Changing wheel bearings part 1

[Fab1]

Hi guys,last time out on the way home i was smelling burnt grease while towing.So today before i take my boat out again i'm doing a full inspection and replacement of my bearings.

As always hope someone gets something from this.

Always purchase quality wheel bearings otherwise your wasting your time and money-

The next step is to crack your wheel nuts loose while the trailer is still on the ground,(Do not remove the wheel nuts completely)-

Next you want to jack your trailer off the ground by placing the jack under something firm like the axle or frame.Here I've placed the cup on the jack on the axle as close to the wheel as possible to prevent bending the axle-

Place a safety stand on something firm Incase of a jack failure as a safety precaution.I have placed one on the frame out of the camera shot.

Now you can remove all the wheel nuts and remove the tyre exposing the hub assembly-Notice the grease on the wheel studs and face of the hub to make removal of the wheel easier.Sometimes wheel nuts and even the wheel can seize onto the studs and hub.

Checking the rear seal in hub for signs of grease leakage,all good here-Wait a minute,on closer inspection I can see small cracks in the rubber.Will inspect further once the seal is removed.

It's time to remove the bearing protector to gain access to the spindle and castellated nut-Here I'm using a soft faced hammer to tap the buddy on opposing sides to walk it off the hub after removing the black dust seal.

You can see here the buddy coming off shown by the gap between the hub and the buddy-

Once the buddy is off you can see the Split pin,castellated nut and washer that you need to remove in that order-

Give it a quick wipe with a rag or paper towel so you can see what your doing once the bulk of the grease is removed-

Now remove the split pin with a pair of side cutters,you need to straighten the leg on the pin then lever it out-

Now you can remove the Castellated nut that will range from being finger tight to barely done up with either your fingers which I've used here or a pair of multi-grips or shifter-

The hub can now be slide off exposing the spindle-

A close up of the spindle reveals an issue with heat buildup in the bearings.Notice the blackness around the seal area with a bluey tinge on the spindle.The grease looks and smells burnt.The cause of this can be too little lubrication,water ingress through the rear seal,over tightened bearings.In my case in betting water has gotten in through the cracks in the rear seal -

Here I've slid the seal of the spindle and I'm giving the spindle a good clean with fine emery paper-

You want to grab the spindle and push/pull on it to inspect the spindle for cracks.If its going to crack it will crack where in pointing to it with the screwdriver on the underside hard up against the shoulder-

Getting back to the hub remove the front bearing by simply pulling it out with your finger as it just sits loosely in its race-

To remove the rear bearing is a little harder,you need to sit the hub in between two blocks of wood and using a drift or similar knocking the bearing assembly out with the stainless ring as a unit by hitting the shoulder of the bearing on alternate sides-

Rear bearing removed-

You will be left with the hub with its races still installed that will require removal and a whole heap of grease in the hub cavity-

I place the blocks of wood over a bin with the hub in between them and use push paper towels through the hubs cavity pushing the grease and paper towels straight into the bin.(You can use saw horses or milk crates to do the same thing)-

Now you can use a drift(a brass one is ideal) and hammer to knock the races out.You want to hit the lip on the back of the race by inserting the drift through the hubs bore and onto the race-Always cover the bore in the hub when using the drift Incase something shatters when striking the bearing and always wear eye protection-

Hub has races removed and all cleaned up ready to install new bearings-

Here the old parts are cleaned up and ready for inspection-

This is one of the rear bearings,note that the rollers have pitted and the cage has started to rust.Only one thing can cause that,water ingress-This bearing is shot.

This is one of the front bearings,note that it is still in good condition with no signs of pitying,rust or discolouration-This bearing is still in serviceable condition.

This is the old seal cleaned up showing the cracking I found when I did the initial inspection- The cracks go all the way through to the inside.These seals are shot and what has caused the water ingress into my rear bearings causing them to fail.

Bearing installation continued in part 2.

Cheers.

Edited December 28, 2015 by Fab1

[Brooker435]

good write up Fabian, most people take their wheel bearings for granted in fact I just replaced mine as well & done a overhaul of the trailer and after only using the boat about 3-4 times all year one of the hubs was fine but the other one had water through it, I have not inspected the bearings yet as I have replaced the whole lot including hubs & springs but I will re-build the old Hubs and keep them as a spare.

I am sure a lot of people will get value out of this Fabian, looking forward to part 2.

Regards,

Nathan

[Rud]

Good pictures, just done mine, I have Holden size hubs and there is an opening both sides in both seats for both bearing outer shells which allows a punch or flat chisel to hit the full thickness of the shell's wall so you don't slip off, needs much cleaning to see them!

Some previous person hit what he thought was the shell's back but was actually the lip with the openings in and I had to use a milling tool in my battery drill to level the lip so the new shell would go in all the way. I also had to us a gas torch to heat the hubs as the shells wouldn't move and I put the new ones in the freezer for about 15 minutes which helped to get them in using an old boat trailer roller as a big fat punch, make sure you grease the hub first and when you get it in grease the rest of the shell itself to remove condensation which happens during transit from the freezer.

I can't supply a photo as my camera is on the blink.

Edited December 31, 2015 by Rud