wheel bearing rant......

[2stroke1971]

So I had another wheel bearing detonate on the way home from our vacation last weekend...I was about 1/2 way across the Bay Bridge (after a 15 mile backup) when I heard a noise...looked in the rear view and saw my bearing buddy bouncing down the road. The wheel it came off was wobbling pretty bad. Slowed to about 15 mph, put the hazards on and limped across on eggshells. Pulled off, assessed the situation, limped about a mile further into the state park where I left the boat and trailer overnight until I could get a new set of bearings. Its all fixed again, but I swear I had no more than 700 miles on the bearing that went out...I replaced them both last year and have used the boat very little.
packed it full before the trip....
​
So in my quest to get more out of my bearings.....I've heard about using spring scales...and in fact i have a very nice one....an expensive tool item, not some fish scale. and there are instructions on the bearing package that lists end play...in thousandths of an inch...so what, a run out gauge on the rim?
In any case this is my main gripe....the hub nut is notched of course... BUT....this always happens: When I get it where it "feels" right to me...the hole for the cotter pin is covered. SO....then I can tighten it a notch and have it feel too tight to me, or loosen it a bit where it has too much wobble. JEEZ....
What now, bearing sized arbor shims and trial and error?!?!? Add or subtract shims? What do the good people of the world do?
I've rebuilt differentials....CRITICAL cone and taper sets, with success....and yet I can't get more than 1000 miles out of a damn wheel bearing.

 

[oldjeep]

How are you packing the bearings with grease before install?

 

[BrianNJ]

Was there any sign of water damage in the bearings? The number of times in and out of the water might be a better measure of wear on your bearings than miles. Salt water is worse than fresh water. Assuming your boat was in storage for the winter, it is important to repack bearings and replace seals in the fall since sitting with even a little water in the bearings will cause pitting. Once pitted, it is just a matter of time before the bearings self destruct. A little play is okay - better than too tight. However, It is also good to recheck after new bearings have some miles since they will develop some additional play once seated.

 

[bruceb58]

Are you pre-loading the bearing with a torque wrench before backing off the nut?

http://www.championtrailers.com/pre-...heel-bearings/

I am with jeep and would like to know how you are packing your bearings.

What kind of trailer do you have? What are the bearing sizes and what load do you have on the trailer? No funky automotive non zero offset wheels right?

You change both the bearings and the races when you replaced your bearings before?

 

[Silvertip]

I've been packing bearings by hand since I was 12 years old (I'm older than dirt) and have never (at least that I can remember) had a spindle nut that lined up perfectly with the cotter pin hole. That minute difference between being line up and not being lined up can be easily felt with the wheel installed, bearings properly installed and pre-loaded. Grasp the wheel at 3 and 9 o'clock and rock it in and out. Continue to tighten the nut by hand until that small amount of slop is gone. Then back the nut off until the notch lines up with the hole. Insert the cotter pin, install the dust cap and hit the road. If you are losing bearings at less than 1000 miles here are possibilities:
1) Trailer is grossly overloaded
2) Races not being replaced at the same time as the bearing
3) Races being cracked or damaged during installation
4) Improper adjustment

 

[glenn property of pam]

I carry a spare bearing that's already pre-packed and vacuum sealed. When my wife went to throw out her fancy food saver I found it a new home in the shed. Just put the bearing in the bag with grease slapped around the race then vacuum the bag and seal it. Touch wood never had a bearing fail but its nice to know I have a full kit ready to go as I would hate to be stuck on the side of the road waiting for a store to open.

 

[bruceb58]

Probably better just to carry a spare idler hub with bearings already packed and ready to go. Can even mount it on an axle spindle welded to the frame somewhere. You would have all the parts including nut, washer and rear seal.

 

[2stroke1971]

Yeah, new races every time...pack the bearings themselves, then inside the hub, cram it all as full as I can, then put the caps on and pump them.....
I have noticed that after a few miles, they need to be socked up a bit, so I do that.
Ive got real trailer wheels and tires the last 2 years, and to be honest that has helped somewhat.
Its an '84 Load Rite...1 3/8s inner and 1 1/16 outer......
Hard to say what condition the grease was in, because by the time I pulled over, it was all splattered out and blackened.

Salt water all of the time....I should probably just make a habit of jacking it up, repacking them manually before big trips especially if it's been sitting a while......(I have my doubts about the "bearing buddies" ability to do what they are supposed to do...)
And I actually bought TWO sets of bearings...so now at least I will have one ready.

