Wheel Bearings

IMO, serviceable bearings are a better fit in higher weight carrying or rough service situations. In typical passenger vehicle applications, cartridge bearings work well.

Just because you see grease present in the hub assembly and bearing area when the hub is removed, doesn't mean that grease hasn't lost a lot of the properties that made it good when new. Friction modifiers, viscosity additives, and other properties of the grease break down with time and use. Older grease tends to hold particles of worn metal in suspension, also. If a user is inspecting bearings and hubs, it is not any more work to clean out the old grease and replace with new stuff. Since drum brakes need more frequent inspection and service, doing a bearing repack at the same time makes a lot of sense.

aruba5er wrote:
Just a stupid ?. If the seal doesn"t leak, where does the grease go. A high quality grease should be there forever. My car is approching 100k and I just had brakes done and I told mechanic to change bearings/seals if needed. He did not think any service at this time.In 2009 I changed my brakes to disc and new wheel bearings and seals ( came as part of a kit) have not been touched since and inspection says they are good to go. Dexter says yearly. I say every time you pull the wheel to inspect the drum brakes. Which I believe you should do but I don't have that problem so I elect to leaave well enough alone.

Actually a really good question. I have only torn down a few hubs in my life with good seals and the grease was bad.

Both were old hubs and the grease was more than likely made in the 50's or older.

What happens is the grease gasses off its light solvents. When this happens the grease gets and feels like wax. It's dry and cakie. (Is that a word??)

I just tore a hub apart the other day and it was on a factory pack of around the early 70's. The grease was in fine shape.

I don't think the greases of today will gas off like they did years ago. Even if they did it would take a VERY long time. I pull my hubs about every 7 years and inspect them. I have never found them to be in need of packing.

Just a stupid ?. If the seal doesn"t leak, where does the grease go. A high quality grease should be there forever. My car is approching 100k and I just had brakes done and I told mechanic to change bearings/seals if needed. He did not think any service at this time.In 2009 I changed my brakes to disc and new wheel bearings and seals ( came as part of a kit) have not been touched since and inspection says they are good to go. Dexter says yearly. I say every time you pull the wheel to inspect the drum brakes. Which I believe you should do but I don't have that problem so I elect to leaave well enough alone.

My 2004 Chevy truck had a wheel bearing failure at 85000 miles. Now I think the other one is going bad at 115000 miles. The whole hub is sold as a unit due the anti-lock sensor being inside it. It costs over 300 dollars. I wish I could still pack them.

ol Bombero-JC wrote:

TNRIVERSIDE wrote:

Traveler II wrote:
You can get nev-r-lube bearings that are good for 100,000 miles. We have had them for 3 years now and like them. I've been told by others that they would never have them and when I ask why I'm told that if I have a problem it's hard to get parts. So far so good, here is a web page for more information.

http://www.dexteraxle.com/nev_r_lube_bearings

This is some good information. I'll look for these for my TT. Thanks for the post.

Friend has nev-r-lube bearings. Good service & happy with them, but had heard the same "hard to get" stories.

He had quite a few years & miles on his, so thought he would get a set to carry "just in case".

Stories were true!

Sooooo - for the poster looking to change over - pay attention to how long it takes to get them via UPS - or - degree of difficulty to find a shop that carries them. (for when/if they fail "on the road")
Maybe an extra set is a good idea??

~

I did not find the nev-r-lube bearing hard to get. I called Dexter on a Monday and had them on Wednesday.

I despise sealed bearings with a passion. Honestly...one reason I have my Dakota is that it was one of the LAST vehicles sold with old-style greaseable wheel bearings.

Best grease (by far) I have ever seen for bearings is the green, long-fiber stuff Chrysler used for many years (PN 5083149 at the dealer)...it's an extreme-temperature, extreme-pressure grease with the consistency of warm mozzarella.

TNRIVERSIDE wrote:

Traveler II wrote:
You can get nev-r-lube bearings that are good for 100,000 miles. We have had them for 3 years now and like them. I've been told by others that they would never have them and when I ask why I'm told that if I have a problem it's hard to get parts. So far so good, here is a web page for more information.

http://www.dexteraxle.com/nev_r_lube_bearings

This is some good information. I'll look for these for my TT. Thanks for the post.

Friend has nev-r-lube bearings. Good service & happy with them, but had heard the same "hard to get" stories.

He had quite a few years & miles on his, so thought he would get a set to carry "just in case".

Stories were true!

Sooooo - for the poster looking to change over - pay attention to how long it takes to get them via UPS - or - degree of difficulty to find a shop that carries them. (for when/if they fail "on the road")
Maybe an extra set is a good idea??

~

Turtle n Peeps wrote:
The new trucks have cassette sealed type bearings. At least my 06 Chevy does and I know the newer Dodges do too. Most have reported they have failures sooner than old regular packable bearings. I would not want them on my TT.

As far as packing trailers bearings. My TT is 28 year old and I remember packing them twice. Both times I was doing brakes so I just repacked them to make everything like new. I check them about every 7 years or so because that is when it seems I need new brake parts. During my checks I never found them in need of packing. Never. I put on about 4 to 5K a year on my TT.

I think most if not all new vehicles have unit or non serviceable cartridge type bearings. Whether they last as long as the previous serviceable bearings is debatable. There is a definite cost increase as most cannot or the SOP is to replace the entire assembly rather than replace the cartridge bearing.

I repacked mine at year two. Replaced one bearing that looked heated. That was seven years ago. Get it right and they should last as long as the brake pads.

Truck cartridge bearings (front) replaced at about 140,000.

I have never lubes on my Montego bay and haven't had any problems with them. I check them before every trip for play and oil seepage. Parts are hard to find so I carry a spare hub and a spare bearing with me. If I have spare parts, I will be less likely to continue and taking a chance on a bearing I suspect is going bad. I plan to replace my bearings when I replace my tires next year.

I have had standard axle bearings fail. I believe trailer axle bearing failures are fairly common and is the reason why most RVers are so anal about preventive maintenance.