Well, Finally the Aliner is back together.  It still needs to go for a few test runs. It was raining and the yard was all mud so I didn’t want to drag it out with the slight risk something would fail.  But she is currently standing on her own two wheels, and have fresh blood in her knees.  I’m going to call it blood because the new grease is BRIGHT red.  My old grease was a light green. But once it got into the hub and ran for a few miles, it was always gray. That in itself worries me. But the bearing lasted 7 years with minimal care so I am thinking they just finally wore out.  Video can be found here -> “Trailer Axle Bearing Failure”

In case your not totally aware, or if I haven’t really told the entire story, here is what happened.  Life got really stressful.   I was dealing with a new boss,  a sloppy kitchen remodel, my last chance to battle the mud, and a bear stock market. So I did not keep up on my usual camper maintenance. I usually shoot grease into the hubs every few months. I now realize its been over 6 months and we have gone some really far places.  We have “used up” all the nearby places and so have gone out further and farther to visit new places.  With these longer, farther trips, We might be driving just a little faster than we usually do.   In fact my Cell phone app says we have hit 90mph a few times for longer than 15minutes.  Between and speed and lacking care, trailer bearings get very unhappy. 

We were coming home from a great visit with family in Florida and had to get on I-95 for 60miles. It is my most hated road in the world.  Everyone wants to go 90mph, and the road is in terrible shape.  It has an unlimited number of patches and potholes and bumps and junk in the road. So we were going with the flow waiting to get off. When we saw on the gas app a Walmart with cheap gasoline.  So we pulled off and fulled the tank.  As I always do, I did a walk around the camper and noticed the Left wheel was crooked. On closer examination the center of the wheel hub was missing all the bearings and grease and was nearly melted away.  The tire was being held on by a very dedicated castle nut with love in its eyes.  Obviously not a game of thrones castle nut!  It might have saved a life.

So the trailer could not continue our journey, and I doubt if anyone close by could repair it for less than a small fortune.  So I decided the best plan was to return home with gear and dog and return the next day with a car transport trailer to bring it home. That would allow me to do a further assessment and not have to pay storage costs or tow charges.  Of course “HOME” was 4 hours away and approximately $50 in gas each way.  The Transport trailer was a cool $85, and we got the trailer loaded and tied down(Loosely).  We had to stop 3 times to tighten straps and rehook safety chains that had come loose, but we made it!

We Limped the trailer into its usually parking spot and set it up in the air on Jack stands.  I lowered all the stabilizers for stability, and started taking off the wheels. The “Dead” wheel hub was in bad shape. It had been “bored” out with excessive heat and wear. The bearing races were welded to the Axle spindle and had to be burned off and chiseled away.  The spindle itself had a deep cut in the bottom, and some real scarring from melting the bearing races and retainers.  I was lucky enough to be able to sand the spindle back into reasonable spec., and it appeared ok.  But it was obvious that the hub needed to be replaced, along with a new set of  bearings,  a castle nut and washer.  So to good old Amazon we went.   We ordered the hubs and bearings and seals with new castle nut and cotter-pins and even lug nuts.  We were on the 2 day delivery plan for complete recovery.

Unfortunately a few things got in the way.  On Saturday while shopping I walked past an old man coughing.  Why did I do that?!  Anyway, the next night I had a cough and sore throat.  By Tuesday I was in sickness hell.  Fever, Aches, Pains, Ear Ache, and could barely swallow.  Went to Urgent care and the overly confident P.A. told me it was just a virus and I should try gargling with Apple Cider Vinegar and drink Herbal tea with Honey.  $150 Please.    He’ll never see me again.   That night a call to “Dr. on Demand” and $50 and 30minutes later I had a Rx for doxycycline and was soon feeling better.  The sore throat and ear ache went away almost immediately the next day and the rest is still leaving very slowly.  But the overall effect was I was too sick to talk to the trailer for 5 days. But parts did arrive.  And then there was rain.

I also had to find the grease I always used.  It was a green Lucas Grease called “Extra Heavy Duty”. Designed for Farm and construction equipment.  It had worked for me for years.  Unfortunately it was out of stock everywhere.   So I had to consult with my finest expert on materials quality and fabrication, and George said he only uses Lucas Red, “Red and Tacky” for his trailer.  Having heard the knowledge directly from the wise sage on the mountain, we went out and bought “Red & Tacky”.  Besides being different colors, the green was a urea based grease, while the red is lithium based.  They can’t be mixed as they loose important properties.  But the lithium has a slightly higher “Dropping Point”. I think that means melting point. The lithium  definitely seems thicker and sticker. So we shall see how it holds up. 

But with all stars aligned, we started the assembly of the hubs and bearings and packing grease and installing seals.  It took 2 full days to figure it out and get it properly video’d.  But the biggest job was cleaning the wheels of all the old “Flung off” grease.  This was accomplished using lots of dawn dish detergent and destroying several scrub brushes, including my favorite toilet brush.  But the wheels look almost as good as new.  The final job was to fill the hubs with grease through the zert fitting on the end of the axle and enjoy watching bright red grease oozing from all parts of the outer bearing!  A brand new grease cap was installed and the wheels and tires bolted back on.  We are now ready for a test run!

We have gathered up our IR Thermometer for checking hub temps and extra rags for any potential grease seepage.   I think this will require a days trip to a nearby camping location, and see if the trailer is really back on her feet.  All in ALL, the complete “repair” cost around $100. New Hubs, bearings, Seals, Grease, Tools, and cleaner.  Not counting the rescue mission to bring the old girl home. That was another $230.  Also, the repair could not have been done there.  The damage was a bit more than obvious to the naked eye and needed a grinder and sander used delicately and continuously for several hours to get the spindle back without doing even more damage. 

So, thats the full story there.  I’m hoping the next story is more like a “Beauty and the Beast” or “Snow White”.  I can play the prince charming part! 

Stay Safe, Keep up on your maintenance, We see you on the road.

Rick & Akela