TOPIC: Trailer bearing preload

I'm taking a breather from the hustle and bustle and decided to repack the wheel bearings on the trailer I bought last Aug. Looks like the PO either put the wrong bearings in on old races or he preloaded hard enough to push the bearing through the race and into the rear seal. There's a reason to drive 65 miles on back roads at slow speeds when picking up one of these puppies.

Doh, that's never good!!!!

Bob

I'm going to replace both wheel sets, front and rear. Might be less expensive just to replace both hubs.
All my years I've never seen this before.
Can't imagine what would have happened in your situation pulling down to sunny FL at highway speeds.

Good plan. Yeah that could have gotten real ugly on the way!

Bob

Was driving behind a boat trailer in the highway once. Just at the same moment I caught a whiff of burnt rubber smell, a cloud of smoke came up from one of the trailer wheels. Within seconds, that wheel stopped rotating due to a seized bearings. It started swaying instantly. As I quickly changed lanes and backed off to give room, his tire blew before he was 20 percent pulling to the shoulder with gravel flying. This happened so fast he had no warning until the heavy wig-wag swaying. I knew it was not going to be a good afternoon at that point. I was loaded and already past him, but did see another motorist stop. It pays to check and double check bearings. You are always on your game Cal. Keeps not only us safe, but also the safety of other drivers around us trailer towers. I travel with a complete set of replacement hubs even though I keep maintenance on my trailers... maybe it will be a stranger who will need one or me too.

Went to O'Reilly this AM and picked up two complete sets of correct bearings. $37. Now just to get the races punched in. I think I have a socket that will fit the bill.

It's best to check those things before. I hate doing it on the side of the road. When I get to a boat ramp and before I even untie I put my hand on each hub to see if it is in the cool range. After having problems with this trailer I learned fast. It had a weird ass size bearing set. It took me a week just to find someone who could order them. Seals were a weird size too.