Horrible tire wear on one tire @4k miles

[MarkinVan]

We had one tire show excessive wear except it was on the outside of the tire.
Turned out to be the wheel bearing.
As part of maintenance, lift the wheel off the ground and checking for side to side play is a sure way to see if bearings need attention.
The wheel with the excessive wear certainly had side to side play.

[SRS]

Originally Posted by Dave Miller

This thread made me panic. I just checked my 2023 E19 tires with around 3500 miles and they look good. I’ll add a tread check to my air pressure and lug nut torque check procedure. How often do folks check/repack bearings? For may other trailers it’s when I replace tires. (Utility, waverunner, pontoon)

Properly greased bearings should be good for 20,000 miles. But grease can dry out so regardless of milage, servicing the bearings every 3 years might be a good rule of thumb. Since your trailer is new, you might want to pull the drums to check the grease and readjust the bearing preload.

As soon as I got my trailer home, I pulled the drums and inspected the wheel bearings to see if they were properly greased. Escape receives axles with brakes pre-installed, they don't check them for proper grease or adjustment. I had seen comments about bearings with insufficient grease but mine were good. In the spring I used the easy-lube fitting to add some grease to each wheel. Later on in the summer, I pulled one wheel to make sure no grease had gone past the inner seal which could ruin the brake shoes. If I'd been more ambitious I would have done both wheels.

The easy-lube feature is nice but if you aren't careful, grease can seep past the inner seal and contaminate inside the drum.

My opinion only, but I hope that helps.

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by Dave Miller

How often do folks check/repack bearings?

Some folks, a way too often.

Ron

[SageRpod]

Originally Posted by Dave Miller

How often do folks check/repack bearings? For may other trailers it’s when I replace tires. (Utility, waverunner, pontoon)

Most manufacturers recommend bearings being repacked once year or 10K-12K miles. I'll probably do my first repack late winter/early spring which will be right around 13-14 months and 12K miles. I've gone as long 2 years before on previous trailers and the bearings still looked good. Haven't had a trailer turn into a pumpkin yet

[Dave Miller]

Originally Posted by SageRpod

Most manufacturers recommend bearings being repacked once year or 10K-12K miles. I'll probably do my first repack late winter/early spring which will be right around 13-14 months and 12K miles. I've gone as long 2 years before on previous trailers and the bearings still looked good. Haven't had a trailer turn into a pumpkin yet

For cars, my front bearings on my 02 Suburban were replaced at 100k miles. Can’t remember doing any others and I used to keep cars until VOA towed them away.

[SageRpod]

Originally Posted by Dave Miller

For cars, my front bearings on my 02 Suburban were replaced at 100k miles. Can’t remember doing any others and I used to keep cars until VOA towed them away.

I believe auto bearings are sealed where as trailer bearings are not.

[John in Santa Cruz]

I have my mobile RV mechanic check the wheel bearings and repack about once a year, along with checking the brakes.

[Dave Miller]

Assuming I have a 3500 pound Dexter axle, I found the service manual. It’s scary as to the maintenance schedule!

Break inspections at 6 months/6k miles. Complete inspection annually or when coming out of storage.

Also, it’s recommended to store on Jack stands with tires off the ground. And rotate the tires every 2 to 3 weeks.

https://www.dexteraxle.com/user_area...viceOnline.pdf

[Jim Bennett]

About 30,000 km on my trailer since the last bearing greasing and I will likely do it in the spring. I have run various trailers for work and pleasure over the years and this type of cycle is typical. Never had an issue.