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Old 06-29-2012, 09:18 PM   #1
NWTTrailer
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Bearing failure

Well things got bad for us today 900+ miles from home in the middle of Montana on I90 We lost the left front bearing on our trailer. I Have learned this, don't trust that just because it's new everything is good.

Being worried about blowing grease out the seals I hadn't used the Dexter EZ lube feature. After it's all said and done a new hub,2 bearings, seal and spindle nut. I got lucky and caught it before it destroyed the spindle. Before we got going again I pulled the caps on the other 3, jacked each one up and pumped fresh grease in them. The right hand bearing on the same axle took a lot of grease compaired to the others. I'd rather get grease on the shoes than lose a wheel.

We are going to contact the dealer and see what they we do about some reimbursment. Good Sams came to the rescue. Hardin roadside rescue in Hardin Montana had us back on the road in a couple of hours. The father-in-law and I are going to repack all of the bearings once we make it to Kentucky

Mike
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Old 06-30-2012, 06:50 AM   #2
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You may have had a defective bearing, but, the fact that the R/H bearing on the same axle was also a little dry makes this sound like a dealer or Dexter issue.
I would guess that these axles come from Dexter fully assembled but wouldn't the dealer check the bearings as part of the "dealer prep"?
Only 3000 miles on our 5er but the bearings will be serviced before we go out again!
Thanks for sharing your hard luck so the rest of us can benefit
Enjoy the rest of your trip and be safe
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Old 06-30-2012, 12:27 PM   #3
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Personally I never assume dealer did it, but maybe that's just me.

I love EZ-Lube. I use it on three hubs every year in spring before first big trip. Forth hub get disassembled so I can check bearing and brakes, then hand repacked.

Just use HAND grease gun, with slow pumps. I've NEVER found grease on brakes.
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Old 06-30-2012, 05:17 PM   #4
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Get yourself a infra red temp detector (point and shoot) and use to check hub and tire temp at every stop. This would have caught the temp rise and given you a heads up to a brewing problem before it got that far.

These handhelds are only about 40.00 now. My Snapon one was over 500.00 15yrs ago and has paid for itself many times over.

I would have to say that this dealer did not do a proper PDI, and I am sure the paper work will indicate that this was checked off as done on the list. Some peoples integrity is higher than others.....Ie: said job was completed but didn't actually check and got away with it several times in past.....

JMO
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Old 06-30-2012, 07:51 PM   #5
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Thumbs up

Quote:
Originally Posted by LittleJoe View Post
Get yourself a infra red temp detector (point and shoot) and use to check hub and tire temp at every stop. This would have caught the temp rise and given you a heads up to a brewing problem before it got that far.

These handhelds are only about 40.00 now. My Snapon one was over 500.00 15yrs ago and has paid for itself many times over.

I would have to say that this dealer did not do a proper PDI, and I am sure the paper work will indicate that this was checked off as done on the list. Some peoples integrity is higher than others.....Ie: said job was completed but didn't actually check and got away with it several times in past.....

JMO
That's how I noticed the problem checking tire temps with the temp gun
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Old 07-01-2012, 01:57 AM   #6
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There are some jobs that are kinda nasty even though they don't require a great amount of mechanical skill and taking the hubs off and checking/repacking the wheel bearings and brakes are one of those.

With that said I would recommend that everyone should do it at least once in the "comfort" of you're home or storage facility to see whats involved and see how they operate, because if you do a lot of camping at some point in time you WILL have a problem with one of the following----bearings, brakes, leaf springs etc. and it's comforting to know that you can do a repair on the road if you have to.

As others have said get an infrared gun to shoot you're temps on the drums, bearings & tires and use it at every stop or break when on a trip.

Manufacturers really skimp on the axles......

My 2 cents.....

Ron W.
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Old 07-01-2012, 01:50 PM   #7
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what should the temp. be for tire and hub
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Old 07-01-2012, 03:20 PM   #8
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Many strings here about ez lube and their trustworthiness/procedures. Check them out. I stuck my foot in my mouth in one earlier. Lesson learned.
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Old 07-01-2012, 05:59 PM   #9
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"dougjs" ask a question which I would also like the answer to. What kind of temps, normal and excessive, should the hubs, tires, and whatever else be using a temp gun?????
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Old 07-01-2012, 08:44 PM   #10
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I too would like to know along with recommendation for infrared temp gun. My guess regarding temps on the tires and or hubs is the one that is much hotter or cooler than the others.
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Old 07-02-2012, 12:48 AM   #11
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Look for one tire, axle & hub that is much hotter then the others.

Remember that tires that are exposed to the sun as you go down the road will be hotter than the shady side by as much as 20 degrees.

Ron W.
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Old 07-02-2012, 03:44 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chuck&gail View Post
Personally I never assume dealer did it, but maybe that's just me.

I love EZ-Lube. I use it on three hubs every year in spring before first big trip. Forth hub get disassembled so I can check bearing and brakes, then hand repacked.

Just use HAND grease gun, with slow pumps. I've NEVER found grease on brakes.
To clarify your statement - does that mean when you buy a new vehicle (car or truck) you service the running gear and check the wheel bearings before using it?
I think it is reasonable to expect a new vehicle of any kind to be road ready when delivery is taken and I would not expect to have to service the wheel bearings on a TT with less than 2500 miles on the road - IMHO

Jack
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Old 07-03-2012, 08:56 PM   #13
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Jack.

On the TT's, YES, I do wheel checks and bearings as above when I buy a new TT. In fact I check everything I can think of before the first pull. The first pull is also fairly local to catch bugs or things we forgot that are new to this TT.

On cars, nope. I check oil and etc, whatever is easy. In fact I've not done car wheel bearings in over 20 years. Not even sure they need it on new cars?
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Old 07-19-2012, 11:02 AM   #14
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Just a Quick update. We got word from the dealer that Keystone is going to pick up the tab for the bearing repairs. I asked the service manager if they check the bearings before they go out the door and his response was " No, you would think they would be greased from the factory, you don't check the wheel bearings on a new car do you?". Kind of made my day
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Old 07-19-2012, 11:34 AM   #15
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hi newttrailer. i am with you i don't repack my wheel bearings on a new car or camper either. in all my years in the auto biz. i have had 1 bearing failure on a new car and that was on a ferrari. testa rossa. i quess mr. Ferrari wanted it that way!
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