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Noticed a hub dust cap AWOL as I started to launch the boat on Sunday. Headed out to obtain replacement parts and spares for future use this afternoon.

Wondering how often I should be removing and overhauling my trailer hubs. Both axles have "Buddy Bearing" like dust caps and I have probably been pumping some fresh grease into them on a monthly basis thus far.

Would once per year be too often or should it be more frequent? Trips to the ramp (all saltwater) are between 25 and 50 miles roundtrip and we've been using the boat two to three times a month.

scooter,
i would chage bearings and seals every two years. probably could go longer but i had my oil fill hub fail and lost a wheel. having your boat stcuk on the side of the road is the worst feeling. its not like a car that you can lock up an leave. better safe than sorry. also i would carry your grease gun with you. before you drop your boat in the water give the hubs some gease. when the hubs are hot and you drop it in the water it cools the hubs rapidly creating suction that pulls water into the bearings. not a must but because of my experience i play it safe. also i greased up before each trip. hope this helps, kor

I would really inspect the grease seal...inside of the hub and hard to see. If any cracking or missing rubber lip, salt water intrusion will eat those bearings up.
Once the hub is off, it's a pretty easy job to replace them as well as to repack the bearings.

My mechanic hates bearing buddies. He says nearly all people don't read the instructions and over grease them, blowing the seals out back, and letting in the water. His rule of thumb is to repack all wheel bearings every year...and replace the grease seals of course.

1 hour per bearing...1.5 if there are brakes on the axle. That's 5 hours per year for most of us...and about a sixer

WHEN you get to your destination, put a finger on each bearing buddy and feel if any are really hot.
better yet get a noncontact thermometer and just point it at them. axles with brakes might be a bit hotter if they have been applied.
any bearing that is noticeably hotter than the others is likely to fail soon.
dragging brake lining will also cause extra heat.

Hey I like this advice, great reason to go buy another tool! Can you recommend a brand or model that works well?

Take your pick! I recommend you pick one with a laser and that has at least 4 stars from 10+ reviews

first one I ever/ tried used cost 200 bucks.
one i have now cost about 59
new ones are 29-39 i think
get laser.

Bearing buddies don't need grease every time you launch and retrieve. This is why my mechanic hates them...if you grease them every time, grease WILL pop out of the seal behind the hub, and you'll let in water. Whether you have the old BBs or the new BBs, there is a method to test if they NEED grease. Don't just grease them so you feel good...only grease them IF they need it.

The old BBs you have to rock the outer hub plate to see if it has enough grease. If it rocks, and you haven't already blown the seal, you're good. Repack depends on use...but every 2 years max is a good idea.

The newer BBs have a blue plate, and you look at that to judge if it needs grease. PLEASE...don't grease your BBs every time you go out...unless you are low on grease using the methods BB tells you to use to judge grease level.

Think about it...do you see grease running out of your hub somewhere? If not, then the grease isn't disappearing...it is still there, doing its job. If you need grease...and you haven't already blown a rear seal, it's because some has come out of the front plate...or the volatiles in the grease have baked off from the heat of running down the road...and the volume of grease has gone down as the volatiles bake off.

It's kinda like that guy with the inboard who kept tightening his propeller shaft seal because water kept dripping into the bilge along the packing gland. Seems like a great idea until you choke off that essential packing gland lubricating water, burn your shaft packing and score your propeller shaft.

Played with my new laser pointed thermometer when we trailered the boat to the ramp this weekend; hubs were between 108 to 112 degrees F when we got the ramp left rear and right front were the warmest. Presume if that trend continues I should pull and re-grease them, should be interesting to track this over time....

Both rear trailer tires were a warmer than the fronts, apparently they carry more of the load, same thing w/ the truck tires.

Looks like this will be a useful tool and an interesting toy; the dog at rest is warmer than that of the wife's useless cat, no surprise there I suppose....

Hahahaha...insert dog and cat jokes here Or husband and wife jokes

Hubs can be warmer if they are on the braking axle, and the diff between 108 and 112 is background noise and not significant. 10 degrees...yes...4 degrees...no. 112F is nothing for bearing grease...but bearings don't always get red hot before failure. It's an inexact science filled with numerous variables...how far you trailer, ambient temp, the quality of the bearing grease, the age of the bearings, the condition of the seals, how often you get the bearings wet...

My belief is that if you don't have bearing buddies and you launch a dozen or more times a year, you'll want to repack every year. If you launch 6 times a year, you'll get by repacking every two years.

If you have buddies and you grease them only when called for by the instructions and your seals are good, then even with high use you could get two years between repacks. Repacks not only serve to extend the bearing life, but gives you the opportunity to inspect the bearings and replace seals.

Oil filled...I have no idea. But if you lose the oil on the road...you probably need to be prepared with oil and parts...if you catch it before the bearing welds itself to the hub