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Old 11-03-2019, 08:08 AM   #101
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A few years back an Individual from South Carolina bought a new Scamp and headed directly to Alaska. He had a bearing failure before reaching Alaska and had to replace his axle while on the road. (Could have been a Dexter or Alko at the time.) I have replaced quite a few worn out Dexter axles. Dexter is not overly generous with the amount of grease they place in new axles. I always repack the bearings on new axles.
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Old 11-03-2019, 08:55 AM   #102
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Quote:
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I know that must be a typo on living on I-80
In Minnesota. You probably had a great house with great neighbors and soil in your garden without rocks that would grow anything and every day you walked outside and said this is like living in Heaven as you heard the distant moan of the CAT Diesels in those Peterbilts on the Highway south of you. Is this Heaven, no it’s Iowa. And I- 80 is the ribbon that spans our great state from the Missouri Creek to the Brook we call the Mississippi.
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Corrected. I was apparently thinking of the Interstate near me that I avoid like The Plague.

Then, again, I-80 is just a clone of Minnesota's I-90.

Enjoy,

Perry
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Old 11-03-2019, 09:47 AM   #103
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You’re right about clones. Pretty flat, busted up, too much traffic, prone to snow closings, and at times during crackdowns, liberally sprinkled with not so liberal Highway Patrol.
We used to run I-90 through Minnesota but since they finished improvement on US 20 through Iowa we take that. We’ve developed our favorite stops on 20 including lunch in Early Iowa where one day a lady came over to our picnic table with a box of fresh tomatoes and insisted we take them as she had run out of people who would take them in town. I told a Minnesota/ Iowa joke the other day. Now for a reverse.
You can always tell an Iowa Bullhead fisherman in Minnesota. He’s wearing a new pair of bib overalls with a crisp $5 bill in the front pocket and he doesn’t change either one all week.
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Old 11-03-2019, 01:29 PM   #104
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Thank you all for sharing your experiences. Sounds like our situation, while not common, is not unheard of either. When I adjusted the breaks before setting off on our 6,000 mile journey, I noticed a bit of grease on one of the adjusters. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but lessen learned, perhaps I should have investigated further.

The ironic thing, I have a infrared temp gun that I normally shoot each hub with whenever I stop for gas. None of the hubs showed higher temps the entire trip. But when I filled up the day before the failure, the temps in Wyoming were 16F with a cold wind chill. I was cold and in a hurry so skipped the temperature scan. Another lessen learned. We all put our safety checks in place for a reason. Don’t skip them no matter what.

Thanks again for the collective wisdom of this forum. It is always appreciated!
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Old 11-04-2019, 05:50 AM   #105
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I believe Arnie and Paula picked up their new trailer the same time we did and we hooked up at the Osoyoos Rally this past May. Upon return to Pennsylvania and titling and registering the new Escape, vehicle inspection is required. Our new unit needed new grease seals as the original ones were leaking. Cost was $100 installed for all 4 and another $50 for the yearly sticker. I guess these yearly inspections can sometime prevent these type of incidents as they may spot issues before they become problems.
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Old 11-04-2019, 07:35 AM   #106
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I believe Arnie and Paula picked up their new trailer the same time we did and we hooked up at the Osoyoos Rally this past May. Upon return to Pennsylvania and titling and registering the new Escape, vehicle inspection is required. Our new unit needed new grease seals as the original ones were leaking. Cost was $100 installed for all 4 and another $50 for the yearly sticker. I guess these yearly inspections can sometime prevent these type of incidents as they may spot issues before they become problems.
Jim, That is interesting to hear. Perhaps there was a few axels during that time that suffered from "hangover Monday" seal issues from Dexter. I expect to hear from Dexter today so will provide an update.

FYI ... WA does not require inspections on trailers.

