dorienc wrote:
Well, I repack when they start making noise. I found that my trailer was poorly set up by the dealer - one spring shackle bolt didn't have a nut on it (not relevant to this discussion), and the bearings were WAY loose and not very well greased, which destroyed the original bearings.
But "they" always say you should repack yearly.
And I thought about that underwater business, but I drive my car in driving rain and slush, and put it through car washes with under chassis spray. And in 48 years of driving cars have never had a car wheel bearing fail. I have had trailer wheel bearings fail. Twice.
Yes, I have 12" wheels. Yes, I have bearing buddies. I think the big problem is, I never knew there are 2 kinds of grease. One is chassis lube (type L), the other is wheel bearing grease (type G). And there are different quality grades within those types. "Multi-purpose" doesn't necessarily mean it's ok for wheels. I'm now using specific marine grade wheel bearing grease.
Go buy a Chevy Avalanche. Had to replace bearings in the Rear in 2004, Then the front a year later. Then a few months later the rear went out again. When they pulled the hubs, they found metal shavings, pulled the axles and found more shavings. Redid the rear end completely. Good thing I bought an extended warranty.