Great video. I have purchased 3 new trailers with EZ Lube hubs, not one came with instructions on how to use the system. So, no - I've never completely flushed the old grease the way you demonstrated. Thanks, I learned a lot.
I would be very curious to see an inspection of an ez lube that just got a couple pumps on a regular basis. It seems to me that the old grease would get cycled through. I'm thinking about equipment trailers that go out every day. So, greased weekly or bi weekly. Great videos, btw. I just found your channel.
Agree with you 100% old way with inspection of parts, bearings, seals and brake components is the way to go! Just takes the guesswork out when towing in the middle of rural America and having a failure with no parts houses for miles.
I own a toy hauler and yes, I’m the one that only puts two or three pumps once a year😮 I’ve been so lucky never had an issue. Thank you for educating me. Keep up the great videos.
You’re fine. I just pulled the drums on my trailer which for the first 15 years of its life before I owned it was neglected and probably not greased at all. I’ve been pumping some in once a year the last few years. After pulling them apart the bearings were still packed, no moisture in them. Yes the grease was black but still had good consistency. Nothing but grease in there, no dust or debris. Bearings, races and spindles looked mint too. I don’t think they would have had any issues for a very long time if I just continued to pump some in through the EZ lube once a year.
I repacked my 7k axle bearings recently, and it was the first time for this 2 year old trailer. I didn’t even realize it had the EZ lube option. When I finished cleaning everything, I shot a little grease through the zerk fitting and was surprised it only came out between the rear bearing and seal. I was worried about pushing grease past the seal into the brake area, so I decided not to grease that way. Your video explains how the front bearing would get lubed, but as you showed, it would take a ton of grease and still be questionable. Thanks for posting.
I've used the EZ lube system on my RVs and motorcycle trailers for the past few years, but after watching your videos, I'll now be pulling off the hubs to inspect and regrease every single time. Thanks for the informative content.
I am in my 80s is the first time I’ve seen your show. I was impressed with what you’re saying. I’ve been in a livestock business construction business and I made it appointed a minimum of once a year the tires wheels everything came off and all everything were clean it was solvent wipe down, forced with air and it saved a lot of breakdown time. I’m in the preventative maintenance and I still haven’t my age anyway really appreciate your video and your information. Thank you.
I jack my easy lube 3500lb Dexter axle up in the air- and slowly spin tire while manually greasing it. Works great. Very simple. Pump it till all clean comes out and keep an eye on the nut tension for top to bottom play. Zero issues in 2 years
Thank you so much for this very informative video. Some of the things you said about EZ-Lube I had never heard before and I’m 63 years old! Grant it, you obviously have more experience at this than I do. I love to learn new things. Especially the correct way to do things. This video caused me to subscribe to your channel and I look forward to watching past videos as well as future ones! Thanks again!
Thank you thank you. I've got a $100K plus boat sitting on my trailer and never did the easy lube correctly. You may have saved me some serious damage to my trailer and boat. Keep up these great youtube videos.
I pull a 50’ car hauler daily and I pull my drums off and repack every 10K miles. I jack, spin and pump grease every 5K. Have never had a bearing failure. I appreciate you showing this it just reinforces that I am doing it the right way. Keep up the great work and videos
Glad to hear there are people out there taking a structured and detailed approach to preventative maintenance for their trailers. Keep up the good work on your end and thanks for watching!
I put probably less than 10,000 easy miles on our camping trailer. Every other year I do a full tear down and inspection. The other years I do EZ Lube using whatever grease is needed to push out the old grease. I remove the cap while pumping and don’t load the cap with grease. Over more than 10 years this has worked for me. After a recent 2000 mile trip my hubs ran cool to the touch at each fuel and bathroom break.
Glad I saw this video. I’ve been riding on borrowed time. I will be repacking before my next trip. I was definitely not using it correctly. I was triple pumping and spinning the wheels. Basically just mixing the grease. I used it like a time extension and will eventually repack.
Great Video. So far I have only used the grease zerk to top off after complete repack. Even that will burn up 1/2 tube of grease per wheel on a 3500 axle. I agree that total disassembly and repack is optimum but occasional pumping has got to be a helluva lot better than total negligence.
Those bearing caps are sharp if you run your finger on the inside. I cut my finnger once. Also, I'd recommend doing this when the outside temps and your grease are warm. If you try this when the outside temps are really cold you risk a seal blowout. I'll do this in the summer and and also leave the grease cartridges in the sun for a few hours to get warm. Thanks TrailerSmith for you channel. I've learned alot.
I'm also that guy that pumps the ezlube hubs a few times before a trip. I tow a 5k lbs jeep on a trailer with two 5k lbs axles approx ~1k miles x year. I bought the trailer bran new in 2019. have not had any issues. Thank you for the educational video, very helpful.
I never used it, I just always preferred to see the bearings, and concerned that the rear seal would not hold up to the greasing. If I put a whole tube of grease in I would have thought the seal was leaking, and have torn in any way. Great video. I learned my gut feeling was right.
We bought a new Casita trailer last year and put about 10K miles on it. Several weeks ago, I got out in my driveway on a nice day and with my new grease gun bought at an auto parts store (it replaced a POS I bought at Harbor Frt) and I loaded it with a cartridge. Prior to doing this, I watched several TH-cams to make sure I understood how to do it. Well, being retired, I have plenty of time and overall , I spent around an hour greasing both sides of the one axle. The new grease went in and the old came out, just like it is supposed to do, one cartridge per side. Now I do plan on taking my trailer next year or maybe at the end of camping season this year to an RV dealership shop for them to break it down and look at the brakes and bearings to ensure all is well. I know my limitations and do ask for experts to help. I did enjoy the EZ lube system, but used a lot of paper towels, cleaning up the mess. I did obtain from Dexter the rubber caps and will replace the ones on the axle. The current caps seem fine but I will replace them anyway. Thanks for your video on this and I am reassured that the EZ lube system works for me.
One big factor in using the easy-lube method living up north is to make sure the grease in both the gun and hub are warmed up. Cold grease pushes past the seal much easier than through the bearing. I use those zirks once in a while, but prefer to, as you said, do it the old fashioned way.
Thanks for the clear information, its just not as simple as the name "Easy Lube" implies. Like you, i was taught to tear them down, clean, thoroughly inspect, repack by hand and reassemble. One of the things I learned in my early days (the early 1980's) is that the space in the hub between the bearings is intended to be open to allow for air expansion as a result of heating and cooling cycles and to allow the air between the bearings to transfer heat to the hub and ultimately to the atmosphere. For what it's worth, i have three trailers with the easy lube system and have never used them.
I have a 2005 Jayco Travel Trailer 33 ft. I have been using the EZ Lube systems since I bought the trailer new. The camper only gets maybe 3,000 miles a season on it, and every year, I use Lucas green heavy-duty grease to regress it through the zerks. I do take off the dust caps when doing this so I can tell when new grease is coming out and also clean out the old grease that's being pushed out. It works great for me, and I always check the temperature of my Hubs and not have seen any problems with heat. Every 4 years I adjust the brakes and then I will spin the axle when greasing.
I use the EZ lube for both my RV and boat trailers. I do it exactly how you demonstrated. I pump until I get all of the old grease out. I have my wife or daughter keep the hub spinning slowly as I pump. I also replace the rubber plugs every year. I grease the RV once a year, but we typically camp relatively local. I grease the boat trailer hubs twice a year. I’ve never had any issues. I think you are correct in your recommendations though. I think most folks just give a shot or two in each hub and call it good. Great video and great information.
Get Bearing Buddies for going under water. They are better than Easy Lube for going under water. They keep grease at 3 psig pressure so no water can enter the hub.
Just stumbled on your videos today and am enjoying them. Moving on to your bearing repack one, but just a quick comment…. You seemed to struggle with the cotter pin a bit. I was in the airlines for a decade and we used cotter pin pullers. A hand tool with a twisted hook on the end. Very effective, and once you got the leverage twist motion down they made short work of just about any cotter pin. I still use mine to this day! Thanks for the other info!
I had a 2003 5th wheel with easy lube axles. Maybe 3 - 4 thousand miles driven per year. Annually did exactly what you showed in the video and never had an issue. Bought a 2018 5th wheel [same brand] and started doing the same routine annually. Noticed the brakes were not working as well after the 2nd year. Adjusted the brakes but no difference so I removed the hubs and found the inner seal had blown in all 4 wheels. From now on I will remove the hubs and repack the old way. You also save grease doing it the old way.
