What's the fascination with trailer bearings?

[Turtle_n_Peeps]

So I've seen many, many posts over the years about checking hubs with IR guns for excessive heat. I've even seen posts where people check their hubs every stop. :E

My question is why? I have never seen posts where they talk about checking their TV wheel hubs at every stop even though "most" use the exact same bearing type. (packable bearing) It's always the trailer for some reason. I've never seen anybody check their hubs on their trucks after driving around for a few hours. :h

I've owned over a dozen trailers in my life and have never had bearing problems. Ever. I check my bearings about every 7 to 10 years and have never found anything wrong with them. (Brakes are a different story and that is why I even check them that often)

I get checking often with boat trailer bearings. Especially boat trailers that go in salt water. Makes total sense that they can get contaminated with water and salt and they need to be checked often.

But TT bearings? It's a sealed system that see's no contamination. At least under normal conditions. Unless a seal is damaged the grease stays in there and works just fine year after year after year.

I guess it IR gun makers in business and that's a good thing in this economy I guess. 🙂

[cmeade]

Been reading posts for awhile and have a thought about this. Have followed MHs, FWs, TTs, and TCs for many years. A lot of them drive with the riht side on the shoulder where glass, trash, pot holes etc live. Bearings and tires take a beating on the curbside. Just saying???.

[profdant139]

Gosh, I have my TT bearings repacked and serviced every year. Why? Because of all of the posts on rv.net discussing bearings -- I figure where there's smoke, there's a hot bearing somewhere.

Maybe I am wasting my money!? But if I ever have a bearing failure, at least I won't be tormented by remorse due to my negligence.

This is kind of like the medical problem of "NNT" -- "number needed to treat." If a hundred people take cholesterol reducing medicine, one heart attack will be prevented. So 99 folks are taking statins for no benefit. But you'd sure hate to be the one who could have avoided the heart attack, so you take the pills.

[K_Charles]

I have to agree with the OP if the TT gets used often. If checked in the beginning and found good they should last for years. Some bearing failures come from to much meddling with them.

[midnightsadie]

I,M glad most of us check out our rig,s when we stop ,you could be saving yourself a big headache,and maybe a bad wreck. thanks

[rbpru]

Like most, bearing were not high on my list. I did drive out of one on a 90’s vintage PUP. It was a real mess, burned up the plastic hub cover, brakes, both bearings and cracked the brake drum.

I had thousands of miles on it with no issues and I even had checked for tire inflation at the previous gas stop. I would not have noticed it if I had not stopped for a detour.

Many TT issues cannot be predicted, as mentioned water leaks, defective tires, unexpected terrain, theft, accidents and etc. They happen. I am aware of the possibilities but worry more about crazy drivers and things I cannot check for.

[Johno02]

I don't pull a trailer of any type, just drag a toad behind a small old MH. What I don't understand is why so many people have so much trouble with wheel bearings. I have lots and lots of miles on a number of different vehicles, and in over 60 years o f driving, have hever had a wheel bearing problem. A close family member hauls an 10 wheeler many, many miles every day, and she doesn't have trailer wheel problems either. and she has lots of really heavy loads on hers. So what is the problem with trailers???

[Turtle_n_Peeps]

bgum wrote:
t and P Over 12 trailers in life works out to 5 years or less on bearings. At that rate I would be surprised if you had any trouble with bearings or tires.

Sorry, I should have explained this. Not all are TT's. I own a ranch and have had many, many different types of trailers and still own a lot of them. In fact my current TT is 29 YO. On the same factory bearings. I think I've packed them twice over the years. Maybe 3 times? I think I have changed the brake shoes twice over the years and the magnets and hardware 3 times that I remember.

[westend]

Vehicle bearings are mostly cartridge style, today. Before that they were a non-serviceable sealed bearing. Prior, were serviceable open bearings like a trailer bearing.

What I find interesting in discussions about bearing service and tire quality is that some folks are relatively new to this gear but have very strong opinions on how it should all be constructed and serviced.

[BarneyS]

Car or trucks don't get the same sideways pressure put on them on every turn like dual axle trailers do. Just makes sense to me to check them now and then. I do a visual check and feel the hubs every time we stop and get out of the truck when towing - both the trailer and the truck. Found a valve stem on the front tire of the truck about ready to explode one time.
Barney

[Halmfamily]

I hand check both my fiver and trucks wheels at every stop. When I had my F350 I did this and found my left front wheel very hot. Luckily only an hour away from the house. Dropped the fiver and went back home and found the caliper was locking up. Replaced both front calipers, pads and lines

If I hadn't checked more than likely would have seized on the interstate and been stuck. It only takes a minute to walk around the vehciles and ensure all is good.

[2oldman]

1. no
2. don't know
3. repacked in 2009. Rv service facility
4. no. never had a failed bearing on a car or truck. don't worry about it

One would hope RV mfrs install axles that are capable, but as we all know, sometimes they don't put the best quality stuff on.

[Turtle_n_Peeps]

2oldman wrote:
I felt the same as you, but I thought I better check them periodically anyway. One day at a rest stop I noticed one hub was warmer, not by a lot, just warmer than the other 3. Over the next week or so it started getting noticeably warmer.

I had a mobile RV repair service check it out. Sure enough, that bearing was getting ready to fail and showed signs of burn marks. Yes, the man showed me what was wrong.

You don't have to buy a temp gun, but I think it's folly to not check them. I don't know what kind of rig you're talking about, but mine is a heavy fiver with 4 wheels. And I dry camp a lot, often in strong winds, so it's not out of the realm of possibility that dust gets in there. It gets in everywhere else.

Trailer axles carry a lot more weight than a car or truck. A simple check and prevention can save you a lot of roadside grief. I think automatic replacement every year is a bit much, mine lasted about 5 years.

A few questions for you.

#1. Do you do your own bearing work?

#2. So why did the bearing began to fail? (bearings just don't decide to fail. What was the root cause?) Blown seal? Lack of grease? Contamination? Too tight of spindle nut?

#3. When was the bearing checked last and who did the checking?

#4. Do you also check your TV hubs during the day while towing or not? If not, why not?

As far as trailer being heaver: That has nothing to do with it. Bearing and hubs are designed for the amount of weight that they carry. That's why a 3/4 ton pickup hub has a bigger bearing than a 1/2 ton pickup hub. And a class 8 big rig has way bigger bearings than that of a pickup truck. Same way for trailers and their axel and hubs. A 20' TT won't have the same axel or bearings that a 36' heavy TT will have.

[bgum]

t and P Over 12 trailers in life works out to 5 years or less on bearings. At that rate I would be surprised if you had any trouble with bearings or tires.

[kknowlton]

Turtle n Peeps, if you ever have a wheel bearing go bad on you, then you'll answer your own question. Getting stuck in the middle of nowhere is no fun, and repairs can be quite expensive.

[racer93]

When I brought my TT home I checked the bearings, found 2 overstuffed and the other 2 were ok. Fixed the problem now no more worries. Tires on the other hand get a the guage before I leave and an eyeball during the trip. Common sense goes a long ways to saving time for other stuff like poking the campfire.