Wheel Bearing Replacement?

[grizzy]

I'm getting ready to repack the wheel bearings on our 2001 Bambi 19', and am considering going ahead and replacing the bearings. My wife & I put about 10,000 miles on the Bambi last year, but I don't know how many it had on it before we got it (the PO said about 2000). I thought it might be good to start fresh and know what I have. My questions are as follows:

1. is it a good idea to simply replace wheel bearings periodically even when the visual inspection looks okay?

2. How many miles should a set of bearings last?

3. Should I use original equipment bearings from Airstream or is there a better replacement bearing?

[Dwight]

Why are you thinking about replacing the bearings? If they are not scored, pitted, burned, etc. then just clean & repack them.

If you do decide to replace the bearings, then you should also replace the cups/cones at the same time. This is because the old component has a distinct pattern worn into its raceway and mixing it with a new matting component may set up edge stresses along the raceway. Timken recommends that the mating of components, the bearings and cup/cone, be from the same manufacturer.

[plowboy]

Dave, unless your bearings have signs of wear, i.e. scarring or bluish brown color, I would leave it alone.
I recently replaced mine, which had a lot of wear signs, and also the trailer is a 1959 model and I didn't know how long it had been since they were replaced.
I would love to replace the whole axle and brake set up with a newer beefier spindles and anti lock disc brakes, but it's way down on the list of house hold expenses!
If it ain't broke don't fix it.
Paul

[Action]

Dave,

#1 - No
#2 - With frequent maintence (repacking) for ever, or at least 100,000 miles
#3 - Makes no difference. Airstream does not make the bearings. If they are quality bearings like say Timkin or ? they will do the job. And then service them well.

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[Tarheel]

My 94 has crossed the USA many times before I owned it. I suspect it has well over 100k miles on it. I just pulled all the bearings, six wheels, two inner bearings had a slight trace of brown on them but the races were clean. Bearing were tight, so I repacked and will know to look at them again next year. I dreaded doing this job but when I finally did it took no more than a couple of hours to do it all. Time well spent, one broken brake spring and a missing brake adjuster, linings looked good.

[Pick]

Just repack them. Good Timken bearings are often replaced with cheaper bearings made in China. I would rather have old Timkens than new Chinese.

I have an equipment trailer that has close to 10K miles on it, over a 7 year period. Never repacked.

[sovereignrwe]

We had a long time (family owned, 3rd generation) dealer tell me that the bearings used in these trailers are actualy better than those used in cars. Is it really necessary to repack/replace bearings if this is true?

I know there is a general feeling in the forum that this is necessary work. I am just hoping to present the counter opinion and get some open and honest thoughts/discussion.

[87MH]

Originally Posted by sovereignrwe

.....Is it really necessary to repack/replace bearings if this is true?....

Tear down, clean, inspect, repack, check the brakes - once a year - will take a couple of hours.

Cheap insurance.

[garry]

Checking & repacking the bearings is just as important as changing oil in your TV only you don’t have to do it as often. A dry bearing will bring your trip to a halt require a very expensive repair up to replacing the axle, also you may need a flatbed tow to the repair shop.

"Yes" you need to check & if required repack it is a very important part of routine maintenance. I check my boat bearings twice a year and AS every other year.

Garry

[Action]

Originally Posted by garry

Checking & repacking the bearings is just as important as changing oil in your TV only you don’t have to do it as often. A dry bearing will bring your trip to a halt require a very expensive repair up to replacing the axle, also you may need a flatbed tow to the repair shop.
Garry

I may also wreck a good vacation.

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[sovereignrwe]

Then why might a long time Airstream Dealer tell me that it isn't important as the bearings are better than cars and we don't perform the same work on cars - which tend to go many more miles in the life of the car?

Are we hanging on to a myth and doing work merely because we have always done it that way or have always been told to do it that way?

Again, please know that I am not trying to be argumentative, rather challenging in an effort to understand.

[Action]

I am not sure I understand the above question, however I will give it a shot.