Use a Milwaukee electric gun raise & spin wheel , watch until grease is color of new grease . Cap on done ! Manuel gun too slow why ? Don't worry about using half a tube per axle . Water ,or loose play in bearings ,require removal, cleaning& inspection, & packing . Ken. 50 + year vech. Ser. Pro.
Large class 10 and 12 overroad trucks / trailers left grease years ago and went with axle gear/ oil 85/ 90 wt.Its part of the pre-TRIP inspection on all wheels.
U mean class 7-8, nobody uses 80-90 anymore. It's synthetic 75-140 or whatever is recommended. 8k axles have oil bath, even 3k snowmobile trailer axles. Floe trailers been using oil bath in little 2 place snowmobile trailers since the 80s
I bought a 22 camper new. It's a lippert axle with the ez lube setup. This is the first time I took everything apart for inspection and from the factory the bearings barely had enough grease in them. I like the ez lube set up because after putting everything back together it was easy to fill the void with grease and I am at ease that they have enough. I will redo this next year to inspect the brakes and bearing. I believe in preventative maintenance.
I had contacted Lippert about this, their reply is enough grease is on bearings to get it to the customer, it is then their responsibility to lube the axle properly, which of course if no one tells you, you don't know. Perfect opportunity for them to deny an axle claim because you didnt lube it. Arseholes
@@tmcblane it's amazing how companies will pinch pennies and spend dollars. A handful of grease is not that much more than a spoonful. Thanks for the info.
I bought a Compass cargo trailer 3 years ago with Lippert axles and EZ Lube. Lippert guarantees the factory bearing pack to last 30,000 miles. I am at the moment in Kansas, on the way from Quebec to Arizona for the winter. The cargo trailer has been converted to an RV. This afternoon at about 32,000 miles on the original bearing pack, I stopped when the bearings were nice and warm from driving for a few hours and the grease was warm from having the grease gun on the dashboard in the sun. I turned the wheel as I slowly pumped the grease in by hand, and continued until the grease was red again rather than black. I used Lucas Red n Tacky, which is supposed to be what Lippert uses at the factory. I did two of four wheels today and will do the other two tomorrow. So far it has expelled the old grease exactly as it should have. I used 1 full tube for two wheels on a 3500 lb axle. I will watch for decreased braking in the next little while, indicating blown seals. But I really think turning the wheel as you pump the grease, as well as having both the bearings and the grease nice and warm is key to not blowing them out.
Good info. I just saw a short video where the guy was crying because all 4 hubs blew out the seals and he didn't know why. I'm a long time maintenance mechanic and taught many classes on the proper way to lube sealed bearings on production line equipment. That knowledge transferred over to when I got my first trailer with EX Lube axles. I just bought a new double axle dump trailer with EZ lube hubs...so thanks for the refresher class.
I have axles like this on a trailer that I use daily.And I just pumped Gease to it ever so often.Never do a tear down.Have been doing it for 6 years never had a problem
I have a PJ Car Hauler with 5200# EZ-Lube axles and they have been great..and you are NOT wrong! Odd years get fresh grease via the EZ-Lube method. Even years, like this year, get full disassembly and inspection. This is overkill for my trailer as it doesn't see commercial duty and the annual miles are low. No issues here. Really appreciated the video!!
I just re packed my bearings and replaced the seals. Mine has this system. I’ve always been scared to grease it like that cause I was afraid it would either blow the rear seal out or go out of the seal. Good info. Great video.
I've had my tandem Dexter axle setup for about 5 years and have always hand packed. This year, I used the Ez lube system, but did it the way you described except that I removed the dust cap and used a catch pan to collect the blobs of old grease as they came out. I then pulled the drum off to make sure the grease did not blow out the back and inspect the brake system. I reinstalled the drum and gave it another 10 pumps or so to make sure the grease is still flowing. Reinstalled the dust cap. I will alternate old method and ez lube method each year to make sure the bearings are good.
Sounds like a plan! Just knowing and being aware that it’s not a grease it and forget it system will be invaluable when it comes to EZ lube axles. Sounds like you are very aware! Thanks for watching.
My son bought a travel trailer with easy lube axles. We tore it down yesterday and it was as you said. The grease was very thin and dirty. It was obvious that someone had been putting small amounts of new grease in them. When we pulled the hub the grease had been pushing past the seal. My opinion is to pull them off and inspect bearings. Very good video. Thanks
Great instructional video. One thing I would add is when completely replacing grease by pumping is don't do it in cold weather. I think there is a better chance of blowing out the inner seal.
Excellent info. I have a 10 foot utility trailer that I only use about once a year to haul my motorcycle on road trips. I did use the EZ Lube feature this year before using the trailer for a short local trip but I'm going to repack the bearings the old way from now on for the reasons you mentioned in this video. That's no problem because I've repacked bearings in the past more times than I can count. But the most important thing you brought up, in my opinion, is that a full inspection of the brakes, bearings, seal, etc. can be done when repacking the old way. I completely agree with your reasoning. Great advice! Thanks for posting this.
I am the 3rd owner of a small 2018 Jayco. Previous owner said they only used it sparingly, and had never greased the bearings. I pumped slowly and turned the hub slowly the entire time, never stopped while pumping. Finally at the end of a whole tube, grease started to come out at the dust cap. It was just as red as what I was pumping in. So either the camper was as rarely used as he claimed, or the factory put next to nothing in from the start. I thought for sure I was filling the drum, but the brakes work great and like everyone says, it just takes a ton of grease the first time you use the ez lube system.
I bought a new travel trailer with the EZ lube hubs and pumped 3 tubes of grease in them when I first brought it home. It obviously left the factory with very little grease in the hubs.
Thank you for this very informative video. I have a 2018 Jay Flight travel trailer with dual Lippert 3500 axles. Right after I bought it (used in 2021) I did an oldschool bearing repack, i.e. disassembled and cleaned all the old grease out and re-greased using Lucas Red n Tacky. Since then I've used the EZ Lube, and would pump Lucas grease through it until the fresh started to ooze out. Several things I've learned: a) warm up the grease tubes by e.g. placing them on the dashboard exposed to the sun for several hours to make the grease flow a little easier, b) after jacking up an axle and before lubing it, I grab the wheel and shake it side to side it to check for looseness, c) after jacking up an axle and before lubing it, I engage the breakaway switch to check to see if the brakes lock as expected, d) as I pump grease into the EZ lube, I check the old grease coming out for metal flake debris. Engaging the breakaway switch the other day I found that one of the wheels wasn't locking, which was due to a leaking grease seal. I'm going to replace that seal and backing plate/shoe assembly which requires burnishing (see www.lippert.com/blog/burnish-trailer-brakes ). I was thinking that the brakes could be tested by this burnishing procedure in conjunction with a temperature gun: get the brake drums hot then check their temperatures.
Thanks for answering my question! The "old" way of packing the bearings with grease allows for for inspection of every single component of the assembly including brakes but also complete grease replacement.
I thought it was a few pumps and good to go, that’s what they told me when I bought my new travel trailer. Now on my utility trailer I don’t have that system and of course I break it down and clean and repack/ replace. I learned something today.
Had not heard of EZL before today. Bought our 1st trailer, a new 2021 Towable RV (in 2021), and was "relying on annual warranty inspection" to check the wheel bearings. This year after getting tired of dealer not doing everything we discussed before hand when in for inspection I found a local RV shop and had them repack the bearings, was not cheap, but gave me a better feeling that at least it was done correctly before I start doing it myself again. It has been decades since I repacked bearings on any of my pick ups. Your video was extremely helpful in explaining what to do and why you are doing it, whichever method you choose. Now I have to go dig out my owner's manuals, as well as personally see what type of axles I have, and see what type of axles are supposedly on the trailer. I was really starting to get an uneasy feeling regarding the wheel bearings. Now I feel more confident in doing it myself. My big concern has always been if I was properly replacing/tightening the hubs. Will check out your other video to see what you recommend on how to repack, inspect and replace the hubs, etc. Thanks for the insight and help.
