Video change trailer bearings

[Russ]

One of my favorite Youtubers made a great video on changing trailer bearings.



Bonus: He has a section on changing the tires yourself.

[Be Free]

Thank you. That was probably the most informative and best organized tutorial on this subject I've seen. I have it bookmarked so I can send it to the next person who asks me how to do this (or asks me to do it for them ).

[dlandersson]

Nice. Thank you

One of my favorite Youtubers made a great video on changing trailer bearings.



Bonus: He has a section on changing the tires yourself.

[JamesToBoot]

I always get a lot out of his videos.

Another option, especially if you don't have the tools / experience / work room / time, is to replace the whole pre-assembled / pre-installed / pre-lubed hub, and the assembled tire/rim.

As neglected as my tires and trailer are, I definitely need to do some pm, but not sure which route I will go.

Chris Fix for the win! What a great guy.

[Be Free]

The only things I would have done differently is that I clean up the spindles before I start on the hubs and I usually use a short 2x4 across the grease seals to finish pressing them in after they are started.

I appreciate the fact that he shows how to do it with minimal tools and then he shows how much (if any) the proper tools help with time and/or ease. That way the home mechanic can make an informed decision about whether or not to invest in the tools.

[Russ]

I appreciate the fact that he shows how to do it with minimal tools and then he shows how much (if any) the proper tools help with time and/or ease. That way the home mechanic can make an informed decision about whether or not to invest in the tools.

I wish I had seen this before I bought 4 new wheels/tires. Otherwise, I might have invested in some of those tire-changing tools and done it myself and saved buying new wheels.

I never understood how bearings worked or the "Bearing Buddies". This video demystifies it for me.

Chris has another youtube channel "Chris Fish" where he documents more boating/fishing experiences. He lives in New Jersey and his boating is in the waters where I used to sail in Sandy Hook Bay.

https://www.youtube.com/@chrisfished

[Be Free]

If I had a single-axle trailer I would not have bought a manual tire changer. Since I have a dual axle I figure that I've more than paid for it with just the cost of mounting new tires.

After many years of hand-packing the bearings I purchased a bearing packer. It is inexpensive and saves a lot of time and mess. I've been servicing hubs since I got my first car and I highly recommend it and wish I'd gotten one sooner.

He explained the right way to use a bearing buddy but he did not explain what happens when you put too much grease in them - a mistake I made the first time I used one.

If you keep pumping grease into the bearing buddy after the spring is completely compressed you will either damage the oil seal (worst on a single lip seal) or cause the bearing buddy to come out of the hub. If you are lucky the bearing buddy pops off while you are pumping. I wasn't lucky.

I ended up having to replace one of my hubs in the boat ramp parking lot 150 miles from home after the bearing buddy came off on the highway. Without the cap it allowed all of the grease to run out and destroy the bearings on one spindle. Fortunately the wheel did not come off but the outer bearing was literally gone. FYI: You can make-do with even fewer tools than he used if you absolutely have to.

Now I never go on a long trip without a dedicated tool box containing everything I need to service the hubs on the road including at least one spare hub that's been serviced and is ready to swap out. I also have towing insurance if I don't want to fix it on the side of the road.

[Russ]

Thanks for the info on OVER charging the bearing buddies. I never realized that was a concern. I will remember this next time I attempt to add more grease.

His video also shows how to "jack" one wheel of a dual axle trailer by simply driving one of the wheels up on a "ramp".
That was a "palm slap on forehead" moment for me. I recently changed all 4 wheels and could have saved all the jacking by simply rolling the trailer.

[OverEasy]

Hi Russ!

Great complete video!
Chris did an excellent job producing that!
Especially having the cross section prop. He went the extra mile for folks! Nice!
Thank you for sharing!

Those “bearing buddies” are nice options.
Much better than the old static cups!

Chris also did a good bit pointing out the inboard grease fitting as well as the 12 month or 12,000 mile whichever comes first rule.
That’s been a good one to follow as it can help catch issues before they become problems….
Bearing in mind (pun intended) things can always go amiss in the real world even when you try to do things right, I can afully appreciate Be Free and having a spare hub ‘ready to go’ in a travel tool kit. It’s no fun being stuck!
I salvaged and refurbished the good hubs from when we had a bearing/wheel-hub failure in transit a couple of years ago.
For me it’s just nice to know I have options going forward in the future.

The ‘ramp up’ trick to raise a wheel is a technique I’ve used several times over the years with various tandem axle trailers.
Especially when they are heavily loaded. Much more stable than using a bottle Jack on the side of a roadway shoulder.
We also use that technique to ‘level’ our boat when traveling cross country and using our boat as an RV for camping.
Instead of carrying around an assortment of lumber we carry a pair of HD plastic ramps that can do the same trick.

It was really nice how he showed the bearing nut tightening process!
That was particularly well done and explained!

Again, Thanks for sharing this!

Best Regards,
Over Easy