Its a single axle, the boat is pretty heavy, I dunno exaclty how much although this boat and trailer was bought as a set brand new way back when so I would hope it's appropriate....the boat itself is a Bayliner 1950 capri cuddy.

Preloading? not with a torwque wrench, but I will check that out.

Thanks for the replies!

 

[bruceb58]

Are you hand packing the grease into the bearings? By that I mean you put a blob of grease into your hand and force the grease through the bearing so it is full.

Here is a good video. It shows a plastic bearing packer( I actually use this exact one) and the hand method that starts at 7:30 in the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXlK0ihVu60

Buddy bearings do nothing to pack grease into the bearing. Theur only job is to keep a slight positive pressure inside the hub ti keep water out. That's ALL they do. They don't force grease into a bearing and are not supposed to.

The bearings you have are typical for a 3500# axle. Assuming your boat is around 2000# and your trailer is 600#, you are not overloading your trailer.

I preload almost exactly how the instruction I posted. Spin the wheel while torquing to 20 ft lbs. Back off the nut with my hand. Hand tighten it and then back it out to the first place I can put the cotter pin in.

I would get in the habit of jacking up each wheel and spinning it before each trip to see how the bearings sound.

 

[kjsAZ]

and try to get bearings not made in China. Go with US made or European ones. I had quite some issues with the Chinese ones made from "rubber steel". They have good ones too but the ones you usually find in the shops are only made to be cheap.

Your boat+trailer is most likely close to the max limit of the trailer. I have a 17.5ft bowrider and with gas and all the other stuff I am up to ~3000#

 

[bruceb58]

NADA says his boat is around 2000#.

 

[kjsAZ]

Hmmm, my data is 3,368# including trailer and that's without gas and other stuff. My 17.5ft bowrider is 2400# incl trailer but if you add gas and gear and larger tires and spare tire I end up close to 3000#. I'm safe as it sits on a 3500# trailer too but he's getting close if the numbers I have are correct.

 

[bruceb58]

Hmmm, my data is 3,368# including trailer

Where did you get that?

There is no way his trailer weighs 1300#

 

[kjsAZ]

Bayliner old manuals for the 1950 cuddy. They came on Escort trailers which were made from double layer railroad tracks looking at their weight.

 

[bruceb58]

Bayliner old manuals for the 1950 cuddy. They came on Escort trailers which were made from double layer railroad tracks looking at their weight.

I used to own a 1987 Bayliner 2150 with an Escort trailer. It was a tandem and it didn't weigh close to1300# either. The Escort trailer was the best thing about the package. Bayliner makes a pretty crummy boat but at least the trailer was good.

By the way, his is a Load Rite trailer.

 

[kjsAZ]

Load Rite may be a lot lighter.... I have to say that the Escort trailer is the worst part of my package. They had no appreciation for tolerances and the axle was installed with a side offset to compensate for the frame not being symmetrical. Was the only part I had to do a lot of rework. Boat was and is in perfect condition (besides a scratch I made and have to fix...). I had mine on a scale and it was 2970# with everything. That's for a boat with a 3.0l only, 2ft shorter and no cuddy.
And I still have the old and excellent Bayliner hull and not the Sea Ray hull they adopted in 2002..... I know, in the 80's they did cut far to many corners to save money.....

 

[bruceb58]

What year and model is it? So you have a Bayliner? Sorry about that :boink:

Believe it or not, bow riders are often heavier than cuddys.

 

[kjsAZ]

It's a 1996 1750LS and is a lot better than I expected it to be after all the negatives I read. I was looking used and it was the only boat in good or better perfect shape I could find. All other boats in the price range I was looking were total trash. Have it now since 4 years and nothing to complain about except a captains error..... still original upholstery and carpet in excellent shape.

 

[bruceb58]

That was about the time they started to get their act together.

NADA says your boat is 1850# without the trailer.

The OP is definitely under 3500#

 

[kjsAZ]

Manual says 2400# with trailer which may be correct. I put much larger tires on plus a spare which is another ~130#. Then gas and gear and it's 2970#

The OP most likely has 4.3l if not a 5l engine which is a lot heavier, then more length and beam plus extra fiberglass for teh cuddy and a larger tank and a longer trailer. That must be a lot heavier than mine but I agree that he's most likely below 3500# unless he adds some extra cargo to the boat.....