I just purchased a 1993 Ranger boat and trailer in great condition and once I got it home and parked it in the garage the first thing I did was check out the grease in the wheel hubs. The trailer is equipped with EZ Lube but has a needle style fitting. I tried pumping grease and no matter what I couldn’t get any grease through the zerk. I decided to put the cap back on and manual bearing repacking is on the to do list for this winter. The grease I could see was gray in color which certainly needs to be replaced but the hub seems to spin nicely with no play for now. Thanks for the great videos
I have the EX Lube on my boat trailer. Grease in while spinning the wheel once a year until new grease comes out and have had zero issues over 8 years. I do use a bearing buddy rubber cap over the outer cap as added water intrusion protection and have never had water inside while doing the grease replacement.
I'm guilty. I've got a JP 12 foot utility trailer with EZ lube. I like to maintain my equipment so it will last. But it only received a few pumps each year. It doesn't get used more than a half dozen times a year to haul branches to dump, but thanks to your tutorial about them, I'll be following another comenters scheduled. Easy Lube pump and full flush one year, teardown and repack the next year. Great video. Thanks
Seven years of owning a 2006 RV toy hauler with Dexter EZ Lube axles. I was not pumping enough grease in. I was scared that I would pump in so much grease that it would blow out the grease seals. I now use a Dewalt cordless grease gun and it's working well. With one hand I gently pump in small squirts of grease and the other hand is constantly turning the tire. I pulled the drums to check my technique and the grease seals were just fine, no grease in the brake area. I respect what you're saying. A visual inspection of the components is the best approach. I pull the hubs and repack the bearings by hand in even numbered years and use the EZ Lube system in odd numbered years. I would like to know of a high quality grease seal brand to use. My local trailer shop has no-name brand seals that I'm reluctant to use.
Very helpful & informative. I have EZ Lube on both of my trailers, but no, I never knew how to properly grease this system. I knew about the complete repack, & do keep track, but I’ll now know how to properly use the system in between repacks. I will strongly reconsider just tearing down & repacking more often, based on how long it takes (+ how much grease needed) to use the EZ system.
Thanks for the great advice. I've always did this job the old fashion way . I have not had issues with the bearings on my Cargo Trailer. Yes its time consuming and messy but I have peace of mind doing this job the way I was taught by my step father back in the 60's.
yes piece of mind is comfort to me. I'm very picky about who I take my vehicles to for repairs. I'm 68 years old and I can not do as much work on vehicles now that I use to be able to do. My brain says yes go for it you can do this... my body says OH HECK NO YOU AIN'T DOING THAT.
Thank you so much for the clear, concise, easy to understand info on ez lube! I am old school also and have repacked a number of hub bearings. I purchased a new travel trailer several years ago. First time I had seen ez lube, but nowhere in any documentation, did it discuss how it was maintained...so I was one of those 3-4 pump people. I have not had any trouble, but I will be changing to the pull it apart method. Thanks, I subscribed!
Good video. Our 5th wheel RV has Dexter 7K Easylube disc brake axles. Annually I alternate between pumping new grease and hand packing the bearings. The hubs have never been submerged nor have I found any moisture in them. I pull the caps to get a better look at the grease flowing from the bearings and to also not end up with a build up of excess grease in the cap. Note it appears to me that pumping new grease in leaves excess grease in the area between the bearings and with use some of the grease flows into the cap. When adding grease I continually spin the wheel while pumping (battery powered grease gun). I use about 3 - 14oz tubes of grease on 4 hubs. An advantage of the disc brakes is you don’t need to disassemble anything to check the pads for wear and you can inspect the grease seal from the backside of the hub. For parts I use National or Timken oil seals and Timken bearings. I keep a chronological log on the 5th wheel - noting date & mileage - where we stayed and work or maintenance performed on the trailer.
Very informative video. I am completely shocked at how bad the EZ lube, or bearing buddy systems work. I'm not a big fan at tearing wheels and bearings apart, but I guess to avoid a disaster, I will make sure to inspect them once in a while. Thank you
I do a teardown and hand pack at the beginning of each season. I'm 74 years old and that is how I was taught. I also carry a full set of bearings and seals in case one gives out on the road. Those trailer bearings can be hard to find in the boondocks.
Very good point! I tend to lean toward the side of caution and always carry extra parts with me, whether its for my vehicle or trailer. Thanks for watching!
I'm with you. I keep my spare mounted on a spindle with a brand-new packed hub assembly. If I ever have any issues with the hub, I have everything ready to go for a quick roadside swap, or I can just pull the parts I need from it. I've blown plenty of tires, but I haven't had to swap out the hub yet. It's cheap insurance.
Thank you for putting this subject out there. I’ve used the EZ Lube in the past with varied success and never really felt good about it. I have gone back to the old school method for piece of mind and at the end of the day, the time saved with the EZ Lube is not worth not seeing what is going on inside that hub and axle.
Great point! And I fully agree. Peace of mind is priceless so it’s worth for me to do it the old school way and it’s what I prefer to do for my customers, as well.
I just pulled my 2 7k axles apart to clean and inspect because ain`t no way to know without looking. Good thing too because 2 seals were wonky seated and one came out on removal -makes me wonder if pneumatic job was done. As you said, the old way is `the way`. I am all about old school tried and true. Grease was not dirty and the only grease in there is new. Drums were like new but rusty brake hardware made me once and done new brakes complete. A lot easier done at home than a thousand plus miles away.
I thought I knew how to use ez lube hubs, I stand corrected. I only pull around 2K miles each year so I assumed 3-4 pumps before each 500-800 mile trip was adequate. Sounds like I need to pull the hubs and check the bearings and seals. Thanks for the education!
recently rebuilt my 12 foot utility trailer with 2 new 3500 lb EZ lube axles. only purchased because they were the best value for the price. Really glad to have seen this video and all my future maintenance will be a full tear down. Sometimes the long way really is the short way.
been taking them apart and greasing by hand ever since my dad showed me when I was 10 never had a bearing failure I also like to check the voltage to the brakes First thing i do when I get a trailer is change out the wire connectors my 7 and 10-year-old grandsons will be helping me next time if they want to ride the four wheelers The oldest likes to help by the youngest I have to bargain with
On my light duty trailers (single axle/ used ) i always do a a full bearing and seal replacement. And always add a set of bearing buddies!! After the repack a add grease to the buddies and i am pretty much set for a few years. I jack up the trailers and give the wheels a spin....check for bearing noises and bearing play. On a tandem heavy axle trailer (used) i usually renew all bearings and seals and check every year or two depending on use! In 45 years of trailer use i have never had a wheel/ bearing fail!! Have three trailers now.....looking for a fourth..... Take care of them they will take care of you!! 😅
Just had the axle replaced on our trailer after a bearing failure; New axle has EZ Lube, and I will be doing it as you showed. Seems it would save grease, time, and mess, if the cap is removed before pumping grease in there - you will see the clean grease sooner and will avoid the weight in the cap.
I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about repairing my vehicles and trailers, but never know how to properly grease an EZ Lube trailer axle. And I read the owner's manuals! Just did my Wells Cargo single axle box trailer, and I am certainly glad I did, flushing out a huge pile of black grease gunk. Here's a tip for easier cleanup. I use puppy training pads on the floor under the axle, allowing big globs of grease to fall down as it is squeezed out. Easy wrap up, clean up. Thanks!
Just got educated about the grease "system" on the wheel bearings on my trailer. I just put grease in the hubs to put new grease in. When I get home, I guess I'm either going to follow the method you showed, which should get my trailer through the work season and then have it gone through by someone who knows what to do. 👍👍
I EZ Lube it the correct way then the next year completely tear down and inspect/replace parts as needed. Then rotate methods every other year. This is on a 14k trailer that never sees over 10k and at the most 5k miles a year. So far (5yrs) everything still looks great. My utility trailers while not seeing tons of miles get torn completely down yearly.
I always tear down the hubs(the old school way) even if the trailer is brand new. The robots at the assembly plant don’t add much grease in there, just enough to last the first year or 10k miles. Then I use the easy lube with the same brand grease every year for several years. Finally when 5 years or so comes around. I tear everything apart and start all over. Always use a label maker, label when the bearing were greased and what brand and type of grease was used. This make it easy to keep everything consistent and not mixing up different greases.
Nope, was told not to over lube it ! " It only needs a few pumps of good grease to be ok.", It's only a single 2500# axel with no brakes but never has it been greased like that. Great video. Thanks.
Awesome video! Like most of the comments say, my cargomate trailer did not come with any info on greasing. Pushing the rear seal out and filling my brake drum was my worry but I will proceed with caution, with my hand pump grease gun.
