SuperLube Axles

kuziwk wrote:



The MFG probably made this system to make assembly cheaper and less labor intensive. They will likely not fix the brakes if there was a problem which is more expensive than a few more labor hours to pull the drums off.

My thought is that they drilled a hole and put a grease fitting in the end of it for a sales gimmick. Show people the easy way out and they will buy.

Having cheap Chinese bearings fail immediately, because of manufacturing defects, I learned to replace the bearings with USA made Timkens and hand pack. Quoting miles or years is only a guess and if I had not checked mine right after just one big trip, I would have had a serious event.

My old Komfort had EZ Lubes and I never once had grease out of the seals. I'd jack up each wheel and spin it while adding grease. I'd stop as soon as I'd hear popping noises of air being pushed past the seal. After 10 years I had the bearings and seals replace and all were still in excellent shape with only normal wear. In addition, the bearings were still tight and, had I not replaced them, =might= have been tightened back to the same hole or maybe one more, according to the shop that did the work. I replaced with Timkens all around.

Lyle

pcm1959 wrote:
If these are the same thing as E Z lube, the system can work if done properly. There is a video on the Dexter site simulating the principle behind the system. Yes, the biggest risk is blowing out the rear seal which in turn would contaminate the brakes.
If you elect to try it, its best to do when its warm out and even better when the hubs are warm as in just having been on the road. Lay the grease gun in the sun, too so help soften the grease. Lift the rig or each wheel off the ground and have someone turn it the entire time you are slowly pumping grease into the hub. Continue to this until you see clean grease coming out of the front.
As others have said, its best to pack bearings the old fashioned way.

To be honest i havent even looked at the system yet. Its "superlube" which im pretty sure is lippert and likely dexters competitor. I will probably just stick with the old method of packing the bearings as it seems there are too many things that will go wrong...such as driving the trailer first, warm day. How warm? how long do you have to drive for?

The MFG probably made this system to make assembly cheaper and less labor intensive. They will likely not fix the brakes if there was a problem which is more expensive than a few more labor hours to pull the drums off.

If these are the same thing as E Z lube, the system can work if done properly. There is a video on the Dexter site simulating the principle behind the system. Yes, the biggest risk is blowing out the rear seal which in turn would contaminate the brakes.
If you elect to try it, its best to do when its warm out and even better when the hubs are warm as in just having been on the road. Lay the grease gun in the sun, too so help soften the grease. Lift the rig or each wheel off the ground and have someone turn it the entire time you are slowly pumping grease into the hub. Continue to this until you see clean grease coming out of the front.
As others have said, its best to pack bearings the old fashioned way.

MFL wrote:
You will likely ruin the seal, when removing it, to access the rear bearing. It is best to replace seals. You can take the numbers off the axle placard, and call axle manufacturer, with that info. They will know what seals, by the numbers on axle, and can sell the proper ones to you, or advise where to purchase.

Also, a good bearing/seal parts supply can likely match them up. I like having the proper new ones in hand, before removal, but that's just me.

Lots of opinions on use of EZ-lube feature. I have used mine, with no issue, but have hand packed initially to know what grease is in there.

Jerry

To know they are packed well and the bearings are greased using the superlube feature, one would have to pump a ton of grease to where it pushes out the front of the hub...otherwise how would we know we are even greasing the bearings at all? From what i've read pumping it full of grease is what can cause problems with getting grease on the brakes.

How often are we supposed to be packing bearings anyways? The trailer has maybe 5000 miles if i were to guess and the manual says every 10,000. While its not a rush i wanted to inspect the grease situation anyways in the coming months. I have not heard of any vehicle needing bearings to be packed that often. On that same note though i also have not looked at any maintenance manuals for vehicles that weigh 9,000 lbs.


my frustration from the manufacture of the axle assembly is the fact that they should be paying to repair brakes with grease on them. They are advertising a feature that is what sounds to be hit and miss...i would rather not take chances. How are they still in business?

Nothing special, just a lot of grease to clean up if they used it from the factory or at PDI.

You will likely ruin the seal, when removing it, to access the rear bearing. It is best to replace seals. You can take the numbers off the axle placard, and call axle manufacturer, with that info. They will know what seals, by the numbers on axle, and can sell the proper ones to you, or advise where to purchase.

Also, a good bearing/seal parts supply can likely match them up. I like having the proper new ones in hand, before removal, but that's just me.

Lots of opinions on use of EZ-lube feature. I have used mine, with no issue, but have hand packed initially to know what grease is in there.

Jerry