How often should you adjust your trailer bearings?
Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: General Forums
Forum Name: The Boat Shed
Forum Description: Discuss all things boating.
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=136292
Printed Date: 02 Jun 2026 at 6:59am
Topic: How often should you adjust your trailer bearings?
Posted By: neil_cb125t
Subject: How often should you adjust your trailer bearings?
Date Posted: 09 Dec 2021 at 7:47pm
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So doing some general checks - I have a 1.5 year old trailer and today is its 4th time I have had to tighten the Hubs up. The trailer has bearing buddies which I was told not to over fill - i.e 6 pumps every 6 months or so. I adjusted em after getting the boat home from Hamilton to feilding. Then a few months later I checked and again there was play in the hub. I took it to a workshop to get them to inspect the bearings and they believed they had quiet seated - they retightened em and said they fine. that was 6-7 months ago. I do a bit of hauling, took it to coromandel after the workshop checked it over ( that why i put it in) and drive it 1hour each way for fishing, 2-3 times a month . How often is too often? how often should they need adjusting. cheers
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Replies:
Posted By: kimber7wsm
Date Posted: 10 Dec 2021 at 7:04am
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They shouldn't need adjusting that often. Although you should be checking them that often.
Chinese bearings are punishing. Make sure they are quality Japanese ones. I would check they are Japanese ones. |
Posted By: tjm
Date Posted: 10 Dec 2021 at 8:49am
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Mine is a tandem set up carrying 2.2 tonne. I have had it three years now and haven't had to touch them. If the trailer is going to sit in one position for long periods with out use and you have a solid base to store it on I would recommend jacking the axles up and taking the weight off the wheels so that the rollers in the bearings don't have a chance to get corrosion fretting. I haven't done this mainly because the unit sits on the grass. A friend who had a smaller unit had to change his bearings every WOF so I got him to jack it up in winter when he didn't use it and since then has had no issues. Back in the old days we were forever changing wheel bearings in cars and trailers but I think improvements in materials for seals, bearing quality and probably lubricants are much better. Now you can drive a vehicle for 400000 km and have no issues with ball joints, bearings or any of the things that used to give issues. I still lift each wheel every 6 months and listen for any noise and check for play ( similar to having a wof check) ------------- Cant beat hunting and Fishing in N.Z |
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 10 Dec 2021 at 8:57am
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As above you shouldn’t need to check them all the time maybe every six months with the miles your doing. Bearing buddies are good, main thing is try to keep the hubs away from the water when your launching and retrieving. Bearings are easy to check, buy yourself a small trolley jack and as with everything nowadays there’s plenty of good information and vids on YouTube. |
Posted By: Big -Dave
Date Posted: 10 Dec 2021 at 3:55pm
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My opinion, change them now before Xmas, if they have needed tightening that often, they are of poor quality and will soon fail. One of my jobs this weekend in between finishing my boat off, Jack up, check bearings and change brake pads. Pads done every year regardless. ------------- you can't fix an idiot with duct tape, but it does muffle them for a while... |
Posted By: MATTOO
Date Posted: 10 Dec 2021 at 4:49pm
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I support most of the thoughts and recommendations above. Use Japanese bearings. Check every six months. Removing weight in park ok.However, jacking the axles compresses the springs and creates other issue further down the track. So jack up the frame. Back to your problem. I have to guess here.if the trailer is old and even if it isn't sometimes you are battling excessive wear due tho undue side loading, and the main point here is the axle stub or hub housing is not at the right tolerance. Either to small or two large. Proper inspection and measurement here will either shed light or elimate those possibilities ------------- Still cruising in my now sweetas pimped out Southern 755 HT0! |
Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 10 Dec 2021 at 6:22pm
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They shouldn't need adjusting that often. Although you should be checking them that often.
Chinese bearings are punishing. Make sure they are quality Japanese ones. I would check they are Japanese ones.