The wheel bearings in a car are used far more than in any Airstream. However, the load on those wheel bearing on an Airstream (or most trailers) are usuall maxed out or close to being maxed out.

So in a car application the cleaning and repacking used to be at 30,000 miles. However there are a fair number of vehicles, where the bearings are never serviced. (repacked) My Lincoln listed below is an example. The rear wheel bearings in a Ford Escort is another example I can think of. These wheel bearings are sealed and never repacked. Only replacement when necessary. My Lincoln has 127,000 mile on it and the wheel bearings have never been looked at.

On a trailer, the wheel bearings have a total different experience. Either at rest for long periods of time. (Not necessarily a good thing) Or supporting a fully loaded trailer going down the road at speed. The type of load that an Airstream wheel bearing experiences is one of being maxed out. I would expect that the quality of a trailer wheel bearing to be better than a car, cause if the use. And frequent (annual) inspection to be necessary for the same reason.

As to replacement just because or to get to a known starting point ..... well that's a bit much in my opinion. Visual inspection should be good enough to find out what are the condition of the bearings. If they look good repack and be done.

And as a side note, I have also seen debris introduced by the person servicing the wheel bearings. Which is another reason auto manufacturers have gone to sealed bearings.

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[Hippo]

When I bought my 1975 As 2 years ago I put on new tires and inspected the brakes and replaced the wheel seals, cups and cones. The old ones showed some wear on them. I also replaced the grease in the electric jack at the hitch.
It is important to listen to AS people to learn what to do with your trailer before you have big problems.
Chuck
WBCCI#7854

[garry]

Grease in the bearings services the same purpose as oil in your engine and that is "friction managment.

Go to the Timkin website they are most likely the ones who made your bearings.
This is a link to the FAQ page.
Also do a google search on wheel bearings.


http://www.timken.com/industries/industrial/faq.asp#22

Garry

[Tarheel]

There are a lot of things going on inside your wheel. Broken wires, missing springs, missing brake adjuster, worn electric magnet, brake shoes or damaged drums. These things should be looked at periodicaly. I did a thourough check last spring and found 3 frozen brake adjusters and brakes way out of adjustment. This year I found a spring and brake adjuster missing. I would have bet good money that everything was in fine working order. Repacked the bearings just because they were in my hand and I will do the same next spring before I head out across country.

Garry please tell me that was a typo on changing oil in the TV, if not I am really in remiss.

[wingfoot321]

Tarheel,

I bet his TV is a ford or gm. Mine is a sony so I don't have to change.

[sovereignrwe]

Originally Posted by Hippo

When I bought my 1975 As 2 years ago I put on new tires and inspected the brakes and replaced the wheel seals, cups and cones. The old ones showed some wear on them. I also replaced the grease in the electric jack at the hitch.
It is important to listen to AS people to learn what to do with your trailer before you have big problems.
Chuck
WBCCI#7854

To be clear, it was a long time Airstream (service not just sales) dealer that talked me out of replacement before ever seeing my trailer. I did have them repacked, as he was already taking everything apart to replace the whole backing plate, magnets, etc...

I was hoping to spur a discussion that would provide the thinking behind the statements that repacking is important.

[Rebee]

Another reason for the yearly event is that in your auto/truck you will feel the vibration of a wheel bearing starting to go bad. On your trailer, unless you ride in it while on the road, you will never notice any vibes in the TV. The only way to find failing bearings is to hold in your hand and check for rough or gritty operation.

dale

[Action]

Originally Posted by sovereignrwe

I was hoping to spur a discussion that would provide the thinking behind the statements that repacking is important.

The thinking behind it is to have an annual inspection to check everything including the bearings. Heck when the assembly is dissassembled to do a repack everything else is exposed.

Repacking is a dirty job and doing it annually (or at 10,000 miles) gives one the opportunity to check the bearings get them cleaned and put fresh grease for another year of trouble free operation. Kinda like going to the dentist. Just a cleaning and an inspection is what is expected. If more is found then better get handled now versus dealing with it on vacation. This time of year is great. Just before you take that bullet out for the summer.

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