Thanks!
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Old 11-04-2019, 09:04 AM   #107
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Quote:
Originally Posted by elongest View Post
A few years back an Individual from South Carolina bought a new Scamp and headed directly to Alaska. He had a bearing failure before reaching Alaska and had to replace his axle while on the road. (Could have been a Dexter or Alko at the time.) I have replaced quite a few worn out Dexter axles. Dexter is not overly generous with the amount of grease they place in new axles. I always repack the bearings on new axles.
Eddie
If this was Gary Lee from the Scamp Owners forum he took a 2014 Scamp 13 to Alaska with his wife, two dogs and two guinea pigs. He had an old truck, not enough money, almost choked to death and it seems was just generally unprepared for what he would encounter. Needless to say he didn't have the best experience. The bearing problem he had was on his Dexter #9 axle.
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Old 11-08-2019, 07:36 AM   #108
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Another failed brake wire

Quote:
Originally Posted by Iowa Dave View Post
When I put new brakes on the 19 I did not buy the self adjusters. Like has been said, it’s very easy to adjust them manually. I did take the drums to a shop I use for the cars and asked them if I should get them turned. My guy said there was very little wear so we did not turn them. I think they were stamped for .010 turning which is not much. That was on the 19. So I bought the full assemblies and got new backing plates, magnets and shoes. Four bolts and two wires and you’re back in business. I think they were about $128 for all four. I did find one bad wire from the original trailer assembly where they missed a crimp and I wasn’t apparently getting the full voltage to the magnet but otherwise everything else was worn evenly. Used shrink covers on the new connectors. 11/16 box end wrench on the backing plate nuts. Torque was. “ughh that ought to do it”
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After noticing disappointing brake performance, I set about adjusting my brakes, only to find the LR was nearly impossible to adjust. I pulled the drum and found it appeared to not have been braking at all, due to the rusted drum and shoes.

I connected the truck and had a vice grip hold the brake controller in the full-on position, but got no electric-magnet function at the LR brake, although the other three all locked.

When chasing down the wiring from the brake, I found the connection point for the brake pig-tail a few inches in from the brake, inside the loom covering, and both wires were broken away at the crimp.

Fresh copper, heat shrink crimp connectors and heat shrink covering over it all has it back operating.

Figured others need to check that all four brakes are functioning, which can be done in gravel or dirt at 5mph.
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Old 11-08-2019, 08:26 AM   #109
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Hi Bill
Yup
Apparently the trailer manufacturer had at one time a trained gorilla with poor eyesight who just crimped the connectors whether there’s was a brake wire or line feed wire in there or not.
When I got mine going on the 19 I had no further problem. Bad crimp, salty corrosion or incomplete wire contact isn’t good. Glad you got it fixed
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Old 11-08-2019, 08:34 AM   #110
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I found the same issue on my 21 n had to redo it. Checked the camper throughout n had fix 3 more crimp locations called Dave at escape n sent pictures so the could address this reoccurring issue hopefully this has been corrected.
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Old 11-08-2019, 09:09 AM   #111
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Would you use Permatex to seal the New seals When you replace bearing seal every time? I found it hard to remove the seal when permatex was used.

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Old 11-08-2019, 09:20 AM   #112
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Wouldn’t take much to bend over each axle, and peel away the wire protector before the the body was installed on the frame. And for a tiny bit more effort, hook up a hot wire and a controller and see if equal adjustment is present and all four brakes were functioning. And for less than $2.00 the crimps and covers could be upgraded to heat shrink quality connectors.
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Old 11-08-2019, 10:34 PM   #113
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Owners should understand no manufacturer is perfect. Neither Dexter nor Escape are exceptions. In the end the product is either manufactured by humans or machines.

The rear axle on our 2018 5.0 was replaced by Dexter at about 9,000 miles and the front axle at 14,000 miles. Seems both were built by a human on "Hangover Monday." We ruined three of the four tires in the process and Dexter paid for two of the tires. We were in Arizona when it became apparent we had a problem and wanted to get home to our axle guy for the repair, so were willing to ruin a third. We saw abnormal wear on our second axle when we got home. Took to trailer to a alignment shop in St Paul and found the second axle was also incorrectly manufactured.

So far the 1st replaced axle (rear) has nearly 10,000 miles since replacement and the tires are perfect. Only have 4,000 miles on the front axle but everything looks good.

Our bearings have been inspected/greased at 4,000, 6,000 again (when we saw the problem in Arizona), 14,000 on the rear axle (when the front axle was replaced), and now at 18,600 miles, the axle will go in to our axle guy and both will be repacked.

After that the bearings will be inspected/repacked every year no matter the mileage, just like in the past for our previous campers. We used to live on I-94 in Minnesota and have seen numerous campers on the side of the road, and pulled into our town, with bearing problems. Many thought the only service needed on EZ-Lube axles is to purge the grease.