Interesting video and very good info here. Thanks. Having said that, I've been greasing my EZ Lube axles the "wrong way" for almost 30 years and I have never had a single failure of a bearing on any axle of any trailer I've had. I would never own an axle without EZ Lube because disassembling to repack was annoying. I do a few squirts of grease each summer and roll on. Zero issues. My largest trailer currently has a 10,000 GVWR.
Oh goody... One, NO I never knew HOW to do it or fully understood how it worked. I thank you once again and subscribed for teaching me. I was already going to take it to have a manual bearing pack job done this coming spring just because my dad taught me nothing easy is good. First year I let it go. Next spring, I did the EZ lube process. Did I do it right? I doubt it as soon as I saw red I stopped. I check my hubs every gas stop and noticed in 2023 they seemed hot with one in particular hotter. This last spring, I did do it right but used my new electric M12 grease gun as my old arthritic hands can't do a grease gun anymore. I'm wondering about my brakes... I still have them, but did have to up the percentage it seemed this last summer I pumped it till it was all red this year and Noticed the hubs ran much cooler this year. So, for three years, I have about 15K total on the tandem axle set up with one surely not done right EZ lube process and two much better but adequate? Don't know. It will be interesting to see what the guy says when he takes them apart this spring. Oh, I've done greased em when I was young. I'm done with that at 69. All my stuff is falling apart.
I am guilty as charged. I was using a pneumatic grease gun and blowing my seals. I wasn’t getting all the old grease out. I had to replace my brake shoes. No one said every 12,000 miles. Thx for very informative video!
I am trying to EZ lube the inside bearing and repacking the outer bearing. Less grease and don't have to replace the seal. I will repack both next year and see how it did.
On my 28' enclosed car tailer, I found that the factory wires to the magnet were under the backing plate retainer nut/bolts! If I didn't repack myself, would never have known.
All of my enclosed race trailers have come equipped with some form of EZ Lube axles and personally, I am not a fan. Being a mechanic and old racer I much prefer to fully tear mine down for service. This allows me to put hands and eyes on every component in the system and verify their integrity. I've serviced mine that way in 30+ years and over 250k miles of hauling trailers behind our coach. Great video. Mike
I’ve had great success with easy line. If brakes don’t seem right. I pull the bearings. Every two years I pull bearings anyway. I also remove dust cap first.
Used ez lube last fall. Followed directions to a T This spring no brakes. Tore it down and grease on all 4 wheels. Seals were not blown. Still intact. So much for easy lube. Had to replace all 4 sets of brakes.
I always take the dust cap off when I grease them and throw it away. They're cheap and a one time use in my opinion. I like to take them off because it reduces backpressure to the system (wheel seal), allows me to see the grease coming out to insure it's flushing the system, and I like an empty dust cap due to what you pointed out of them flying off from being too heavy. I also do it so once the hub heats up, there is room for expansion and not pushing on the little rubber plug or the wheel seal. I know the rubber plug will move out but I don't know how hot they're going to get or if that rubber cap has enough movement to allow for the grease / air to expand when heated.
I grease my boat trailer axles after every trip and pump until it’s basically clean which isn’t a whole lot as I do it so often. My utility trailers I do it every 2k miles or so. They usually take a bit more grease to see clean. I recently pulled down the hubs on boat trailer to inspect and was totally happy with what I saw for 13 years and probably 40k miles. Everything looked like new. Maybe I’m just lucky.
I just started working at a trailer shop a few weeks ago. When we pull the cap and see black grease, we pull the whole thing, clean and repack. I didn't even know EZ Lube was a thing and, after seeing the condition of some hubs, I'm glad I didn't know about it. I probably take way too long as it takes me two hours to do 4 hubs. I clean everything in the parts washer by hand and then go through 2 to 3 cans of brake clean to get all the old grease out of the bearings. I even use the shop air to blow the rest of the gunk out before they're repacked and reinstalled.
Thank you for your video, it really opens our eyes to the real deal. We bought a new 2024 Jayco . I wondered after receiving ownership if the barrings should be repacked right away or they can wait. Common sense says to repack asap! Thanks again.
Great knowledge and experience! Earned a subscription! Now off to see what kind of axle setup I have on my grey wolf toy hauler. Got a driver side rear tire wearing hard on the inside ugh.
Thanks. I have those axles. And yes, normally I just pumped new gease until a quantty of old grease came out. Cleaned the cap out. Time to order some plugs.
I have had two snowmobile trailers with EZ-Lube. I put in 10-20 pumps per year into each hub. "Old" grease still comes out clean so basically I am just topping it off and checking the condition of the grease. Only tow about 1500 miles in the winter and not at high speeds so grease isn't getting much of a work out. I would add that I like to grease them with the tire on so you can keep the hub rotating the entire time, easier with the inertia of the tire. I also like to do it when in the late afternoon in the summer when its good and hot outside. That way the grease flows easier and is less likely to blow out the back seal.
Thank heaven I found this video, one thing I'm not clear on as you mentioned that some people accidentally overfill them but on the other hand I see you pump cartridge after cartridge until the old stuff all comes out so is there a thin line on overfilling or were you talking about a different procedure
I used my EZ-Lube as recommended from the owners manual for years. I pumped until I had all the old grease out. Unfortunately, I never gave any consideration to the age of my wheel seals. I eventually leaked grease into all of my brakes and had to replace all 4 brake assemblies as they were completely saturated with grease. I no longer use the Z-Lube system. I disassemble and repack the old fashioned way and replace my seals every single time. That's probably overkill. I could probably use the EZ-lube every other year, but once you've had what I had happen you tend to not trust the system anymore.
Nothing gets RV'r debate going faster than a EZL discussion. To me, it doesn't have to be yes or no. I use it sometimes, don't use it other times. I also think a full inspection and all new grease every year is overkill. So I will use the EZL for those in between years, and fully tear down about every 5 years. I would not ask the EZL to push all the old grease out. If I don't trust the grease that is in there, and that means knowing what type of grease it is, then a tear down is in order. If I think my existing grease is okay, I'll only pump in enough to see it start to ooze out of the outer bearing. That tells me I have filled the space between the bearings and the bearing rollers. There is no good that will come from filling up that cap. Then every 5 years, tear down, inspect brakes bearings and all. One other thing, if you have EZL spindles, you are going to need to use it even after a teardown and full hand packing. You cannot properly fill that inner space by hand, so you still need to finish the job with a grease gun on the EZL. And don't forget to turn that drum while pumping. I enjoy your channel, keep up the good work.
44 year retired mechanic here, you are correct, disassemble clean inspection, repack and reseal.
Great video. I have purchased 3 new trailers with EZ Lube hubs, not one came with instructions on how to use the system. So, no - I've never completely flushed the old grease the way you demonstrated. Thanks, I learned a lot.
I’m glad the video was helpful! Thank you for watching!
Thanks, great video. Reaffirmed my suspicion!
I would be very curious to see an inspection of an ez lube that just got a couple pumps on a regular basis. It seems to me that the old grease would get cycled through. I'm thinking about equipment trailers that go out every day. So, greased weekly or bi weekly. Great videos, btw. I just found your channel.
Agree with you 100% old way with inspection of parts, bearings, seals and brake components is the way to go! Just takes the guesswork out when towing in the middle of rural America and having a failure with no parts houses for miles.
I own a toy hauler and yes, I’m the one that only puts two or three pumps once a year😮
I’ve been so lucky never had an issue. Thank you for educating me.
Keep up the great videos.
I'm glad I could help! Thanks for watching!
You’re fine. I just pulled the drums on my trailer which for the first 15 years of its life before I owned it was neglected and probably not greased at all. I’ve been pumping some in once a year the last few years. After pulling them apart the bearings were still packed, no moisture in them. Yes the grease was black but still had good consistency. Nothing but grease in there, no dust or debris. Bearings, races and spindles looked mint too. I don’t think they would have had any issues for a very long time if I just continued to pump some in through the EZ lube once a year.
@jfitz9624 if there is no contamination it takes a LOT of use to actually wear through grease
@@jfitz9624all depends on how much they're used and in what conditions
I repacked my 7k axle bearings recently, and it was the first time for this 2 year old trailer. I didn’t even realize it had the EZ lube option. When I finished cleaning everything, I shot a little grease through the zerk fitting and was surprised it only came out between the rear bearing and seal. I was worried about pushing grease past the seal into the brake area, so I decided not to grease that way. Your video explains how the front bearing would get lubed, but as you showed, it would take a ton of grease and still be questionable. Thanks for posting.
