What is the correct bearing size for a 1962

[toastie]

Globetrotter and where can a buy them, been told that you should carry
a extra set when traveling......

[ArtStream]

I'm not sure about your Globtrotter, but I had a hard time locating a spare set for my 95 in non-Airstreams places.
My bet is to call or internet Inland RV, in CA.
You might try Airstream itself.

Boo,
Michael

[TomW]

Originally Posted by toastie

...been told that you should carry a extra set when traveling...

That is advice. I do not subscribe to it though.

If any form of scheduled maintenance is performed (every year or 10,000 miles according to vendors), bearing problems will be found then. While I haven't hit exactly every year :, I do shake the wheels before most every trip to check for wheel bearing slop (bad bearing indicator).

If you make it to a campground & determine that a bearing has gone bad, there is a real good chance that the spindle has also been trashed, and a "hot spare" bearing will be the least of your worries.

I do not carry spare bearings for my tow vehicle either, and my primary TV is an '84 Suburban.

Preventative maintenance is, to me, better than carrying around spare parts.

Obviously, these are just my opinions.

Tom

[boatdoc]

Originally Posted by toastie

Globetrotter and where can a buy them, been told that you should carry
a extra set when traveling......

Hi toastie; Pending the capacity of the axles, and the size of brakes which may have been changed by PM. With dexter hubs and 10" brakes inner bearing should be L 68149 cone and L68111 cup. Outer should be L44649 cone and L44610 cup. This means 1. 3/8" inner and 1.1/16" outer. Bear in mind that unless you have proper equipment to jack up the axle, along with tools to replace the bearings and have grease to lube them, spare will not be of much help. Best way to check condition of the bearings is to jack the wheel off the ground, one at the time. Spin the wheel, if you hear any slightest rumbling, replace them. Do not mistake brake drag for bearing noise. The two, have totally different distinctive sound.
We sell hundreds of bearings per year for boat trailers. We had good luck with Timken. What is very important that you stay away from any grease containing Teflon. Teflon is a such a good lubricant that rollers do not roll but slide. Cooling and lubrication of the roller bearing depends on rotation. It is also important that you pack the hubs solid and pack the bearings so that the grease encapsulates the rollers from all sides before you install them. From my 40 year experience, I think that a check up every 10.000 miles is much too long of a period. Quality of grease plays a major role as well. If you are close to a Mercury/ Mercruiser dealer get "Gimbal Bearing and Universal Joint grease".
It is good for high temp and high load applications and it is waterproof, but $9.99 for 14 Oz cartridge. If your hubs use above stated number bearings, you can go all out, and install #2 Spindo seals [high pressure seal] and 1980 Bearing Buddy's from boat dealer. Then you can top off your hubs with grease gun through Bearing Buddy's anytime. Good luck, "Boatdoc"

[TomW]

Bearing buddies are not recommended for anything but trailers whose axles are submerged in water (like launching a boat).

"Topping off" a hub means grease has been lost somewhere. That's fine for boat trailers without brakes, but on an Airstream lost grease usually ends up on the brake shoes.

Once again, my opinion.

Tom

[Tarheel]

most any trailer shop can match up the bearings. I use my local one with good results for brakes, bearings and seals.

[Beginner]

Of course you do the maintenance.
You carry the spares to ward off evil spirits, and for those who don't do the maintenance.
Beginner

[63air]

I replaced the axle on my '63 GT and I still have two complete sets of Timken bearings ( new in the box ) and seals that I carried as spares for the original axle. I don't know if the 63 and 62 axles were the same. If they are I can get you the numbers. If anyone needs these bearings I'd be glad to sell them at my cost and shipping.

[scottanlily]

The axle on the 62 will not be a dexter unless it has been replaced with one .
I like the bearing buddies for boat trailers but not on regular trialers primarily
because over greasing and shoe contamination will usually be the result .for boat trailers you need the small 3 PSI pressure the bearing buddie provides for counteracting the sucking in of water into the hub due to rapid cooling
when the hubs go into the water ,that pressure keeps the hubs from having
water getting in so they are a must for boat trailers .check the bearings on a regular basis to ensure good condition and good lubrication .I would remove the bearing from the 62 and take it to your local Rv store or automotive store
as you may have an odd size in the early trailers and get double lip seals
with the inner spring ,not single lip .no spring as the double lips provide more protection againts leakage.

Scott of scottanlily

[boatdoc]

Originally Posted by TomW

Bearing buddies are not recommended for anything but trailers whose axles are submerged in water (like launching a boat).

"Topping off" a hub means grease has been lost somewhere. That's fine for boat trailers without brakes, but on an Airstream lost grease usually ends up on the brake shoes.

