wheel seals

[Smedley]

Hey ya'll, I just pulled the boat into the garage for a little PM and noticed I needed grease in the hubs. As I was adding the grease, the bearing buddy wasn't moving. Bad wheel seals I thought. so I pulled the wheels and hub and notice that the hub had a lot of play in it on the axel. It didn't seem like the hub was seated all the way on. the pin was in and the nut was not tight on either side. One side wheel seal is completely chewed up but the other side was good, I just cleaned the hub, bearings, seals, and axel and repacked. seems tighter noe and ok. I'm going to replace the seals and bearing on the other one. shoudl I be worried about this happening again, even if I tighten the nut a little tighter. shoudl I just replace the hubs altogether? Anything else?

 

[Bondo]

Re: wheel seals

My Guess is that it was Improperly Installed,......<br /><br />If the Bearing Cups are loose,... You Should be able to See/Feel it when you Clean them up........<br /><br />Whatever you do,.......... Don't Over-Tighten them,..........<br />Install them Properly,.......<br />And,....<br />Torque them Properly,........<br />Don't Overcompensate for an Unknown Issue.............

 

[jtexas]

Re: wheel seals

check the spindle - the "shoulder" part where the seal rides - if it's got any discoloration, polish it good with some emory cloth.

 

[BillP]

Re: wheel seals

When first installing the hub tighten the nut about 1/4 past finger tight to seat the seals and bearings...snug it up but don't lean hard and tighten too much. Then back out the nut and adjust tightness as usual. Check tightness again after the first road trip.<br /><br />Also, Bearing Buddies will get road grime around the spring and keep it from moving freely. This can cause you to pump too much grease pressure in before making the springs move out. Too much grease will bust the rear seal. Lesson here is to clean the Bearing Buddies as necessary.

 

[Smedley]

Re: wheel seals

I did the bearing job last night after three trips to get the right bearings. word to the wise, don't try auto parts stores for boat stuff. Two clerks had manuals laid out all over the table and still couldn't find the right one. went to the local boat shop, pulled two sets off the shelf and was on my way. <br /><br />anyway, I think the problem was two-fold. When I did the bearing the last time it was the first time I had ever done any and didn't get the seals seated all the way in. I made sure this time. And, I was shooting too much grease in the bearing buddies and blew the seals. I was always taught to shoot grease until it comes out the over fill hole. Now I know. <br /><br />I did like you said BillP and got it snugged up, but not over tight. everything looks good now. I'll keep a closer eye on them from now on though. thanks for all your help.

 

[jasper2447]

Re: wheel seals

Hi there<br />Here in Europe we can get special hub covers which are spring-loaded. When the bearing is hot from the road, suddenly immersing it in water cools it rapidly, this sucks water into the bearing and, if it's salt water, you can look out for trouble down the road. The spring-loaded variety keeps grease under positive pressure so that if there is suction due to shrinkage, it's grease that's sucked in and not salt water - can you get these in the USA ??<br /><br />Jasper

 

[Smedley]

Re: wheel seals

yes jasper, that's the "bearing buddies" that were talked about. there are several types but the generic term is bearing buddies. very popular hear. most new boat trailers already have them on there.