I have Easy Lube on my trailers, BUT, I always tear everything apart, and inspect each part myself! Thanks for a Great Video! (Great Teaching Video!)
Good to hear! Thank you for watching!
Is it necessary to replace the rear seal every time you tear it down?
@@svictor7573 Pretty cheap insurance to replace it every time! (I carry a spare seal and set of pre-greased bearings with me!)
Easy lube for some people can do nothing but harm. Take the time out to do the job right.
@@svictor7573 It's difficult to get the seal out w/o damaging it. I never have been able to, but they are cheap enough to replace.
I have a 40' camper, You have given me the best amount of info to maintain my axles on my camper. Thank You Very much
Guilty of using Easy Lube the wrong way. I will be changing my procedure going forward! Thank you for the education on Easy Lube.
So glad you found the video helpful! Thanks for watching!
I've used the EZ lube system on my RVs and motorcycle trailers for the past few years, but after watching your videos, I'll now be pulling off the hubs to inspect and regrease every single time. Thanks for the informative content.
Never done it like this ! I better start pulling some seals and repacking bearings! Great video
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!
I am in my 80s is the first time I’ve seen your show. I was impressed with what you’re saying. I’ve been in a livestock business construction business and I made it appointed a minimum of once a year the tires wheels everything came off and all everything were clean it was solvent wipe down, forced with air and it saved a lot of breakdown time. I’m in the preventative maintenance and I still haven’t my age anyway really appreciate your video and your information. Thank you.
I jack my easy lube 3500lb Dexter axle up in the air- and slowly spin tire while manually greasing it. Works great. Very simple. Pump it till all clean comes out and keep an eye on the nut tension for top to bottom play. Zero issues in 2 years
Thank you so much for this very informative video. Some of the things you said about EZ-Lube I had never heard before and I’m 63 years old! Grant it, you obviously have more experience at this than I do. I love to learn new things. Especially the correct way to do things. This video caused me to subscribe to your channel and I look forward to watching past videos as well as future ones! Thanks again!
Learned a lot. I had no idea that was how these worked. I guess I'll pull mine, inspect and repack.
Thank you thank you. I've got a $100K plus boat sitting on my trailer and never did the easy lube correctly. You may have saved me some serious damage to my trailer and boat. Keep up these great youtube videos.
I pull a 50’ car hauler daily and I pull my drums off and repack every 10K miles. I jack, spin and pump grease every 5K. Have never had a bearing failure. I appreciate you showing this it just reinforces that I am doing it the right way. Keep up the great work and videos
Glad to hear there are people out there taking a structured and detailed approach to preventative maintenance for their trailers. Keep up the good work on your end and thanks for watching!
How many pumps of grease do you add? I’m afraid of blowing out the seal
I put probably less than 10,000 easy miles on our camping trailer. Every other year I do a full tear down and inspection. The other years I do EZ Lube using whatever grease is needed to push out the old grease. I remove the cap while pumping and don’t load the cap with grease. Over more than 10 years this has worked for me. After a recent 2000 mile trip my hubs ran cool to the touch at each fuel and bathroom break.
Sounds like you know what to do! Great job! Thanks for watching.
You just earned my subscription!
Glad I saw this video. I’ve been riding on borrowed time. I will be repacking before my next trip. I was definitely not using it correctly. I was triple pumping and spinning the wheels. Basically just mixing the grease. I used it like a time extension and will eventually repack.
Great Video. So far I have only used the grease zerk to top off after complete repack. Even that will burn up 1/2 tube of grease per wheel on a 3500 axle. I agree that total disassembly and repack is optimum but occasional pumping has got to be a helluva lot better than total negligence.
Those bearing caps are sharp if you run your finger on the inside. I cut my finnger once.
Also, I'd recommend doing this when the outside temps and your grease are warm. If you try this when the outside temps are really cold you risk a seal blowout. I'll do this in the summer and and also leave the grease cartridges in the sun for a few hours to get warm. Thanks TrailerSmith for you channel. I've learned alot.
I'm also that guy that pumps the ezlube hubs a few times before a trip. I tow a 5k lbs jeep on a trailer with two 5k lbs axles approx ~1k miles x year. I bought the trailer bran new in 2019. have not had any issues. Thank you for the educational video, very helpful.
I never used it, I just always preferred to see the bearings, and concerned that the rear seal would not hold up to the greasing. If I put a whole tube of grease in I would have thought the seal was leaking, and have torn in any way. Great video. I learned my gut feeling was right.
Great point! Thanks for watching!
We bought a new Casita trailer last year and put about 10K miles on it. Several weeks ago, I got out in my driveway on a nice day and with my new grease gun bought at an auto parts store (it replaced a POS I bought at Harbor Frt) and I loaded it with a cartridge. Prior to doing this, I watched several TH-cams to make sure I understood how to do it. Well, being retired, I have plenty of time and overall , I spent around an hour greasing both sides of the one axle. The new grease went in and the old came out, just like it is supposed to do, one cartridge per side. Now I do plan on taking my trailer next year or maybe at the end of camping season this year to an RV dealership shop for them to break it down and look at the brakes and bearings to ensure all is well. I know my limitations and do ask for experts to help. I did enjoy the EZ lube system, but used a lot of paper towels, cleaning up the mess. I did obtain from Dexter the rubber caps and will replace the ones on the axle. The current caps seem fine but I will replace them anyway. Thanks for your video on this and I am reassured that the EZ lube system works for me.
Very informative. I learned how to make sure it is done properly. Thank u
One big factor in using the easy-lube method living up north is to make sure the grease in both the gun and hub are warmed up. Cold grease pushes past the seal much easier than through the bearing. I use those zirks once in a while, but prefer to, as you said, do it the old fashioned way.
Thanks for the clear information, its just not as simple as the name "Easy Lube" implies. Like you, i was taught to tear them down, clean, thoroughly inspect, repack by hand and reassemble. One of the things I learned in my early days (the early 1980's) is that the space in the hub between the bearings is intended to be open to allow for air expansion as a result of heating and cooling cycles and to allow the air between the bearings to transfer heat to the hub and ultimately to the atmosphere. For what it's worth, i have three trailers with the easy lube system and have never used them.
Thanks for watching!
I have a 2005 Jayco Travel Trailer 33 ft. I have been using the EZ Lube systems since I bought the trailer new. The camper only gets maybe 3,000 miles a season on it, and every year, I use Lucas green heavy-duty grease to regress it through the zerks. I do take off the dust caps when doing this so I can tell when new grease is coming out and also clean out the old grease that's being pushed out. It works great for me, and I always check the temperature of my Hubs and not have seen any problems with heat. Every 4 years I adjust the brakes and then I will spin the axle when greasing.
Thank you for this video. I learned a lot. My 5th wheel I bought used has these spindles. I will be tearing them down to inspect.
I use the EZ lube for both my RV and boat trailers. I do it exactly how you demonstrated. I pump until I get all of the old grease out. I have my wife or daughter keep the hub spinning slowly as I pump. I also replace the rubber plugs every year. I grease the RV once a year, but we typically camp relatively local. I grease the boat trailer hubs twice a year. I’ve never had any issues. I think you are correct in your recommendations though. I think most folks just give a shot or two in each hub and call it good.
Great video and great information.
Get Bearing Buddies for going under water. They are better than Easy Lube for going under water. They keep grease at 3 psig pressure so no water can enter the hub.
Just stumbled on your videos today and am enjoying them. Moving on to your bearing repack one, but just a quick comment…. You seemed to struggle with the cotter pin a bit. I was in the airlines for a decade and we used cotter pin pullers. A hand tool with a twisted hook on the end. Very effective, and once you got the leverage twist motion down they made short work of just about any cotter pin. I still use mine to this day! Thanks for the other info!
I had a 2003 5th wheel with easy lube axles. Maybe 3 - 4 thousand miles driven per year. Annually did exactly what you showed in the video and never had an issue. Bought a 2018 5th wheel [same brand] and started doing the same routine annually. Noticed the brakes were not working as well after the 2nd year. Adjusted the brakes but no difference so I removed the hubs and found the inner seal had blown in all 4 wheels. From now on I will remove the hubs and repack the old way. You also save grease doing it the old way.
Use a Milwaukee electric gun raise & spin wheel , watch until grease is color of new grease . Cap on done ! Manuel gun too slow why ? Don't worry about using half a tube per axle . Water ,or loose play in bearings ,require removal, cleaning& inspection, & packing . Ken. 50 + year vech. Ser. Pro.
