What do you think of these wheels/hubs, do I need to replace

[Hydrilla]

Some of you know I'm doing a 1436 build. Here is a close-up of a trailer wheel- I'm not familiar with this type of hub, are they decent or do I need to look into replacing them? Or am I ok to just clean them up, paint them and make sure the bearings are ok?

 

[Specknreds]

Jack the trailer up and see if there is any slack in the bearings.

One huge piece of advice is if your in doubt about bearings CHANGE THEM. They are pretty cheap and it sure beats being broke down on the side of the road. I put over way over 2000 miles a year on my boat trailer and I change them twice a year. This is excessive but I do not want to break down on the side of the road. I have been there, done the broke down on the side of the road thing and I didn't enjoy it at all.

 

[countryboy210]

I Agree w/ Specknreds, Swap Them Out With New Ones. They Are Dirt Cheap, Get Two Sets Now And You Will Have A Ready Spare For The Next Time. But Also, Get Some Bearing Buddys, Or Grease Caps At Least To Cover And Dress Up Their Appearance.

 

[Hydrilla]

Good tips guys. I forgot to add that the cotter pin wasn't sticking out like that, I removed it before taking the pic, of course. So replacing the bearings and possibly just putting a dust cover on them might be ok..? I've just always had the bearing buddy type and didn't know if this kind I've got now was any good or not.

One more question- if the tires are dry rotted, is it typically more cost effective to get new rims with tires on them, or get tires mounted on existing rims? The kind I have look like ones I've seen for $50 each including the rim and tire, and mine aren't in that great shape- both need painted and one has a pretty good dent in it.

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

I bought tires on rims, I'm using the old ones as spares. I did put tubes in them.

 

[Crankworm]

Did the trailer come without any kind of dustcap or nothing? :shock: I couldn't imagine the mess of running around without some kind of cover. Just my .02 but it would probably be cheaper in the long run to replace bearings now instead of on the side of the highway.

 

[danmyersmn]

Did the trailer come without any kind of dustcap or nothing? :shock: I couldn't imagine the mess of running around without some kind of cover. Just my .02 but it would probably be cheaper in the long run to replace bearings now instead of on the side of the highway.

I don't think anyone can give you a good answer to what the bearing look like until you tear it apart. Its easy to do and cleaning and repacking bearings is a job that will take less then an hour to do. To me it looks like someone used the wrong type of lubricant and tried to apply it without taking the bearing apart. Perhaps they where grinding or rubbing and someone tried to dump some 30wt oil on them and it spun out. Either way, tear them down and repack them. Its a maintenance task that should be done anyway.

 

[Hydrilla]

No doubt I'll be replacing the bearings, I'm not going to bother with repacking them or anything. The trailer didn't have dust caps on the hubs, it doesn't surprise me since it is registered as a homemade trailer (the tongue isn't the original one that was on this trailer). Here's what I think I'm going to do based on your feedback and my research- buy 2 new wheels/tires, and clean up/paint the current wheel I have that isn't bent, and mount it as a spare, for now. If I'm able to replace the bearings and I don't find any other issues, I'll keep these hubs and spray them with some rust neutralizing paint once I get them cleaned up and the bearings switched, and then slap some dust caps on them. I still prefer the bearing buddy type hubs, and will probably get those as finances allow. I'll also eventually replace the spare wheel with one that has a tire that isn't dry rotted. This one isn't bad, I'm sure it will be fine as a spare for a while.

I've got a Tractor Supply store 5 minutes from my house, I'll stop by there and see what they have in stock.

 

[Loggerhead Mike]

the bearing buddys are just a glorified dust cap w/ a spring to keep pressure on the grease and a nipple to filler up. you can find them on the internet for pretty cheap (less than 20), or the parts store where you'll be getting your bearings may have some or be able to order them. i'd get some since your rebuilding the hubs anyways

when you take those bearings out clean the grease off. check for pitting or shiny flakes on the rollers of the bearing. the pitting will usually tell you the degree of wear, and the shiny is usually a result of over heating

dont forget the new seals and races, let us know how she turns out

 

[Hydrilla]

Um yeah... I'm thinking replacing the whole shootin' match is my best bet, what do y'all think of this pic? #-o

Got one of the hubs off, the other one is being reeeally stubborn so I put some PB Blaster on it, and I'll try again tomorrow. I assume you have to use a puller or something to get the bearings out, and I don't have one.

