Never lube bearings

Shoot I thought he might catch his chest hair on fire though. What a freakin' hack.

I've seen worse jobs, but usually by someone who didn't know which end of the hammer to use. LOL

MM49 wrote:

psford wrote:

fj12ryder wrote:

neal10a wrote:
I feel "never lube" and "easy lube" bearings provide a false sense of security. The old tried and true hand packed bearings are the best way to go for me. One has to remove the hubs once a year to inspect the brakes, so it is nothing to inspect the bearing and hand pack them at the same time. BTY I use the brass drift punch to replace the races. However it would be easier with a seal/race removal set if one can find one that fits the races for a 6/7000 lb axle. I have not found a source for that tool and if anyone knows where to get one I would be most interested. Seems like Harbor Freight, Sears and NAPA don't carry ones the work for 6/7000 lb axles.

FWIW a brass drift is not the best tool to use for installing bearings. Brass can flake/chip off and get into the bearings. A soft steel drift is a better choice. I've seen quite a few open bearings ruined because someone used a brass drift.

Maybe I am missing what you are trying to say about using a brass drift punch, what does a drift punch have to do with the bearing install other knocking out the race ? At that point you are replacing race ,and bearing, and everything is going to be cleaned up . I completely clean the hub before replacing the race ,and the bearing. I certainly don't use a drift punch of any kind to replace the race, and if I did then a little air would probably take care of any flaking that may occur. As I said I may have missed your point, but have used a brass drift on many occasions to remove the race with no issues.

Take a look how a true expert changes bearing races.
MM49Expert skill

That was enlightening !!!! Loved the way he removed the race, there might be just a tad bit of slag in there, but no worries, no brass flaking with his method.

psford wrote:

fj12ryder wrote:

neal10a wrote:
I feel "never lube" and "easy lube" bearings provide a false sense of security. The old tried and true hand packed bearings are the best way to go for me. One has to remove the hubs once a year to inspect the brakes, so it is nothing to inspect the bearing and hand pack them at the same time. BTY I use the brass drift punch to replace the races. However it would be easier with a seal/race removal set if one can find one that fits the races for a 6/7000 lb axle. I have not found a source for that tool and if anyone knows where to get one I would be most interested. Seems like Harbor Freight, Sears and NAPA don't carry ones the work for 6/7000 lb axles.

FWIW a brass drift is not the best tool to use for installing bearings. Brass can flake/chip off and get into the bearings. A soft steel drift is a better choice. I've seen quite a few open bearings ruined because someone used a brass drift.

Maybe I am missing what you are trying to say about using a brass drift punch, what does a drift punch have to do with the bearing install other knocking out the race ? At that point you are replacing race ,and bearing, and everything is going to be cleaned up . I completely clean the hub before replacing the race ,and the bearing. I certainly don't use a drift punch of any kind to replace the race, and if I did then a little air would probably take care of any flaking that may occur. As I said I may have missed your point, but have used a brass drift on many occasions to remove the race with no issues.

Take a look how a true expert changes bearing races.
MM49Expert skill

MFL wrote:
Hey, at least no one has said never lubes are for your boat trailer! Lol

never lube/easy lube/ bearing buddies, OMG

Jerry

Yep, seen that here also!

Hey, at least no one has said never lubes are for your boat trailer! Lol

never lube/easy lube/ bearing buddies, OMG

Jerry

psford wrote:

rattleNsmoke wrote:
I think the OP meant using a brass drift to 'remove' old races. You really can't use a drift to install new ones. That's when an oversize socket and piece of wood comes in handy.

We might be mixing up Never lube with Easy lube, never messed with Never lube, but yes I would never use a drift punch to install the race.

You are right that this conversation has become confusing due to mixing Never Lube with regular bearings.:E

I changed my Never lubes last spring after 10 years of use. No way could I have removed them with a drift. Had to take the hubs to a machine shop to have the bearings pressed out/in.

Many times there isn't an easy way to install bearings without using a drift to get them on. That's not an issue, only using a brass drift to put them on is a bad idea. Just trying to make people who may not be aware of it that using brass drifts and open bearings is not a good idea.

I've never worked with trailer wheel bearings so I can't say. But I have worked with bearings and bearing installation, and have used a drift lots of times because nothing else would work. I've had to pull more than one bearing because of brass chips in the works. Usually caused by someone who thought brass would be a good choice because it is soft and won't won't cause any problems.

rattleNsmoke wrote:
I think the OP meant using a brass drift to 'remove' old races. You really can't use a drift to install new ones. That's when an oversize socket and piece of wood comes in handy.

We might be mixing up Never lube with Easy lube, never messed with Never lube, but yes I would never use a drift punch to install the race.

fj12ryder wrote:

neal10a wrote:
I feel "never lube" and "easy lube" bearings provide a false sense of security. The old tried and true hand packed bearings are the best way to go for me. One has to remove the hubs once a year to inspect the brakes, so it is nothing to inspect the bearing and hand pack them at the same time. BTY I use the brass drift punch to replace the races. However it would be easier with a seal/race removal set if one can find one that fits the races for a 6/7000 lb axle. I have not found a source for that tool and if anyone knows where to get one I would be most interested. Seems like Harbor Freight, Sears and NAPA don't carry ones the work for 6/7000 lb axles.

FWIW a brass drift is not the best tool to use for installing bearings. Brass can flake/chip off and get into the bearings. A soft steel drift is a better choice. I've seen quite a few open bearings ruined because someone used a brass drift.

Maybe I am missing what you are trying to say about using a brass drift punch, what does a drift punch have to do with the bearing install other knocking out the race ? At that point you are replacing race ,and bearing, and everything is going to be cleaned up . I completely clean the hub before replacing the race ,and the bearing. I certainly don't use a drift punch of any kind to replace the race, and if I did then a little air would probably take care of any flaking that may occur. As I said I may have missed your point, but have used a brass drift on many occasions to remove the race with no issues.

MNRon wrote:
We bought a 2005 5er with never-lubes last spring. Don't know how many miles on it. Planning an Alaska trip in a couple years and definitely want to replace prior to that just to be sure. Any info on options would be appreciated. As I understand:
1- could have new never-lubes pressed in, if have shop do everything maybe $600?
2- could buy new drums with never-lubes in place and self adjusting brakes, install myself, maybe $1800?
3- could swap out never-lubes for conventional bearings. This would involve new axels too? No idea the cost.

I'm leaning towards #2 above, any thoughts, comments, or advice?
Thanks

I replaced our bearings at 70K but we've had our trailer from new. I had some brake problems before we left a couple months ago, the magnetic brake components are just wearing out from over 90K miles that are on the trailer. We have Dexter HD brakes (12.25 × 3 3/8 shoes) and it would be over $500 a wheel for new ones so I'm going to upgrade to disk brakes for around $2600, I will install them myself. We have no plans to retire the trailer so we are just going to keep upgrading it.

Denny