Thread: Fun with bearings

Supposed to be here tomorrow
Ups willing

Spoon33,
That would, in part, depend on how old your boat is and how much it has been used. If it's been around a while, it would be a good idea to jack it up, pull the bearings, and take a look. Repack them while you are there. It's super easy. If your boat is pretty new, just feel the hubs next time you hook up and drive awhile, getting gas or at your destination. If they are warm, you might put some grease in them. When I took my 10 year old boat to florida, I changed the bearings before I left, took a spare hub and bearings with me, and every fuel stop I checked for heat at the hubs. I also keep a small grease gun and cartridges in the boat. I had to add grease in Florida and when I got back. Made three trips down there on the same bearings I replaced before the first trip.
I would say that if you can't remember the last time you checked them it would be a good idea to do it now. Stranded on the side of the road with a problem as simple as a wheel bearing, you'll feel like a moron. You gotta check 'em. They are submersed in water, then sit for a while. Not nice for a part built to move.

Originally Posted by Machine

I went with dexter hubs also

I miss spoke

Dexter axle and vortex hubs

Bought my boat new may in 2013. Forgot to grease hubs last spring during my yearly oil change. I use my boat on average once at week, well cough, I go at least once a week. Also, now that I think about it, I am usually running a pretty good distance every time I go. My last trip to Oologah, I was thinking that it was a short trip because it was only an hour and fifteen minutes. So I went ahead and scheduled "check grease" reminders into my smart phones calendar every 2 months from here to eternity. (Hey was that what that movie was about, bearings?)

Chris, wheel bearings--that is exactly what the movie was about! I had to chuckle out loud at that one!

Vortex hubs rock. Allows you to grease bearings by a grease zerk and it pushes old grease out.

I worry about mine. Every boat I've owned required regular greasing but I was told by the local shop that the 2004 Ranger I have now doesn't need that regular maintenance. Maybe you guys can fill me in on whether or not he is right???

Originally Posted by Achiro

I worry about mine. Every boat I've owned required regular greasing but I was told by the local shop that the 2004 Ranger I have now doesn't need that regular maintenance. Maybe you guys can fill me in on whether or not he is right???

Before retiring, I went to a bearing failure analysis training session. I asked about the sealed "lubed for life" bearings that one company sold. The company rep said that they were confident that their seals were so good they could offer that. In the real world where I worked, those bearings failed on occasion. The rep called that the life span of the bearing. When the bearing fails, its reached its lifetime.
That answer left a lot of us scratching our heads, but in the ranger axle case, I'll bet they are relying on the seals to be good enough that constant relubing isn't necessary. If you look at most of the cheap boat axle seals, they are just a single lip designed to keep water out. Pay a little more and get double lip seals. Don't know what Ranger has came up with, but it sounds interesting.
My Toyota Tacoma has 329,000 miles on the front wheel bearings that have never been removed or regreased since it was bought brand new in 1995, and you can be assured its been in water over the hubs.