Product review-spindle repair kit

[Florida]

Spindle sleeve product review
The spindles on my boat trailer developed a slight, round grove where the grease seals ride. The seals don?t leak grease but I was still concerned that this would allow for water intrusion and lead to bearing failure. I looked into buying a spindle repair kit but none of the 3 local trailer shops carried them. I decided to order a spindle repair kit from bearing buddy. The kit consists of an upgrade grease seal, o-ring and a thin metal sleeve that slides over the spindle. The sleeve is supposed to provide a smooth machined surface for the grease seal to ride on during towing. It didn?t actually work for me. The problem lies with the metal sleeve. The sleeve doesn?t actually fit overthe area of the spindle where the grease seal rides. It?s not really a sleeve either; it?s a fat ring with some kind of lock washer/ expansion ring inside of it. The ring doesn?t really slide over the area of the spindle where the grease seal rides either. Instead it installs off to the side of the area. This creates a clearance problem with the hub. The hub won?t slide all the way on the spindled either. It will slide most of the way but not enough to properly adjust the castle nut. The castle nut properly tightened is now hanging over the cotter pin hole and prohibiting the installation of the cotter pin. Bearing buddy is aware of this problem and warns of it on the back of the package. I wish I would have know about this before I ordered the product and paid for shipping and processing. Bearing buddies? solution to the problem is to machine the castle nut to be slimmer or buy a slimmer castle nut. I think this is impractical and a bad idea. First off, what home mechanic has the ability to machine and polish a castle nut? Secondly I don?t want a slimmer castle nut. I want the one that came from the factory and the one that has proven itself for the last ten years. All in all I don?t recommend this product because of the possible clearance problem with some trailers and the fact that bearing buddy doesn?t inform the buyer of the problem until after the product arrives.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

Something doesn't sound right here. How far the hub fits onto the axle is determined by the inner bearing. If the hub isn't going all the way on, the spindle seal kit is interfering with the bearing sliding on. This is a spindle problem.

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

Most boat axles are generic pieces. There are just a few different size of bearings, etc. to fit all common axles.

Most people purchase new bearing kits, which come with a new bearing, inner seal and bearing race. This essentially renews all the friction points on the bearings. The Bearing Buddy is just a replacement for the axle cap--with a grease fitting so it can easily be pumped full of bearing grease.

It sounds as if you may have got a thicker bearing than OEM. If Bearing Buddy offers a different axle nut, I wouldn't hesitate to use it. A cotter pin is required for safety, no matter the case.

Note: The bearing race is sometimes a pain to replace. Sometimes they cannot be easily removed, and must be cut out with a hacksaw. Sometimes heating the hub will help the installation. It's very important that they be used, however.

There's nothing more frustrating than having a bearing burn up due to a lack of lubrication. I've been stranded 100 miles twice due to a lack of maintenance--my mistake. Keeping the Buddy Bearings full of grease will prevent such embarrassments.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

Bamaman1,

He's talking about the spindle seal repair kit, not the Bearing Buddy that replaces the dust cap.!

 

[mla2ofus]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

I'd sure like to buy the hack saw blade that will cut a bearing race.
Mike

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

First off, what home mechanic has the ability to machine and polish a castle nut?

Hacksaw and a bench vice... i've done it many times before. The trick is to thread the bolt on backwards FIRST, use the threads of the stud to clean up the mangled threads for you. If you try to cut it and then just install it, it won't turn out well...

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

I'd sure like to buy the hack saw blade that will cut a bearing race.
Mike

Where was cutting a bearing race mentioned?

 

[109jb]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

A few times in the past I have used speedi-sleeves to fix a seal surface like that. They worked well and are made by a bearing manufacturer. I don't ever recall using one on a trailer axle, but I'm sure they would work.

http://www.vsm.skf.com/en-US/HeavyDuty/KitsAndTools/SpeediSleeve.aspx

 

[royal0014]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

Most boat axles are generic pieces. There are just a few different size of bearings, etc. to fit all common axles.

Most people purchase new bearing kits, which come with a new bearing, inner seal and bearing race. This essentially renews all the friction points on the bearings. The Bearing Buddy is just a replacement for the axle cap--with a grease fitting so it can easily be pumped full of bearing grease.

It sounds as if you may have got a thicker bearing than OEM. If Bearing Buddy offers a different axle nut, I wouldn't hesitate to use it. A cotter pin is required for safety, no matter the case.

Note: The bearing race is sometimes a pain to replace. Sometimes they cannot be easily removed, and must be cut out with a hacksaw. Sometimes heating the hub will help the installation. It's very important that they be used, however.

There's nothing more frustrating than having a bearing burn up due to a lack of lubrication. I've been stranded 100 miles twice due to a lack of maintenance--my mistake. Keeping the Buddy Bearings full of grease will prevent such embarrassments.

Where was cutting a bearing race mentioned?

Best bet would be to replace the spindle/axle. Before that, figure out what caused the wear in the first place. The rubber seal itself should not have, so what was the contributing factor? Neglect, loose hub, worn bearings....

BTW, the 'bearing buddy' caps are a sham.....


<<)))(((>>

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

BTW, the 'bearing buddy' caps are a sham.....

The topic of the thread is the spindo seal kit. You switching it to the Bearing Buddy protector now?

Now I see where cutting the bearing race was mentioned. Thought the OP had said it. Agreed, cutting a bearing race would be futile with a hacksaw.

 

[ufm82]

Re: Product review-spindle repair kit

I've seen the bearing buddy kit and wondered to myself about the clearance issue. 109- I put speedi sleeves on my axles this spring due to wear and they work great; no more grease-slinging. And the nice part about the speedi sleeve is that it is very thin steel and you'll have no clearance issues with them. The downside is that on a spindle you'll need to make a tool as the piece that comes with the sleeve is not deep enough to reach over the spindle. I actually used a piece of PVC to drive the sleeve on. Yes, they are that easy. The sleeve expands ever so slightly to go over the spindle but holds tight. Plus there is a small lip on the back side that is held in place by the inner race of the bearing. They are fast, easy to install and cost around $30. Great little items.