Yep.. Jap, or Korean or Aussie or USA but not Chinese or packet marked usa but bearing made in mexico. And because have to re tighten will be chinese. You do not mention if when you spin them up there is a rumble... ANY rumble, before or after or any time is a bearing failed My opinion, change them now before Xmas, if they have needed tightening that often, they are of poor quality and will soon fail. Again not just good advice, but what you should do. And to add to that use a BRAND name marine bearing grease like Evinrude RED bearing Triple Guard I have tandem trailer , and has to maneuver into some tight cnrs.. used to be a 3 to 5 point turns.. bearing have been in for near 10yrs now, regular use.. Think Korean or USA bearings.. any way same bearings as my old 69Camaro.. |
Posted By: neil_cb125t
Date Posted: 24 Dec 2021 at 8:51am
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So I decided to pull em ( the bearings) out and have a wee look at what I'm dealing with. . . .not that I have experience with them.... Sadly problems were many.
So I went hub shopping but alas the hubs weren't std sizes - bearings weren't straight forward to get either....... So after much swearing I decided to hit up the company that sold me the boat and trailer package. At 18 months old I didn't think new hubs would be required. The Seller was fantastic, I was contacted immediately and solutions were worked through. Initial intensions were full axle replacement, due to some constraints outside of his control replacement quality hubs with 2 sets of bearings ( new set and spare new set) are being provided and delivered prior to xmas (by hand) Explanation on why these types of hubs and bearings were used were given (trailer building company now no longer exists) and the company / owner now is a distributor of a superior trailer company that uses std sized bearings etc. Very happy with the service from Ric at Seaforce NZ in hamilton. Thanks to all for the input |
Posted By: kimber7wsm
Date Posted: 26 Dec 2021 at 6:13am
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Everyone makes mistakes, it's how that mistake is dealt with that shows you're dealing with a good company or not, and whether or not they might get used again. Solid outcome. At least you can rest easy now.
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Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 26 Dec 2021 at 7:39am
Everyone makes mistakes, it's how that mistake is dealt with that shows
you're dealing with a good company or not, and whether or not they might
get used again. |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 29 Dec 2021 at 4:36pm
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Last Sunday blew a bearing couple of k from home,go to repco,holden or ford,dunno,so brought both,nope neither fit,take hub in.Arr 52mm ,fitted not right but enough to get home. Go to saeco with hub in hand,yep this is the kit. Get home Arr F@#k. one right one wrong,then discovered that the ones brought from repce one was right ,so all good now. Mentioned Saeco that I dont want chineese crap that repco sells.Mate we supply repco and no not use chinese but Japan made.In fact we are part of repco. Thinking by going to the bearing shop with hub in hand they would get it right?? Where is the knowledge in these places from??
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Posted By: tjm
Date Posted: 29 Dec 2021 at 8:07pm
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Interesting, most bearings and parts are made under licence in China,, most OEMs moved to China, India and some of the so called under developed countries with their QA systems in place and modern factories the products are 2nd to none
------------- Cant beat hunting and Fishing in N.Z |
Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 30 Dec 2021 at 7:57am
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Barings have been covered many times here in the forms. How to check, how often, how to replace.. Also what bearings to use, where and how to source etc.. what not to get.. Bearing buddies how to install and maintain, how they work.. And other stuff like broken studs on the side of the road. A lot has been made of not being one of those being on the side of the road. Also there have been snide, underlying BS comments about those who do post the how tos etc. Maybe more time and notice should be made of such advice than continuous pin pricking of those ppl  Does jacking up each wheel at least 0nce a yr, preferably 2X per yr... grab the top and bottom of the tyre and shake hard to feel for any play... then spin the wheel, see if spins free and no rumble noise .... All Too hard? |
Posted By: rusty360
Date Posted: 08 Jan 2022 at 9:46pm
