Wheel Bearings how warm

[Tom L.]

I recently purchased a new for me 2001 Sun Cat. The very first thing that had to be done was to put a new axle under the trailer. The old hubs/bearings were frozen and could not be driven off the axle. This trailer has smaller wheels like most of the compact trailers. It is a performance trailer which probably came with the boat.

I have dunked the new axle maybe 20 times so far ony in fresh water. The axles have the lube fitting in the end of the axle and the dust cover has a small removable rubber cover. This cover can be removed and the axles lubed whicjhI have done once.

That's the back ground. My issue is I get some heat in the hubs so far it's been minimal. One time on a 90 minute trip they got, in my opinion too hot. Uncomfortable to put your hand on. I slowed down from 65 to 55 and they were cooler. I got home and lubed the bearings and there was no evidence of water behind the dust caps. So far they are not getting hot but warm.

My question is do you all experience warm hubs with the smaller wheels? I wonder if I should have the axle inspected. The installer lives about 90 minutes away so it's not an easy trip. Just wondering if maybe theses smaller wheels with higher rpm if heat is always going to be there.

Tom L.

[Tom L.]

Thanks for the info. The hubs were factory mounted and you would think they know how to do it right. But as we all know everyone makes errors. I will do as you instructed and check for a little play.

Thanks

Tom L.

[kickingbug1]

 last summer i towed my catalina capri 18 from ludington. mi to new baden, illinois 506 miles one way, checked the hubs twice and both times they werent even warm. 70 mph, boat and trailer maybe a little over 2000lbs. when in doubt remove, clean, repack or replace. the smaller the wheels the harder the bearings have it. i have 13" wheels so they appear to be pretty easy on bearings.

[hoddinr]

Could you keep your hand on the hub, Tom, or would that burn you? 

A little warmth won't hurt anything. My SeaPearl trailer hubs always runs a little warm, but not really HOT.

You could back the axle nut off one notch and re-pin it and see if there's any (much) play when you put it back together.  Also jack it up and see if you hear any unusual noise when you spin the wheel.

I don't run at 65 MPH because that is the the Maximum Speed Rating for all ST (Special Trailer) tires.  It's not the hub I'd worry about at 65, but the tires.

I know.. lots of people run faster than that.. but if you want to keep from having blowouts and repairs on the side of the road, keep the speed down, and the tire pressure up to the max on the side wall.  The way I look at it is .. "If your car tires were rated at 90 MPH (which most are) would you feel comfortable exceeding that maximum all the time?"

[Citroen/Dave]

I have a Hutch trailer under my '87 CP 16. Bearing Buddies driven in to the mark, caused the bearing to overheat on my newly installed axil and bearings.  After the fourth teardown, replacing parts, etc., my trailer tech tried to rotate the tires on the jack stand after the bearings were tightened and the bearing buddies were driven in to the mark.  Much to our surprise, the wheels resisted turning until the bearing buddies were removed and reinstalled not quite all the way to the mark.

[hoddinr]

Very interesting, Dave.  Something else to check!

Ron

[Mike K]

Tom,  it's hard to say exactly the state of your bearings without actually touching them.  (sounds kinda kinky, but I don't mean it to be.)

All's I can tell you is my experience with my 13" wheels on my Legacy's factory trailer (Magic Tilt that doesn't tilt) in 2013.  I've been touching the bearings since day 1 to "get a feel" (gosh this sounds bad!) for how hot they can get.  After the first drive home after about an hour, they were fairly warm to the touch.  One side always seems to be a little warmer than the other, I suppose due to the preload on the nut.  But I can keep my hand on them without getting burnt.

Since then, I've greased them quite a bit with marine bearing grease through the zerk fitting, maybe every 2 months or so, as I launch in brackish water.  I probably lube too much, as stuff often oozes out at temperature and "paints" the rubber wheel and anything else in the area.  But I'd rather wipe grease off things than get stuck in the boondocks.  Sometimes after putting grease in, I see that water is pushed out, so you want to keep the metal covered with grease by re-filling periodically.

A couple months ago, I trailered the boat about 1200 miles down to Florida, after a good greasing.  I thought one time the bearing was too hot to touch for too long (maybe 4 seconds), and was a little worried.  But there were no issues.  It seems to be be fine.  My guess is when there really is a problem, you may hear or feel a difference (if you jack it up and rotate the wheel), and it will be so hot that you can feel the heat radiating off the metal without actually touching them.

The only thing I can suggest is to lube them a little more, and keep monitoring them.  And if you're losing sleep over it, just repack or replace the bearings as a preventive measure.

