were defective. The bearings
overheated, cooked off all of the grease and cracked the hubs from the heat.
I'm surprised that the whole works didn't catch fire. Too be honest, I've
never seen anything like it. I am very luck that the wheel didn't fly off!
The net result was that my axle was ruined in addition to the hub. Luckily,
axle assemblies aren't that expensive. $225.00 including tax, got the axle
assembly, including two new hubs and the U-bolts to attach it to the
trailer. Incidentally, the original axle on my trailer was square, and I
was unable to get a square replacement axle. They are all round now, which
is why I needed replacement U-Bolts. I think that I would have changed them
anyway, they aren't expensive!!

Too make a long story short, it's an ugly situation to have your trailer
crap out along the highway because your bearings failed. Think about
jacking it up with cars zipping past you. Take care of your bearings!!!

--
Paul Fowler
(905) 478-2862
mailto "n0sPaM" wrote in message
le.rogers.com...

I have a 3-ton jack (for me to change my winter tires on my car), and now
I
am trying to change a flatten tire on my 16' trailer of my boat, but I am
a
little bit confused..I can't find lifting point, where should I put the
jack? any idea?

Also, do I need to grease the wheel bearing on the trailer wheel? Can I
use
WD-40, just spray?

Boating Newbie

"pfowlerc228" a écrit dans le message de
le.rogers.com...
You pretty much get the point that WD 40 isn't sufficient for the wheel
bearings...

WD40 is a cleaner/solvent. I've never considered it a lubricant.


As for jacking the trailer... attach it to the car.

Clever, but simple tip! Although, usually when tires go flat, Murphy's Law
dictates that you be on the road in heavy traffic, it's either raining hard
or 120 degrees in the shade, and the edge of the road is one foot narrower
than your boat.

However, I have changed tires in the driveway and relied only on my
hand-made custom chocks. The whole thing -would- be much more secure with
the van as an anchor.

I had one of my hubs overheat this past weekend. I didn't bother to pack
the back bearing after pulling the boat out last fall. They were brand
new,
only 400 miles on them, and I packed them when I put them in, so I didn't
bother. I also think that the seals were defective. The bearings
overheated, cooked off all of the grease and cracked the hubs from the
heat.
I'm surprised that the whole works didn't catch fire. Too be honest, I've
never seen anything like it. I am very luck that the wheel didn't fly
off!

I carry a spare bearing in the bag with my jack. I've not had to use it in
the five years I bought it, so I consider it a good luck charm. God grant
me the ears to hear the noise or feel the vibration if the bearing actually
goes while I'm towing!

What makes you think the Bearing Buddies don't do a complete lube job? Do
you see voids in the grease when you take it apart in the fall? ps: it was
hard to remember that I had white wheels until I invested two bucks on a
pair of the caps ("bras" as they call them). Plus, with them on, I go
through half as much grease!
--
"Stay calm. Be brave. Wait for the signs."

Frank Johansen
Aurora, Ontario

"Buck Frobisher" wrote in message
.. .
What makes you think the Bearing Buddies don't do a complete lube job? Do
you see voids in the grease when you take it apart in the fall? ps: it
was
hard to remember that I had white wheels until I invested two bucks on a
pair of the caps ("bras" as they call them). Plus, with them on, I go
through half as much grease!

Frank,

What do you mean by caps? Are they the same as hubcaps or wheel covers?
Where do you get them?

Thanks,
-Darren

He is talking about the caps that go over the Bearing Buddies.
See: http://www.bearingbuddy.com/bra.html

Darren M. wrote:
"Buck Frobisher" wrote in message
.. .

What makes you think the Bearing Buddies don't do a complete lube job? Do
you see voids in the grease when you take it apart in the fall? ps: it

was

hard to remember that I had white wheels until I invested two bucks on a
pair of the caps ("bras" as they call them). Plus, with them on, I go
through half as much grease!


Frank,

What do you mean by caps? Are they the same as hubcaps or wheel covers?
Where do you get them?

Thanks,
-Darren

Thanks for the info and website!

"Claus" wrote in message
...
He is talking about the caps that go over the Bearing Buddies.
See: http://www.bearingbuddy.com/bra.html

Darren M. wrote:
"Buck Frobisher" wrote in message
.. .

What makes you think the Bearing Buddies don't do a complete lube job?
Do
you see voids in the grease when you take it apart in the fall? ps: it

was

hard to remember that I had white wheels until I invested two bucks on a
pair of the caps ("bras" as they call them). Plus, with them on, I go
through half as much grease!


Frank,

What do you mean by caps? Are they the same as hubcaps or wheel covers?
Where do you get them?

Thanks,
-Darren

Sorry for being so late in responding... The original question as to why
the bearing buddies don't do a complete lube job was directed at my
statement not to count on them lubing the back bearings. In most cases, the
rear bearings won't benefit from the bearing buddies, to the extent that you
could feel comfortable in ingoring them and assuming that they are receiving
adequate lubrication from the bearing buddies. Between the front bearing
and the rear bearing is a rather large gap, which may or may not be filled
with grease. That depends on whether you or someone else pumped grease into
the cavity when re-assembling the hub. At any rate, there is nowhere for
the grease to go to the rear of the hub. Some grease may get past the axle
seal, but you really don't want that seal to be compromised. If too much
grease does get past, you should replace the seal. Depending on the quality
of grease that you are using, it may liquify and run out of the seal, and
conversely, water may run in through the seal. However, there are axles on
some trailers with relief ports, that allow the grease to be forced through
the rear bearing, and into the hollow axle, preventing the seal from being
compromised. Sounds good to me, I which my axles had that feature!

The bottom line is that bearing buddies are great for maintaining your
bearings for the season, but a really great idea would be to re-pack them
after taking the boat out of the water for winter storage.

--
Paul Fowler

mailto "Darren M." wrote in message
le.rogers.com...

"Buck Frobisher" wrote in message
.. .
What makes you think the Bearing Buddies don't do a complete lube job?
Do
you see voids in the grease when you take it apart in the fall? ps: it
was
hard to remember that I had white wheels until I invested two bucks on a
pair of the caps ("bras" as they call them). Plus, with them on, I go
through half as much grease!

Frank,

What do you mean by caps? Are they the same as hubcaps or wheel covers?
Where do you get them?

Thanks,
-Darren