Once again, my opinion.

Tom

Hi TomW; All top of the line boat trailers now days come from manufacturer with bearing buddys, including those with brakes. It is the quality and special design of the seal that makes the difference. My recommendation for bearing buddy application was in conjunction with Spindo Seal [brand].
It is a 3 component seal, which includes;
[1] Stainless Steel collar which provides a non corroding very smooth surface over the corrosion prone spindle, for the lip seal to ride on. [Rust on the steel spindle eventually thins out the neoprene lip by friction, weakening its integrity].
[2] O ring, which seals the grease from leaking out between the collar and inner bearing or the spindle.
[3] Special neoprene seal compound sealing insert, is designed to have a very nominal clearance between seal housing to which is attached to, and the collar on which it rides. By design, most of the seal lip is on the inside of the seal case, which makes it impossible to allow the grease or the pressure to flip the seal lip out and spill the grease. As a matter of fact, applied grease pressure seals the lip even tighter. Every type of grease cap [such as bearing buddy] has a relief valve in it, which prevents over pressurizing of the hub. Technology comes at us in leaps and bounds, we need to catch up to it. In past 30 some years of using Spindo Seals in hundreds of applications in most harsh conditions, I have had a one single failure. In this one case owner used a Teflon fortified grease, causing the rollers in the bearing to flatten out and fail, for the lack of their ability to rotate. I own many utility and transport trailers with brakes, they never see water and they all have Spindo seals and Bearing Buddys. Never had a greased brake shoe.
Am I just a very lucky fellow, or does the technology has something to do with it?. Thanks however, for keeping me on my toes, Tom. "Boatdoc" Ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure.

[john hd]

hubs full of grease run hotter.

i found this out on my wells cargo 2 axle 10K car hauler, it has dexter ez lube spindles. you pump them full they get hot. lube them by hand and they run cool.

john

[TomW]

Originally Posted by boatdoc

...All top of the line boat trailers now days come from manufacturer with bearing buddys, including those with brakes. It is the quality and special design of the seal that makes the difference. My recommendation for bearing buddy application was in conjunction with Spindo Seal [brand]...

Boatdoc,

I will admit that I did not pick up on your original recommendation being in conjunction with other, certain hub parts. My apologies.

But boat trailers have different requirements than Airstream running gear, and, in my opinion, there is no good reason to maintain a pressurized source of grease inside the hubs of a travel trailer. Additionally, John hd is not the first person to post about hubs full of grease running hotter.

Based on the excellent follow-up information you provided in your post, I see that it can be done. But I still see no good reason to do it.

Tom

[boatdoc]

Originally Posted by john hd

hubs full of grease run hotter.

i found this out on my wells cargo 2 axle 10K car hauler, it has dexter ez lube spindles. you pump them full they get hot. lube them by hand and they run cool.

john

Hi John; Can you explain why grease would make the bearings run hotter?. I was under impression that bearing preload [overtightened spindle nuts] was the cause, as well as the load factor. Thanks, "Boatdoc"

[Beginner]

The US NAVY sent me to a bearing school. There I learned that packed bearings and their hubs full of grease(pressurized) will run significantly hotter than bearings packed by hand or with a packing machine and installed with a small amount of extra added inboard of each bearing. This was back in the erly 70's that I went to this school.
Beginner

[TomW]

PM Pahaska too if he does not see this thread. I saw him post on hot hubs before John did.

Tom

[john hd]

Hi John; Can you explain why grease would make the bearings run hotter?.

added friction trying to rotate the additional pound of grease. kinda like a petroleum butter churn.

that would be my best explanation, i have tried it both ways on my wells and notice the hubs are consistantly hotter when filled to the top with the grease gun.

i agree that in a marine application keeping the air space filled to not allow water in is a good thing, on a travel trailer it seems like a waste because you will be removing the hubs every year or 10K miles to inspect the brakes anyway.

john

[scottanlily]

Too add to the dexter ezlube hubs ,the grease can and will get past the seals and all over the shoes ,magnets and drums .Specifically ,6 new cargo trailers
dual axle dexter in the light and heavy duty axles size ,all had grease expelled
all over the shoes ,drums ,magnets .They had never been serviced until I did
the work for the company that contracts me for their fleet work ,so I know the history of the trailers since new ,further ,all the spindle nuts were quite
loose as new ,probably so they could run cooler ,I recommend manually
checking and greasing all wheel bearings where applicable ,best way to know just exactly what you have going on with your bearings.Pumping grease into
the spindle without really knowing how much or if the bearings are really getting a good grease job is difficult at best ,in this case ,clearly they were over greased when newly assembled.

Scott