 

[Bugpac]

the bearings will tap out with a hammer...

 

[rick50]

I may be a little late with this post, but i usually use a hammer and a brass punch to knock the cup of the bearing out. I try not to use a steel punch, because it will burr up the inside of the hub.

I take the hub and using the punch and hammer, tap on the cup on the bottom first( there won t be much to hit on, just a little shoulder and just work my way around the inside hitting on one side and then the opposite, it usually comes out.

 

[Mike Redmond]

Ive been looking at the pic you sent, and the set up is the same as mine,regarding the way the axle is bolted to the springs.I beleive your axle is square ,is it a 1 1/4 axle by any chance,I had to get rid of mine cause the axle was bent,I simply bought a new axle and hubs attached($118. up here in Canada )are your springs centered at 46inches?Just curious, because I bought mine used at a dealership and it was described as( brand unknown), it is also a tilt trailer ,would really like to know the maker or brand of that trailer,thanks.Mike

 

[Hydrilla]

Yep, it's got a square axle, I forgot to measure the size of it but it looks to be about 1 1/4, it's pretty small. Wish I knew the manufacturer too.

Ive been looking at the pic you sent, and the set up is the same as mine,regarding the way the axle is bolted to the springs.I beleive your axle is square ,is it a 1 1/4 axle by any chance,I had to get rid of mine cause the axle was bent,I simply bought a new axle and hubs attached($118. up here in Canada )are your springs centered at 46inches?Just curious, because I bought mine used at a dealership and it was described as( brand unknown), it is also a tilt trailer ,would really like to know the maker or brand of that trailer,thanks.Mike

 

[Hydrilla]

So Friday or Saturday I'm wanting to go to Northern Tool or somewhere like that, and buy some new hub/bearing sets. I was thinking about something like these, but I want to be sure I'm buying the right thing. The axle shaft is 1" in diameter, and it's not tapered or anything. The axle itself is square. Do I just find a set of these that has 1" bearings in it? Is it that simple, or is there anything else I need to consider? I assume I would still need to use my existing castle nuts since it doesn't look like these come with one?

https://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200334734_200334734

I know this isn't the right size or the same lug count as I currently have, I'm just posting this as an example. My local store had quite a few of these in stock.

 

[Hydrilla]

I went to get new hubs and wheels, and realized that the ones I was going to buy at Northern Tool will not work. My axle spindle is 1" in diameter, and only 2" long, so these types of hubs won't work. If anyone can look at this pic of my hub and shed some light on this, I'd appreciate it. If I'm able to get the bearings out and get these cleaned up, I'm ok with keeping these versus getting new ones.

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

I'd head over to Napa with those.

 

[Hydrilla]

I don't think the bearings are coming out of these hubs. I have removed as much as I'm able, nothing else seems to be able to be removed. Almost like the bearings and hubs are all one unit. The ball bearings are accessible, yes they are ball bearings and not rollers, but again nothing else seems removable. The bearings don't even go all the way around, they fill up about 3/4 of the track. Here's a pic of how it looks now. I'm done mucking with it, I'm going to call one of the online trailer superstores tomorrow, and hope that given the spindle length/diameter, and the current hub width, they can sell me some hubs.

 

[moonfish]

just buy a new axle. it doesn't look like that thing has any seals on it? the hubs and spindles on a "regular" boat trailer are replaceable so you don't get so busted down with no way to fix.

 

[danmyersmn]

I agree. If I had to mail-order parts to put my hub back together I would want to replace it with something I could fix by running over to a local store and lose only an hour or two of fishing instead of an entire day or weekend. It may cost a little more up front to replace the axles but if you seize up the bearings one day you will be glad you can source replacements locally.