The above is very true, I head up a Engineering team and we work our way though about 75 to 100k of bearings per year. I've asked a our reps the questions around were bearings are made a few times. Looking at the SKF boxes for example some are Mexico, France, China, Italy for example. I wouldn't get to hung up on were they are made but use a known brand ie SKF, Timken, NSK etc. I've seen some absolutely spot on precision machining come out of China and some absolute crap also. |
tjm wrote:Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 09 Jan 2022 at 3:18am
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: kimber7wsm
Date Posted: 09 Jan 2022 at 6:26am
| There's nothing stopping you doing your own bearing check. I do mine every 3 months |
Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 09 Jan 2022 at 8:00am
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There's nothing stopping you doing your own bearing check. I do mine every 3 months
Yep I even write in felt on the mud guard the date of the last check.. Espec when trailers that have a load on remain stationary for periods of time.. Back in the day it was common for caravans, boats to be jacked up at the back (or a block for a boat) and lot of the weight taken up with the jockey .. and a potato sack hung over the tyre to protect from sun. And lets not forget the old trick to try and fool the WoF guy.. a bearing check just before the wof.. bit of play rumble, so quick grease , re torque , and often will pass... by time get home and if check would be a fail. So have your wof, on dud bearings and happily think because has wof its fixed... Spent many yrs/ decades in a near everyday in a auto workshop in Sth Auckland , also reading Radiator at morning teas. And if you know what Radiator is you will understand what I am saying. WoF where booked in after morning teas.. Shop was 2.8 and 2.9 for some 30yrs.. and only some will know what that means.. But what the hell would I know...? |
Posted By: Big -Dave
Date Posted: 11 Jan 2022 at 8:01pm
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It only takes one trip, a bit of water in and you have a bearing on its way to failure. Especially bad if you tow long distance. My round trip is nearly 400km. I do those very regularly. I try and check them far more than the WOF, especially when it has a 3 year WOF. .. ------------- you can't fix an idiot with duct tape, but it does muffle them for a while... |
Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 12 Jan 2022 at 8:55am
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It only takes one trip, a bit of water in and you have a bearing on its way to failure. Especially bad if you tow long distance. Yep espec long distance, even a 30min open road is enough. What happens is usually ambient temps are down in the morning. Bearings hubs etc cold. Head to the ramp, hubs bearing warm up..normal. You back down into the cold water, sudden cooling of hubs bearings, vaccuum pulls when hubs submerged.. and sucks in a little bit water. Even more so with generally lower fresh river water temps. Espec if have std , and not double marine grade seals in the back. And that is where correctly pressured bearing buddies come in. When the vacuum is pulled the spring pressure still on the 'buddies take up the vacuum. So 5 things generally cause marine trailer/ water failure 1/ incorrect rear seals 2/ Dont use brand marine bearing grease.. eg Evinrude RED triple guard... and dont trust your local service shop to actually use it either. 3/ ppl who dump the trailer way deeper than best practice and what trailer is designed for... (thinking deep makes easier launch/ retirive 4/ dont check their bearing buddies pressures 5/ Over tighten the bearing because WoF comes up and a little play. 6/ Sit with full weight on the hubs without moving for long periods of times. Get it right , do the regular checks as Dave suggests and bearing last out a good decade and more..and without any need to adjust castle nuts. I take the attitude.. bearings dont fail.. the person does.. because haven't done due maintenance/care. We keep blaming inanimate objects and others rather than take responsibility these days. |
Posted By: MADhatter
Date Posted: 24 Feb 2022 at 12:20pm
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I am looking to try out these UNIHUB I saw the other day on a new GFab trailer. They run a single "preloaded" bearing instead of two cup n cone style. Has anyone used these yet? and does the threaded O-ring dust cap do the job? https://trailparts.co.nz/resource/unihub/" rel="nofollow - https://trailparts.co.nz/resource/unihub/
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Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 25 Feb 2022 at 8:28am