[Tom L.]

Thanks for your insight and experience with the Magic tilt trailer. My trailer is a Performance trailer the side wall says 20.5x8.0x10.  I think this is a 10" wheel but the rim actually measures 11".  The axle is brand new I had it replaced about three months ago when I bought the boat. I hate these small wheels but it is what it is. I have been keeping tract of the hubs by checking for heat everytime I trail. The problem is I only have about a ten mile run at 55 MPH. AT that speed and time the hubs do get slightly warm to the touch. I don't have any long distance on the hubs to see how they may heat up But I did have a one hour trip that they seemed to heat up too hot. I greased them after that through the zerk fitting in the axle and they seem to be OK. I really don't want to make a long trip to find out if they are bad. The other wrinkle is the service guy that installed the new axle is about 90 miles away. A long trip. I am sure he would take the hubs off and inspect the bearings but I don't really want to drive that far.

Tomorrow I am going to check for pre-load. That May be the problem.

Thanks again for your input.

Tom L.

[frank]

Trailering distance is always a bit scary. I've trailered a suncat on a performance trailer from the factory to Indiantown Florida to home in Pembroke Ontario (about 1800 miles), twice to northern Lake Huron's "North Channel", to Chesapeake Bay and Lake Champlain etc. Hubs are always on my mind!
Slightly warm is normal. Hot is not! "Bearing Buddies" should not be over greased as the seals can leak from too much pressure. Those little tires can take more than you think and make launching easier. Still....always a bit nervous at 65mph...

[Restharrow]

Last spring I trailered our CP 25 from Wyoming to Northern, Vermont (Dual axle trailer).  I used a non-contact Infrared Thermometer with Laser Tagging (Harbor Freight Item 61894 - current price $35.99) to check the hubs at various stops.  I was watching for relatively even heat as well as excessive heat.  The trailer bearings had just been repacked by the previous owner.  There were no problems what-so-ever.  But the peace of mind by having an accurate check on bearing heat was well worth the minimal cost.  Just a thought.

Steve
CP 25 Lake Champlain and Maine Coast

[Citroen/Dave]

Always, ALWAYS use the exact same grease in your grease gun as the previous owner, tech, gas station, mechanic, or whom ever put grease in your bearings.  Much better is go clean and repack the bearings, now, with what is in you grease gun.  The detergent in one grease may attack and liquefy another grease.  They tragic symptoms will always be the described the same:  "My BEARING failed and grease liquefied from the heat."  It can be the other way around: "My greases failed and the bearings melted from the heat."

[kickingbug1]

   bearing buddies are a good idea, however thorough dis-assembly, cleaning and repacking is key. also for a long trip carry either a couple of sets of bearings, grease and the tools needed or even better a complete hub. that stuff doesn't cost much and can save you a lot of grief.

[Tom L.]

Well all is well in trailer city. As I reported the axle is brand new...read the first post for the history. Thanks to all who added comments. Soooo as was recommended on this board first I tightened the nut, actually it was tight. Second I loosened the nut 1/4 turn. That seemed to be too sloopy. I split the difference and when I grabbed the wheel at 180 degree apart and tried to twist the wheel I could just barely feel slop in the bearing to axle fit.

For the test I drove for about 20 minutes at 65 MPH. The adjusted bearings/hub had a noticeable decrease in temp. It is just slightly warm well within my comfort zone. While I had everything lose I did pull the hub and checked the inside and outside bearings and there was no degradation of the grease. Now I will do the same to the other side.

In the end I think the axle/bearings would have been fine. The heat could be chalked up to a break in period where the bearings seat themselves. However I do think the factory had slightly overtigtened the castle nut.  I am just a worry wart and want to eliminate all potential problems that I can .

Again a big THANK YOU to all that made recommendations.

Tom L.

[hoddinr]

You did the right think, Tom, by checking it for yourself. 

Ron

[Tom L.]

Ron, I looked at the weather for Sunday. Looks very nice highs 65 and sunny. I am going to put in at Hickory point and do the Lake Harris sail one day late. I have the boat at home so it is hand. I normally store at Lake Eustis Sailing club but they are holding a big Flying Scott regatta this week end and there are about forty boats crowding the club. They will all be gone Sunday night. As a general rule I stay away from the Harbor on the  weekends. The club is almost all racers and if they aren't holding a national regatta they have club races on the week ends all during the winter. As you probably know the small boat racers don't use fenders and usually don't have dock lines. They use any available line to tie up but only the bow. The boats are all the same so the rubrails are the only protection. Not how I tie up to a dock.

Tom L.