The thing about those hubs is that even though there's the option to put more grease in, it's still a good idea to repack the bearings (disassemble, inspect, clean, etc).

With EZ Lube hubs, the old grease on the inner bearing still stays back there.

All the new trailers I've bought had very minimal grease in the bearings.... I've bought three new trailers over the last 2 years.

With EZ Lube hubs, there's nothing to "build up pressure" in the hub like with a bearing buddy type device.

 

With EZ Lube hubs, there's nothing to "build up pressure" in the hub like with a bearing buddy type device.

So with bearing buddies, I can be lazy and not have to make sure the bearing is greased as long as the bearing buddy is showing that there is pressure from the outer diaphragm?


I found a cut sheet of the ez lube and it appears that the grease travels through the spindle then around the inner bearing, the outer bearing and comes out the front. Would the heat from the grease (since it is now packed?) expand enough to blow out the inner seal and containment the brakes? As long as that rubber plug does not come off, would removing the grease zerk lower the chances of expansion and eventual rear seal blowout?

 

it appears that the grease travels through the spindle then around the inner bearing, the outer bearing and comes out the front. Would the heat from the grease (since it is now packed?) expand enough to blow out the inner seal and containment the brakes? As long as that rubber plug does not come off, would removing the grease zerk lower the chances of expansion and eventual rear seal blowout?

If the grease expands, shouldn't it come out the front rather than blow the seal. I have blown a seal on my swing away tire carrier by pumping too fast.

 

I have the greaseable spindles on my trailer build. There are some pics there of the port holes where the grease channels through and yes, it hits the inner first, then out to the outer one. Haven't had an issue with other trailers with this setup and don't forsee any on my current build. Kinda like it actually, but then again-this is a maintenance item that "should" be inspected/replaced when necessary. I say "should" loosely as I have a couple trailers that haven't been greased in years. Oh, then the big gooseneck is oil bath-does that count?

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

I had 2 seals blow on EZ-Lube axles, contaminating the brakes. The grease flows through the inner bearing and then packs in the hub and is eventually forced through the outer bearing. At the very least, I would remove the grease that comes through the outer bearing in order to allow addition grease to fill the metal press on cap if pressure does build.

Also, with the EZLube - the wheel **must** be rotated while greasing in order to properly lube the inner bearing. I seem to recall that not rotating the wheel could blow the seal as well, but I'm not sure on that one.

You need to pull everything apart in order to inspect the brakes. One thing you can do is clean/grease the outer bearing by hand and, for the inner bearing, leave the seal on and use the EZ-Lube to get fresh grease into the inner bearing. You can pull it back apart to remove the old grease and make sure you got fresh grease all through the bearing all the way around. It sounds like a hassle, but it's not really that bad.

Also, when I replaced the brakes, I used the Dexter auto adjusting brakes. That was last year (I think). So far, the auto adjusting brakes are doing their job....

 

ekim, would you get them again?

Thanks,
Mike

 

When I ordered the new axle for My trailer project, I opted against the EZ Lube option, just for thet reason. Figguring that I was gonna pull them apart once a year or so to inspect the brakes & brgs. why spend the extra $ for the bearing buddies.
So far It only has a hundred or so around town miles dialing in the brakes and working out the bugs. If I ever feel the need to ad the Bearing Buddies I can always do that at a later date.

 

ekim, would you get them again?

Thanks,
Mike

Yea I would. It's still nice to not have to R&R the seals to grease the bearings. I would not pass on a trailer if they did not have them and I would not pay a huge premium to have them.

 

when I ordered mine, it was standard option. There was no discount for ordering without them. Course, that was over a year ago now for the new axle... :roll: OH well, I'll be done soon-off the next two days and working non-stop on the trailer!!!

best of Luck,

Mike