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I am looking to try out these UNIHUB I saw the other day on a new GFab trailer. No price? Looks like a full axle /hub bearing replacement. Compare cost to say 10yrs + of well fitted and maintained std tapers plus marine seals with set buddies... Most already have buddies so just bearings and seals Rough guesstimate here ...$35 bearing and seals,X 2 per axle say $80 tops. As against cost to replace everything .. from end of axle (cut and replace from there) hub pins , and if have brakes do they fit? $80 as against many hundreds likely run up to over a grand....???? Deep pockets... and does the threaded O-ring dust cap do the job? Just thinking thru here... When hubs/ bearings warm up on the way to the ramp.. then get dumped into cold water, there is a substantial vacuum created withing the hub... even marine rear seals struggle with this amount pressure Hence Bearing buddies, being spring loaded take up this volume. And it appears this system relies on holding the pressure back from the vacuum inside. Seals wear and open to elements to a certain degree.., O rings tend to , depending on quailty , break down....and if leak, that would be one expensive set bearing to replace.. Maybe a good idea for std non marine trailers. I would stick to my $80 bearings every 10 yrs + or so... even on the house trailer... |
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 25 Feb 2022 at 10:13am
| They look ok to me, sealed bearings with marine seals and a screw on cap, worth a further look at least before discounting them altogether. |
Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 25 Feb 2022 at 3:09pm
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Didnt discount them other than is it worth the cost changing them instead of new bearings .. which is what the tread is about.. These as far as I know are un proven in the marine environment, with vacuum maybe an issue... which is on std seals and not uncommon on marine grade seals. |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 25 Feb 2022 at 5:08pm
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Looking at the assembly ,my thinking it will allow water in at the axle end where they have washer then supoosedly marine seal and looking the seal itself ,relying on a tight fit rather than the seal having a spring to actually bind it in on axle,does marine seal expand when fitting over axle ie slightly smaller??
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 25 Feb 2022 at 6:09pm
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Posted By: wayno
Date Posted: 25 Feb 2022 at 6:54pm
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My boat trailer is 12 years old now, and to my knowledge bearings have never been molested I bought it (and the boat!) 9 years ago from a forum member. Has never hiccupped at WOF time, mostly only goes from home to local boat ramp about 2km away, and makes the annual Queens Birthday weekend journey to Te Toro for the Counties SF Club Grunter Hunter, (I do jack up the axels and check before setting out on this trip though). Definitely not a mechanically minded bloke, but happy to leave well enough alone 👍 ------------- http://www.legasea.co.nz" rel="nofollow">  To be old and wise you must first be young and stupid. |
Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 26 Feb 2022 at 10:15am
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The old bradfords and few other vintage cars used to have these sorts of flat bearings.... Where a bitch to adjust up right.. in some cases done with shims..Get it wrong within a couple miles and bearings rumbled. Get right and would last longer than the vehicle. Definitely why manufactures went to taped bearings espec when comes to maintenance adjustment. Its not clear, or I have missed something how these get adjusted, bedded in correctly Yeah PJC thats what worried me. |
Posted By: rusty360
Date Posted: 26 Feb 2022 at 12:39pm
| You don't adjust, they are set from factory. The bearing cartridge or double row angular contact bearing is now the standard on most if not all cars from Suzuki swift to the Toyota hilux. Cups and cones are old tech really. |
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 26 Feb 2022 at 3:29pm
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Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 26 Feb 2022 at 6:58pm
Bearings are a sealed unit even more protection, bearings and press fit into hub with circlip for extra safety, then slide into axle with a stake nut torqued up to 280nm. Just like a late model car hub, no adjustment needed. Looks like a good unit to me for a new trailer. 
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Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 27 Feb 2022 at 7:09am
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Yes a new build maybe ok but wouldn't try to retro fit to a older trailer. Had enough trouble getting 52mm bearings.whrn I trouble.the ones I wanted are imperial and depending on brand 0.?? Difference to create a bit of slop. Interesting though Grogan buddies are very snug fit.Due to ramps I use actual hubstays dry as boat slides of now Finally got buddies set upright. ------------- "Times up" |