Large class 10 and 12 overroad trucks / trailers left grease years ago and went with axle gear/ oil 85/ 90 wt.Its part of the pre-TRIP inspection on all wheels.
U mean class 7-8, nobody uses 80-90 anymore. It's synthetic 75-140 or whatever is recommended. 8k axles have oil bath, even 3k snowmobile trailer axles. Floe trailers been using oil bath in little 2 place snowmobile trailers since the 80s
I bought a 22 camper new. It's a lippert axle with the ez lube setup. This is the first time I took everything apart for inspection and from the factory the bearings barely had enough grease in them. I like the ez lube set up because after putting everything back together it was easy to fill the void with grease and I am at ease that they have enough. I will redo this next year to inspect the brakes and bearing. I believe in preventative maintenance.
I had contacted Lippert about this, their reply is enough grease is on bearings to get it to the customer, it is then their responsibility to lube the axle properly, which of course if no one tells you, you don't know. Perfect opportunity for them to deny an axle claim because you didnt lube it. Arseholes
@@tmcblane it's amazing how companies will pinch pennies and spend dollars. A handful of grease is not that much more than a spoonful.
Thanks for the info.
I bought a Compass cargo trailer 3 years ago with Lippert axles and EZ Lube. Lippert guarantees the factory bearing pack to last 30,000 miles. I am at the moment in Kansas, on the way from Quebec to Arizona for the winter. The cargo trailer has been converted to an RV.
This afternoon at about 32,000 miles on the original bearing pack, I stopped when the bearings were nice and warm from driving for a few hours and the grease was warm from having the grease gun on the dashboard in the sun. I turned the wheel as I slowly pumped the grease in by hand, and continued until the grease was red again rather than black. I used Lucas Red n Tacky, which is supposed to be what Lippert uses at the factory.
I did two of four wheels today and will do the other two tomorrow. So far it has expelled the old grease exactly as it should have. I used 1 full tube for two wheels on a 3500 lb axle. I will watch for decreased braking in the next little while, indicating blown seals. But I really think turning the wheel as you pump the grease, as well as having both the bearings and the grease nice and warm is key to not blowing them out.
Good info. I just saw a short video where the guy was crying because all 4 hubs blew out the seals and he didn't know why.
I'm a long time maintenance mechanic and taught many classes on the proper way to lube sealed bearings on production line equipment. That knowledge transferred over to when I got my first trailer with EX Lube axles. I just bought a new double axle dump trailer with EZ lube hubs...so thanks for the refresher class.
thank you for making this video i had no idea i was doing it wrong keep the great videos coming!
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.
I have axles like this on a trailer that I use daily.And I just pumped Gease to it ever so often.Never do a tear down.Have been doing it for 6 years never had a problem
I have a PJ Car Hauler with 5200# EZ-Lube axles and they have been great..and you are NOT wrong! Odd years get fresh grease via the EZ-Lube method. Even years, like this year, get full disassembly and inspection. This is overkill for my trailer as it doesn't see commercial duty and the annual miles are low. No issues here. Really appreciated the video!!
Sounds like you are on top of the maintenance game! Way to go! Thanks for watching.
Same for me. Low miles and get all the old grease out with EZ lube system. Trailer is 1994, and no bearing failures yet.
@KX6D I like your maintenance schedule. I'll do the same.
I just re packed my bearings and replaced the seals. Mine has this system. I’ve always been scared to grease it like that cause I was afraid it would either blow the rear seal out or go out of the seal. Good info. Great video.
I've had my tandem Dexter axle setup for about 5 years and have always hand packed. This year, I used the Ez lube system, but did it the way you described except that I removed the dust cap and used a catch pan to collect the blobs of old grease as they came out. I then pulled the drum off to make sure the grease did not blow out the back and inspect the brake system. I reinstalled the drum and gave it another 10 pumps or so to make sure the grease is still flowing. Reinstalled the dust cap. I will alternate old method and ez lube method each year to make sure the bearings are good.
Sounds like a plan! Just knowing and being aware that it’s not a grease it and forget it system will be invaluable when it comes to EZ lube axles. Sounds like you are very aware! Thanks for watching.
My son bought a travel trailer with easy lube axles. We tore it down yesterday and it was as you said. The grease was very thin and dirty. It was obvious that someone had been putting small amounts of new grease in them. When we pulled the hub the grease had been pushing past the seal. My opinion is to pull them off and inspect bearings. Very good video. Thanks
Glad yall took the time to tear it down & check it out! Thanks for watching!
Great instructional video. One thing I would add is when completely replacing grease by pumping is don't do it in cold weather. I think there is a better chance of blowing out the inner seal.
Excellent info. I have a 10 foot utility trailer that I only use about once a year to haul my motorcycle on road trips. I did use the EZ Lube feature this year before using the trailer for a short local trip but I'm going to repack the bearings the old way from now on for the reasons you mentioned in this video. That's no problem because I've repacked bearings in the past more times than I can count. But the most important thing you brought up, in my opinion, is that a full inspection of the brakes, bearings, seal, etc. can be done when repacking the old way. I completely agree with your reasoning. Great advice! Thanks for posting this.
14:24 when the outer bearing is removed, re-install the nut and give the drum a good yank. It will remove the inner seal & bearing, no tools required.
I am the 3rd owner of a small 2018 Jayco. Previous owner said they only used it sparingly, and had never greased the bearings. I pumped slowly and turned the hub slowly the entire time, never stopped while pumping. Finally at the end of a whole tube, grease started to come out at the dust cap. It was just as red as what I was pumping in. So either the camper was as rarely used as he claimed, or the factory put next to nothing in from the start. I thought for sure I was filling the drum, but the brakes work great and like everyone says, it just takes a ton of grease the first time you use the ez lube system.
I bought a new travel trailer with the EZ lube hubs and pumped 3 tubes of grease in them when I first brought it home. It obviously left the factory with very little grease in the hubs.
Thank you for this very informative video. I have a 2018 Jay Flight travel trailer with dual Lippert 3500 axles. Right after I bought it (used in 2021) I did an oldschool bearing repack, i.e. disassembled and cleaned all the old grease out and re-greased using Lucas Red n Tacky. Since then I've used the EZ Lube, and would pump Lucas grease through it until the fresh started to ooze out. Several things I've learned: a) warm up the grease tubes by e.g. placing them on the dashboard exposed to the sun for several hours to make the grease flow a little easier, b) after jacking up an axle and before lubing it, I grab the wheel and shake it side to side it to check for looseness, c) after jacking up an axle and before lubing it, I engage the breakaway switch to check to see if the brakes lock as expected, d) as I pump grease into the EZ lube, I check the old grease coming out for metal flake debris. Engaging the breakaway switch the other day I found that one of the wheels wasn't locking, which was due to a leaking grease seal. I'm going to replace that seal and backing plate/shoe assembly which requires burnishing (see www.lippert.com/blog/burnish-trailer-brakes ). I was thinking that the brakes could be tested by this burnishing procedure in conjunction with a temperature gun: get the brake drums hot then check their temperatures.
Thanks for answering my question!
The "old" way of packing the bearings with grease allows for for inspection of every single component of the assembly including brakes but also complete grease replacement.
I thought it was a few pumps and good to go, that’s what they told me when I bought my new travel trailer.
Now on my utility trailer I don’t have that system and of course I break it down and clean and repack/ replace.
I learned something today.
So glad the video helped! Solid preventative maintenance really is the key. Thanks for watching!
I love EZ-Lube because it's the best way to pack fully, even if it's cleaned and inspected every time.
Had not heard of EZL before today. Bought our 1st trailer, a new 2021 Towable RV (in 2021), and was "relying on annual warranty inspection" to check the wheel bearings. This year after getting tired of dealer not doing everything we discussed before hand when in for inspection I found a local RV shop and had them repack the bearings, was not cheap, but gave me a better feeling that at least it was done correctly before I start doing it myself again. It has been decades since I repacked bearings on any of my pick ups. Your video was extremely helpful in explaining what to do and why you are doing it, whichever method you choose. Now I have to go dig out my owner's manuals, as well as personally see what type of axles I have, and see what type of axles are supposedly on the trailer. I was really starting to get an uneasy feeling regarding the wheel bearings. Now I feel more confident in doing it myself. My big concern has always been if I was properly replacing/tightening the hubs. Will check out your other video to see what you recommend on how to repack, inspect and replace the hubs, etc. Thanks for the insight and help.