Enjoy,

Perry
Perry, which shop did you take it to? I have been looking for a good shop to service my brakes and wheel bearings. Thanks.
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Old 11-09-2019, 07:46 AM   #114
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Perry, which shop did you take it to? I have been looking for a good shop to service my brakes and wheel bearings. Thanks.
Kullot Trailer in Rochester. It's a 1-2 man shop and only works on trailer axles/brakes and knows Dexter axles better than Dexter. He does not sell trailers, but services/repairs trailers. Ours goes in on Nov 19 for repacking/inspection. He's very popular and usually booked three weeks ahead.

Once the Dexter warranty is over I'll have him remove those automatic adjusters, that I've had screw up before, and go back to manual. Our Lance was only braking on two wheels because only one or two adjusters were working (faulty memory) and the others weren't. Darren says he's seen that too many times!

Enjoy,

Perry
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Old 11-09-2019, 10:39 AM   #115
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Thanks. I had thought you bought it to St. Paul. But maybe worth a trip to Rochester.
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Old 11-09-2019, 05:57 PM   #116
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Thanks. I had thought you bought it to St. Paul. But maybe worth a trip to Rochester.
Kraemer Auto Services in Inver Grove Heights properly checked the alignment of the second axle and found it was off. They've dealt with Dexter in the past and the verification that it was not damaged, but built incorrectly, made it easy for Dexter to warranty the second axle. There are only a couple of places in the Twin Cities area that have the facilities to check alignment on a camper.

Enjoy,

Perry
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Old 08-07-2020, 09:34 PM   #117
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🤔 I totally agree! Unless you are deep water fording they are a waste of time. In 10 years as an auto mechanic ( in a former life) I never once pulled a wheel to just repack a bearing. It got done usually between 30 & 50k miles when the brakes got done. Escape trailers have tires as big as many smaller cars carrying no more weigh so it’s not like they spin any faster or are working any harder, just don’t see the bearing paranoia. Especially since many vehicles today come with sealed bearings you never repack. Recently replaced a hub on a Subaru that failed, at close to 100k.
Amen for sure! Just forget the EZ lube feature. It is the worst thing ever for campers. It just encourages improper maintenance.
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Old 08-07-2020, 09:46 PM   #118
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�� I totally agree! Unless you are deep water fording they are a waste of time. In 10 years as an auto mechanic ( in a former life) I never once pulled a wheel to just repack a bearing. It got done usually between 30 & 50k miles when the brakes got done. Escape trailers have tires as big as many smaller cars carrying no more weigh so it’s not like they spin any faster or are working any harder, just don’t see the bearing paranoia. Especially since many vehicles today come with sealed bearings you never repack. Recently replaced a hub on a Subaru that failed, at close to 100k.
Totally disagree. No comparison between modern automotive brakes and trailer brakes that haven't changed for many decades. From leaking rear seals- like we had at first inspect @ 1 year to a recent post re: stripped thread for castle nut....you disregard Dexter's maintenance schedule at your risk.

Also- if you burn a bearing and waste the spindle you have to replace the whole axle.
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Old 08-07-2020, 10:27 PM   #119
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I think the paranoia gets its foundation in several ways.
1. Seeing boats setting on an axle setting along the highway.
2.Hearing or reading horror stories
3. Lack of familiarity with axles, electric brakes, bearings, seals etc. and the voodoo experts who perpetuate the “mystery”
4. Fear of a catastrophic accident or damage well beyond the ruined axle.

Personally, I bought my first boat trailer when I was 15, before I could legally drive alone. My dad had serviced many axles on boat trailers rusted by perched water being put away wet during duck season. So I got in the habit of servicing my trailer(s) over the years in the late fall when we cleaned up the boat, fogged the engine, repaired the lights and inspected and packed the wheel bearings. 57 years without a bearing failure, never any brake failure on vehicles or trailers, no tickets for faulty equipment ( lights). Guess I’ll keep on keeping on as long as my knees hold out and my GoJo jar ain’t empty. YMMV
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Old 08-08-2020, 04:55 AM   #120
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I always figured the "paranoia" came from the days when trailers, mostly popups, had those little 12" wheels. As I recall they burned up bearing quite a bit.
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