TOPIC: not again...

i removed the buddy bearings in the spring because i was constantly blowing out the rear seals.i had more grease on the inside of the rim than in the bearings. had them hand packed before our hammondsport trip and was just checkin out the trailer for our tuckerton seaport trip tomorrow, and guess what...grease all over the inside of both rims again. i don't know what to do now..i'm going and if i burn up the bearings so be it. i'm really getting tired of trailering. do they make a different way to keep bearings lubricated. it seems i saw liquid oil incased in plastic somewhere on a trailer hub. ron

Not sure what brand of bearing buddys you're using Ron, but it sounds like you may be pumping too much grease into them. I would definitely pull the hubs and put fresh seals in before the trip. The old seals may not be bad, just pushed out. But for a couple bucks each, it would make more sense to use new seals. When you grease the buddys, stop pumping as soon as the piston/disc/indicator starts to move! Check to make sure the piston/disc is moving freely in the housing of the bearing buddy.

You may be able to take a flat punch, or a socket extension and knock the seals back into place if they're just popped out of their seat.

I used to be bad about over-greasing them when I first started using them, it would weep grease out the overflow hole or blow the seals out frequently. Then somebody told me about reducing the amount of grease you inject, haven't had any trouble since.

Good luck and hope you have a fun, UNEVENTFUL trip!

mark, the seals aren't blown out. it was greased by a mechanic and he removed the left side bearing buddy. he said you can't trust them. but he left the right side on. why..i don't know. i didn't realize that he only removed one side until i was up in Hammondsport. the rims were clean up there so whatever happened was on the return trip home, but the seals are in there tight. i'm not pulling the hubs to grease them. i'll have them pulled again in the spring and greased. i know i got a hell of an attitude when somethin is supposed to work, then doesn't. i spent a lot of money on that trailer and i just about had it. we'll see what happens. i'm going to look around for those sealed oil hubs. ron

I don't trust bearing buddies either. Any trailer I got with them I pull them off, buy a bearing kit and rebuild the hubs, then do it again every spring with just new seals, or whenever in the new year I use the trailer again. My trailer hubs and bearings last as long as I own the trailer, and I've owned many for a long, long time. Easy maintenance, combined with peace of mind.

Read about hub comparisons here: www.hookedonfishingboats.com/trailerhubs.html

and here: blog.pacifictrailers.com/oil-bath-boat-trailer-hubs-what-is-the-big-deal/

and here: www.boatus.com/trailerclub/articles_keep_water_out.asp

Frank

good read. think i'll be spending more $ on the trailer. maintenance free oil bearings..right up my alley. no packing annually and clean rims.

I sure didn't mean to insult anyone or make you mad, I was just trying to help by sharing my experience with the product. For the record, I pull mine apart every "off season" and clean/regrease them as well, install fresh seals, etc.. I choose to run them because I feel like they give me a little additional protection. If you guys disagree, that's fine, do whatever makes YOU happy.

Gee Mark, no insult to me. You always do a great job telling it like it is from your perspective, ain't nuttin wrong with that!

Frank

insult me..not by a far shot..lol..don't know why you would think that. your a big help on this forum. ron

I dunk my trailers in salt, (only a block to the boat launch) and done my share of rebuilds over the years. I've had no problems with BB's, on all my 3 trailers. But they are not meant for use as a "re-greaser". Any rebuild, is thats when ya grease'em up good. Then, just a initial slow pump to get the piston to move. NOW, its "pressurized", so water on dunking will not intrude. On the BB's make sure before putting on, piston moved freely. Then pump until movement. Done. Then before using again, push on the piston. If moved in and back, good to go. If not, 1/2 shot, maybe a full pump only until piston movement. Load'em up, and wham, there goes the inner seal.

Think of it this way. The tow ride has probably the same grease in the wheel hubs since new, and seldom re-greased nowadays. Trailer hubs are no different. Only they get dunked in water, and any water intrusion, especially salt, and ya gonna have a problem. BB's work for me, if used properly.

Also seen many pitted inner axle seal surface's, and without a smooth surface, I don't care what ya do, water will get in. Easiest way a remedy? Toss on a "Speedi Sleeve". Hope this helps, as many older trailers REALLY have inner seal issues with grooving and pitting. A link.
www.vsm.skf.com/en-US/HeavyDuty/KitsAndTools/SpeediSleeve.aspx

I once had a trailer with a similar problem.

I discovered that the replacement seals were not an exact fit. A lot of vintage trailers had odball spindle sizes - so even though your seals fit the hub, they may not fit tightly enough on the spindle. I had to go to a bearing shop to get special seals that fit correctly. I had to use calipers and a micrometer to do it, as the bearing place did not have a cross reference for automotive. The seals should fit snugly over the spindle - but not too tight. Some seals also don't have adequate depth on them to get the seal lip far enough in on the spindle to do a good job of sealing.

Bruce