I just purchased a 1993 Ranger boat and trailer in great condition and once I got it home and parked it in the garage the first thing I did was check out the grease in the wheel hubs. The trailer is equipped with EZ Lube but has a needle style fitting. I tried pumping grease and no matter what I couldn’t get any grease through the zerk. I decided to put the cap back on and manual bearing repacking is on the to do list for this winter. The grease I could see was gray in color which certainly needs to be replaced but the hub seems to spin nicely with no play for now. Thanks for the great videos
I have the EX Lube on my boat trailer. Grease in while spinning the wheel once a year until new grease comes out and have had zero issues over 8 years. I do use a bearing buddy rubber cap over the outer cap as added water intrusion protection and have never had water inside while doing the grease replacement.
I'm guilty. I've got a JP 12 foot utility trailer with EZ lube. I like to maintain my equipment so it will last. But it only received a few pumps each year. It doesn't get used more than a half dozen times a year to haul branches to dump, but thanks to your tutorial about them, I'll be following another comenters scheduled. Easy Lube pump and full flush one year, teardown and repack the next year.
Great video. Thanks
Seven years of owning a 2006 RV toy hauler with Dexter EZ Lube axles. I was not pumping enough grease in. I was scared that I would pump in so much grease that it would blow out the grease seals. I now use a Dewalt cordless grease gun and it's working well. With one hand I gently pump in small squirts of grease and the other hand is constantly turning the tire. I pulled the drums to check my technique and the grease seals were just fine, no grease in the brake area. I respect what you're saying. A visual inspection of the components is the best approach. I pull the hubs and repack the bearings by hand in even numbered years and use the EZ Lube system in odd numbered years.
I would like to know of a high quality grease seal brand to use. My local trailer shop has no-name brand seals that I'm reluctant to use.
Pull one and cross reference at local parts store
I believe the system is not for packing its for maintaining which makes it a great system. Thanks for your video.
Very helpful & informative. I have EZ Lube on both of my trailers, but no, I never knew how to properly grease this system. I knew about the complete repack, & do keep track, but I’ll now know how to properly use the system in between repacks. I will strongly reconsider just tearing down & repacking more often, based on how long it takes (+ how much grease needed) to use the EZ system.
Thanks for the great advice. I've always did this job the old fashion way . I have not had issues with the bearings on my Cargo Trailer. Yes its time consuming and messy but I have peace of mind doing this job the way I was taught by my step father back in the 60's.
Sometimes, the old ways really are the best. Peace of mind is priceless! Thanks for watching!
yes piece of mind is comfort to me. I'm very picky about who I take my vehicles to for repairs. I'm 68 years old and I can not do as much work on vehicles now that I use to be able to do. My brain says yes go for it you can do this... my body says OH HECK NO YOU AIN'T DOING THAT.
Thank you so much for the clear, concise, easy to understand info on ez lube! I am old school also and have repacked a number of hub bearings. I purchased a new travel trailer several years ago. First time I had seen ez lube, but nowhere in any documentation, did it discuss how it was maintained...so I was one of those 3-4 pump people. I have not had any trouble, but I will be changing to the pull it apart method. Thanks, I subscribed!
Good video. Our 5th wheel RV has Dexter 7K Easylube disc brake axles. Annually I alternate between pumping new grease and hand packing the bearings. The hubs have never been submerged nor have I found any moisture in them. I pull the caps to get a better look at the grease flowing from the bearings and to also not end up with a build up of excess grease in the cap. Note it appears to me that pumping new grease in leaves excess grease in the area between the bearings and with use some of the grease flows into the cap. When adding grease I continually spin the wheel while pumping (battery powered grease gun). I use about 3 - 14oz tubes of grease on 4 hubs. An advantage of the disc brakes is you don’t need to disassemble anything to check the pads for wear and you can inspect the grease seal from the backside of the hub. For parts I use National or Timken oil seals and Timken bearings. I keep a chronological log on the 5th wheel - noting date & mileage - where we stayed and work or maintenance performed on the trailer.
Very informative video. I am completely shocked at how bad the EZ lube, or bearing buddy systems work. I'm not a big fan at tearing wheels and bearings apart, but I guess to avoid a disaster, I will make sure to inspect them once in a while. Thank you
I do a teardown and hand pack at the beginning of each season. I'm 74 years old and that is how I was taught. I also carry a full set of bearings and seals in case one gives out on the road. Those trailer bearings can be hard to find in the boondocks.
Very good point! I tend to lean toward the side of caution and always carry extra parts with me, whether its for my vehicle or trailer. Thanks for watching!
I'm with you. I keep my spare mounted on a spindle with a brand-new packed hub assembly. If I ever have any issues with the hub, I have everything ready to go for a quick roadside swap, or I can just pull the parts I need from it. I've blown plenty of tires, but I haven't had to swap out the hub yet. It's cheap insurance.
Bought a pontoon boat last summer, trailer did not come with any type of instructions and they have the EZ lube caps. So yea, this was helpful.
First time I greased my ez lube I just put a few pumps in it then I figured it out and this man is exactly right about how to use the ez lube system.
I appreciate the feedback! Thanks for watching!
I’m experienced with knowing bearing packing. What I see is that this would get you home on a long trip. But not 100% wheel bearing packing
Thanks for this video. Just bought an RV with these. I'm old school, gonna keep tearing them down. Worked for me so far.
Thank you for putting this subject out there. I’ve used the EZ Lube in the past with varied success and never really felt good about it. I have gone back to the old school method for piece of mind and at the end of the day, the time saved with the EZ Lube is not worth not seeing what is going on inside that hub and axle.
Great point! And I fully agree. Peace of mind is priceless so it’s worth for me to do it the old school way and it’s what I prefer to do for my customers, as well.
I just pulled my 2 7k axles apart to clean and inspect because ain`t no way to know without looking. Good thing too because 2 seals were wonky seated and one came out on removal -makes me wonder if pneumatic job was done. As you said, the old way is `the way`. I am all about old school tried and true. Grease was not dirty and the only grease in there is new. Drums were like new but rusty brake hardware made me once and done new brakes complete. A lot easier done at home than a thousand plus miles away.
I thought I knew how to use ez lube hubs, I stand corrected. I only pull around 2K miles each year so I assumed 3-4 pumps before each 500-800 mile trip was adequate. Sounds like I need to pull the hubs and check the bearings and seals.
Thanks for the education!
recently rebuilt my 12 foot utility trailer with 2 new 3500 lb EZ lube axles. only purchased because they were the best value for the price. Really glad to have seen this video and all my future maintenance will be a full tear down. Sometimes the long way really is the short way.
hand pack.disassemble clean inspection, repack and reseal. i take the zerks off, as well as replace the dust covers with "old school" covers
been taking them apart and greasing by hand ever since my dad showed me when I was 10
never had a bearing failure
I also like to check the voltage to the brakes First thing i do when I get a trailer is change out the wire connectors
my 7 and 10-year-old grandsons will be helping me next time if they want to ride the four wheelers
The oldest likes to help by the youngest I have to bargain with
On my light duty trailers (single axle/ used ) i always do a a full bearing and seal replacement. And always add a set of bearing buddies!! After the repack a add grease to the buddies and i am pretty much set for a few years. I jack up the trailers and give the wheels a spin....check for bearing noises and bearing play.
On a tandem heavy axle trailer (used) i usually renew all bearings and seals and check every year or two depending on use! In 45 years of trailer use i have never had a wheel/ bearing fail!! Have three trailers now.....looking for a fourth..... Take care of them they will take care of you!! 😅
Just had the axle replaced on our trailer after a bearing failure; New axle has EZ Lube, and I will be doing it as you showed. Seems it would save grease, time, and mess, if the cap is removed before pumping grease in there - you will see the clean grease sooner and will avoid the weight in the cap.
thanks for info new to EZ lube system wasn't sure how much to use or how it really worked
I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about repairing my vehicles and trailers, but never know how to properly grease an EZ Lube trailer axle. And I read the owner's manuals! Just did my Wells Cargo single axle box trailer, and I am certainly glad I did, flushing out a huge pile of black grease gunk. Here's a tip for easier cleanup. I use puppy training pads on the floor under the axle, allowing big globs of grease to fall down as it is squeezed out. Easy wrap up, clean up. Thanks!
