Trailer Bearing Service

brewster16

brewster16

Well-Known Member
Aug 9, 2009
1,452
Long Beach Island, N.J.
Boat Info
'07 44 Sundancer
Engines
Twin Cummins QSC 8.3
Hi all....5 year old trailer, dual axle which I've never had service done on before. Does anyone have a cost estimate on repacking bearings, greasing? Im usually in/out salt water just twice a season but this summer Im planning a bigger trip and probably time to service the trailer. Rough estimates are fine....thanks

Bob
 
About 2-3 hours, max. Any local garage should be able to do this for you, as well, Bob. Meaning, there's nothing special here so you don't need to take it to a Sea Ray dealer if that's not as convenient for you.
 
Make sure they closely inspect the surface that the inner bearing seal rides on. It’s part of the axle beam.

salt water corrodes this surface and can allow water to immediately leak into the hubs even with new seals installed.
 
Espos4 said:
Make sure they closely inspect the surface that the inner bearing seal rides on. It’s part of the axle beam.

salt water corrodes this surface and can allow water to immediately leak into the hubs even with new seals installed.
Click to expand...

Replace all the bearings, do not repack them. Cheap insurance...

My dues were paid stranded in a parking lot for 8 hours on labor Day weekend. No one would service us, had a race seized on the axle, had to go to Rural King to buy air tools to get the race off. NEVER AGAIN!!!!
 
I service my bearings before every long trip. I even bring a grease gun and grease my bearings when I pull the boat out of the water. I have never had a bearing failure. And I’ve never had to replace bearings. I even bring a spare hub with greased bearings in it ready to go. Thankfully I’ve never had to use it.
 
Trailer for out tandem jetboat trailer sat for 5 years. Had bearings, breaks and surge brakes serviced $750US. You may want to get them to look at your break-away line also. It cost $100 to have them replace it after I forgot to disconnect it. It did not work as the trailer was still towable.
 
In my opinion, as long as the person doing the inspecting (races, bearings) knows what they're doing, I see nothing wrong with re-using them. Re-pack and go boating. Heck, most people don't even re-pack them every 5 years to start with and they last a long, long time. If you do get new, make sure to get quality ones - Timken, for example.

You probably already know this, but don't overgrease - meaning, don't pump grease into the bearings too often. You'll end up putting too much grease in there over time and could blow out the rear seal... which leads to major headaches on the side of the road in 95* temps. For someone that trailers regularly, pump grease in a few times a year - that's it. If you have something like Bearing Buddy's, pump till the plate starts to move and starts to compress the spring. Then just a couple more pumps till the plate just about reaches it's stop point.
 
Just did a major service on our 2015 trailer. Lost an inner wheel seal to corrosion eating thru the seal itself. The others weren't far behind. Bearings were in great shape so just cleaned and repacked them. Time worked out to about 2.5 hrs per axel with disk brakes doing it myself.
 
I did a little research.... called a bunch of tire shops, mechanics, trailer repair places. It looks like the average approximate time to do bearing service (repack bearings/ re-grease/inspect all components) is 2 hours per axel. My boat trailer is heading in this week. Just thought I'd post my findings for others interested.
 
I've been lucky and haven't had a reason to trailer anything but I do see quite a few boats on the side of the road with wheel and tire problems..... and I bet some bearing issues as well.

When you have your trailer serviced have them install some bearing buddy caps.
 
I have oil bath bearings. Just had local shop (Seattle area) replace bearings and service on tandem axle Ez Loader. Was $950 total. Included replacing inner seals.
 
I replaced all bearings and seals on my tri-axle last fall - prior owner had neglected them. I'm an amateur and each set took about 1/2 hour, re & re. Rent a bearing driver set. It's messy so have gloves and shop towels on hand. If the spindle sealing surface is etched, use Speedy Sleeves.

When there is very little side play (up on a jack) and no rumbling or grinding noises when you spin the wheel, the bearings are good. Grease them and go. As others have noted, Bearing Buddies are a "must have." Quality bearings (Timken, SKF, etc.), serviced annually, can last decades on a trailer.
 
Maggieiscrazy said:
Sounds kinda high for 2 hours labor and $75 in parts.
Click to expand...
Its high. Thus the comment that its "Seattle Area". Parts werent $75. one set of bearings alone from EZ loader is $55 so four is $220. Oil for the baths $14. New end caps $25 each so there's another $100. EZ loader sells a "kit" with all that in it plus a hub for $112 each. I had hubs replaced too. so parts were about $500. Labor then was $400. Going rate for Northwest for labor is about $130/hr. So they charged me 3.5 hours. All in all not bad for complete new hubs and bearings. 4 bills is not a bad piece of mind for a job from someone who knows what they are doing and wont leave you stranded on the road later because the rear seal wasnt installed right and the bearing wasted because of. I am nervous of oil bath set up. They are different that greased hubs. Not as easily maintenanced on the side of the road.
 
Lazy Daze said:
In my opinion, as long as the person doing the inspecting (races, bearings) knows what they're doing, I see nothing wrong with re-using them. Re-pack and go boating. Heck, most people don't even re-pack them every 5 years to start with and they last a long, long time. If you do get new, make sure to get quality ones - Timken, for example.

You probably already know this, but don't overgrease - meaning, don't pump grease into the bearings too often. You'll end up putting too much grease in there over time and could blow out the rear seal... which leads to major headaches on the side of the road in 95* temps. For someone that trailers regularly, pump grease in a few times a year - that's it. If you have something like Bearing Buddy's, pump till the plate starts to move and starts to compress the spring. Then just a couple more pumps till the plate just about reaches it's stop point.
Click to expand...

I suspect one reason that most shops always replace bearings as they don’t want to depend on their employees to inspect the bearings.
 
As others have noted, be sure to add Bearing Buddies. Not so much for greasing the bearings, but for the fact that they keep a slight positive pressure inside the hub which serves to keep water out.
 
MonacoMike said:
I suspect one reason that most shops always replace bearings as they don’t want to depend on their employees to inspect the bearings.
Click to expand...
Or... if you are paying someone to get in there and inspect, you might as well replace with new since the parts are relatively cheap. It's labor that drives the price up. It's the 'ol "As long as you're in there" philosophy.

Besides, if a month later a bearing fails and the shop inspected/reused, some customers will cry "foul" that the mechanic did something wrong (even if he didn't). If it's a new set, then the issue typically leans towards a defect in the product.
 
For all of the DIY'ers out there that want to change out their bearings for new (recommended); if the outer races are difficult to remove due to no access points for driving them out, use either a wire-feed or stick welder to run a bead all around the area where the rollers ride. As the weld cools, it'll shrink the race enough that it'll just about fall out of the hub.
 
Nater Potater said:
For all of the DIY'ers out there that want to change out their bearings for new (recommended); if the outer races are difficult to remove due to no access points for driving them out, use either a wire-feed or stick welder to run a bead all around the area where the rollers ride. As the weld cools, it'll shrink the race enough that it'll just about fall out of the hub.
Click to expand...

Or cut a slot in the race and drive it off with an air hammer...
 
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