Just got educated about the grease "system" on the wheel bearings on my trailer. I just put grease in the hubs to put new grease in. When I get home, I guess I'm either going to follow the method you showed, which should get my trailer through the work season and then have it gone through by someone who knows what to do. 👍👍
Knowledge is power. 😁
Thanks for watching!
I EZ Lube it the correct way then the next year completely tear down and inspect/replace parts as needed. Then rotate methods every other year. This is on a 14k trailer that never sees over 10k and at the most 5k miles a year. So far (5yrs) everything still looks great. My utility trailers while not seeing tons of miles get torn completely down yearly.
Interesting, noted. Looks like I will have to add more time to the normal repack that I do as the mechanic at the shop I work at
I always tear down the hubs(the old school way) even if the trailer is brand new. The robots at the assembly plant don’t add much grease in there, just enough to last the first year or 10k miles.
Then I use the easy lube with the same brand grease every year for several years. Finally when 5 years or so comes around. I tear everything apart and start all over.
Always use a label maker, label when the bearing were greased and what brand and type of grease was used. This make it easy to keep everything consistent and not mixing up different greases.
Nope, was told not to over lube it ! " It only needs a few pumps of good grease to be ok.", It's only a single 2500# axel with no brakes but never has it been greased like that. Great video. Thanks.
Awesome video! Like most of the comments say, my cargomate trailer did not come with any info on greasing. Pushing the rear seal out and filling my brake drum was my worry but I will proceed with caution, with my hand pump grease gun.
Interesting video and very good info here. Thanks. Having said that, I've been greasing my EZ Lube axles the "wrong way" for almost 30 years and I have never had a single failure of a bearing on any axle of any trailer I've had. I would never own an axle without EZ Lube because disassembling to repack was annoying. I do a few squirts of grease each summer and roll on. Zero issues. My largest trailer currently has a 10,000 GVWR.
Oh goody... One, NO I never knew HOW to do it or fully understood how it worked. I thank you once again and subscribed for teaching me. I was already going to take it to have a manual bearing pack job done this coming spring just because my dad taught me nothing easy is good. First year I let it go. Next spring, I did the EZ lube process. Did I do it right? I doubt it as soon as I saw red I stopped. I check my hubs every gas stop and noticed in 2023 they seemed hot with one in particular hotter. This last spring, I did do it right but used my new electric M12 grease gun as my old arthritic hands can't do a grease gun anymore. I'm wondering about my brakes... I still have them, but did have to up the percentage it seemed this last summer I pumped it till it was all red this year and Noticed the hubs ran much cooler this year. So, for three years, I have about 15K total on the tandem axle set up with one surely not done right EZ lube process and two much better but adequate? Don't know.
It will be interesting to see what the guy says when he takes them apart this spring. Oh, I've done greased em when I was young. I'm done with that at 69. All my stuff is falling apart.
I am guilty as charged. I was using a pneumatic grease gun and blowing my seals. I wasn’t getting all the old grease out. I had to replace my brake shoes. No one said every 12,000 miles. Thx for very informative video!
I am trying to EZ lube the inside bearing and repacking the outer bearing. Less grease and don't have to replace the seal. I will repack both next year and see how it did.
On my 28' enclosed car tailer, I found that the factory wires to the magnet were under the backing plate retainer nut/bolts! If I didn't repack myself, would never have known.
All of my enclosed race trailers have come equipped with some form of EZ Lube axles and personally, I am not a fan.
Being a mechanic and old racer I much prefer to fully tear mine down for service. This allows me to put hands and eyes on every component in the system and verify their integrity. I've serviced mine that way in 30+ years and over 250k miles of hauling trailers behind our coach.
Great video.
Mike
Thank you for your knowledge...I was a 4 or 5 squirter before this!
Glad I could help! Thank you for watching!
I’ve had great success with easy line. If brakes don’t seem right. I pull the bearings. Every two years I pull bearings anyway. I also remove dust cap first.
Used ez lube last fall.
Followed directions to a T
This spring no brakes.
Tore it down and grease on all 4 wheels.
Seals were not blown.
Still intact.
So much for easy lube.
Had to replace all 4 sets of brakes.
Just bought a new small cargo for motorcycles. Now i know what to do.
Thanks!
I always take the dust cap off when I grease them and throw it away. They're cheap and a one time use in my opinion. I like to take them off because it reduces backpressure to the system (wheel seal), allows me to see the grease coming out to insure it's flushing the system, and I like an empty dust cap due to what you pointed out of them flying off from being too heavy. I also do it so once the hub heats up, there is room for expansion and not pushing on the little rubber plug or the wheel seal. I know the rubber plug will move out but I don't know how hot they're going to get or if that rubber cap has enough movement to allow for the grease / air to expand when heated.
I grease my boat trailer axles after every trip and pump until it’s basically clean which isn’t a whole lot as I do it so often. My utility trailers I do it every 2k miles or so. They usually take a bit more grease to see clean. I recently pulled down the hubs on boat trailer to inspect and was totally happy with what I saw for 13 years and probably 40k miles. Everything looked like new. Maybe I’m just lucky.
I just started working at a trailer shop a few weeks ago. When we pull the cap and see black grease, we pull the whole thing, clean and repack. I didn't even know EZ Lube was a thing and, after seeing the condition of some hubs, I'm glad I didn't know about it. I probably take way too long as it takes me two hours to do 4 hubs. I clean everything in the parts washer by hand and then go through 2 to 3 cans of brake clean to get all the old grease out of the bearings. I even use the shop air to blow the rest of the gunk out before they're repacked and reinstalled.
Thank you for your video, it really opens our eyes to the real deal. We bought a new 2024 Jayco . I wondered after receiving ownership if the barrings should be repacked right away or they can wait. Common sense says to repack asap! Thanks again.
Great knowledge and experience! Earned a subscription!
Now off to see what kind of axle setup I have on my grey wolf toy hauler. Got a driver side rear tire wearing hard on the inside ugh.
I think your opinion is great and correct. It sure helped me to know what to do.
Thank you very much.
78 year old. DIY
Thanks. I have those axles. And yes, normally I just pumped new gease until a quantty of old grease came out. Cleaned the cap out. Time to order some plugs.
I have had two snowmobile trailers with EZ-Lube. I put in 10-20 pumps per year into each hub. "Old" grease still comes out clean so basically I am just topping it off and checking the condition of the grease. Only tow about 1500 miles in the winter and not at high speeds so grease isn't getting much of a work out. I would add that I like to grease them with the tire on so you can keep the hub rotating the entire time, easier with the inertia of the tire. I also like to do it when in the late afternoon in the summer when its good and hot outside. That way the grease flows easier and is less likely to blow out the back seal.
Thank heaven I found this video, one thing I'm not clear on as you mentioned that some people accidentally overfill them but on the other hand I see you pump cartridge after cartridge until the old stuff all comes out so is there a thin line on overfilling or were you talking about a different procedure
I used my EZ-Lube as recommended from the owners manual for years. I pumped until I had all the old grease out. Unfortunately, I never gave any consideration to the age of my wheel seals. I eventually leaked grease into all of my brakes and had to replace all 4 brake assemblies as they were completely saturated with grease. I no longer use the Z-Lube system. I disassemble and repack the old fashioned way and replace my seals every single time. That's probably overkill. I could probably use the EZ-lube every other year, but once you've had what I had happen you tend to not trust the system anymore.
Man, I hate that you experienced that. As a trailer shop mechanic, I see this scenario played out almost daily. We appreciate you watching.
Nothing gets RV'r debate going faster than a EZL discussion. To me, it doesn't have to be yes or no. I use it sometimes, don't use it other times. I also think a full inspection and all new grease every year is overkill. So I will use the EZL for those in between years, and fully tear down about every 5 years. I would not ask the EZL to push all the old grease out. If I don't trust the grease that is in there, and that means knowing what type of grease it is, then a tear down is in order. If I think my existing grease is okay, I'll only pump in enough to see it start to ooze out of the outer bearing. That tells me I have filled the space between the bearings and the bearing rollers. There is no good that will come from filling up that cap. Then every 5 years, tear down, inspect brakes bearings and all. One other thing, if you have EZL spindles, you are going to need to use it even after a teardown and full hand packing. You cannot properly fill that inner space by hand, so you still need to finish the job with a grease gun on the EZL. And don't forget to turn that drum while pumping. I enjoy your channel, keep up the good work.
Very warm grease and go very slowly, I’m with you on the service intervals.