Harbor Freight Trailer..best wheel bearing grease?

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dx92beater

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I purchased the below Trailer from harbor freight.

http://www.harborfreight.com/1195-lb-cap...eels-90154.html

I have never built or driven with a trailer before, nor have I ever packed a wheel bearing in my life.

I figured that since I love this place and ask questions about my cars here, I'd try to make the most of my trailer build here.

Apparently repacking the bearings on here is a MUST or failure is imminent within just a few miles.

Even the instructions advise that you must repack the bearings.

What lubricant would you use to repack these bearings?

Thanks!
 
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you also have to clean them out not just repack.

sometimes they are full of debris and the grease they come with isnt any grease I've ever seen.
 
I use M1 grease from Auto Zone in my trailer bearings. The hubs always stay cool even in long distance heavy load trips.
 
Aluminum complex grease is superior to lithium complex in terms of water washout, high temperature resistance and shear stability. All important features when considering a grease for wheel bearings.

Whatever you use make sure you do the install properly, too often the bearings fail due to improper assembly.
 
Definitely repack the bearings ... a lot of people dont and then destroy the axle. It is a properietary axle, too.

Once you get it together, make sure the grounds are good. I know a few people have run small ground wires between the parts that fold, too.
 
I've used M1 grease before on the TT and it did fine, i did notice when it sat for a bit, a red liquid would drain out. I have been using Valvoline durablend since, and i like that, no dripping and its on the list of approved grease by Dexter.
 
I bought one of those Harbor Freight 4'X8' trailers in 2002 used for when I moved from Clearwater, FL to Columbus, OH. The first thing I did when I assembled the trailer was to remove the Chinese grease and replace it with quality grease. I used the grease you see in the pic. I did over 1000 miles in August heat around 70 MPH hauling a motorcycle and my tool chest for work. One of the mechs that once worked for wally worlds fleet operation said they use Mobil1 on their trailers that have greased wheel hubs.

2yo1uly.jpg
 
I've used $4/tube Valvoline Ford/Lincoln/Mercury wheel bearing grease in mine. It works like it should. Mine never got formally packed since the bearing races wouldn't come out. So they got pumped full of grease until it oozed out the front, the wheel slowly rotated a few turns, and repeated until all the gnarly-looking stuff was out. It was a bit wasteful and messy. It worked, though.
 
I have a lot to go on here and I really thank you all for it. I even have enough data as to which bearing grease I might want to buy!

A few new questions...posting as I can remember

1) How often (if at all) do I need to repack the bearings if I will only be using this trailer to make 3 mile round trips to my local garbage dump? I would only use it every once in a while make 15 mile round trips to Lowes. Like once every month or two?
I don't see this trailer having a hard life....but I will be stored outside, unfolded and exposed to the elements.

2) What role (if any) do the zerk fittings play in current or future greasings? I know that one poster used them as a workaround for starters. I also hear that these zerk fittings like to break.

3) Am I using the longer cylinders that go in a grease gun or a tub of grease? Does it matter?

Thanks
 
I prefer the marine style polysolfonate grease as it works for both boat trailer and in other uses as well (so just one grease). As far as how often to re-pack? Under your scenario, maybe once in 10 years would be plenty but I am sure you'll hear it should be done annually from the "I want to change my fluid crowd"...
 
I use valvoline durablend in everything I own that uses grease including wheel bearings. Have had zero problems w the grease. If you use the trailer a lot, then u may want to repack the bearings more often like once a year.
 
This is not representative of your use case as I pull a caravan that runs almost on the axle load limit (750kg/wheel) and do long trips.

I use Timken grease. I figure they make the bearings so they'd have the best idea of what to lubricate them with. Having said that, it probably doesn't really matter.

After several zerk failures I replaced the bearing caps with zerk fittings with plain caps. I never used them anyway, preferring to pull the drums and wash/re-pack the bearings every couple of years.

For your use case I'm with philipp10, 10 years would probably be fine. If it's been a couple of years and you intend a long, fast or hard trip then I'd re-pack before you go.
 
Bearing buddies. Zerk fitting on the front of a spring loaded plate. You pump it full of grease until the spring is compressed, then over time the spring pressure keeps pushing more grease into the bearings. Very popular on boat trailers.

For packing the bearings, just put a dollup of grease in the palm of your hand and keep shoving the edge of the bearing cage into it, like you are scooping the grease off the palm of your hand.
 
Originally Posted By: dx92beater
I have a lot to go on here and I really thank you all for it. I even have enough data as to which bearing grease I might want to buy!

A few new questions...posting as I can remember

1) How often (if at all) do I need to repack the bearings if I will only be using this trailer to make 3 mile round trips to my local garbage dump? I would only use it every once in a while make 15 mile round trips to Lowes. Like once every month or two?
I don't see this trailer having a hard life....but I will be stored outside, unfolded and exposed to the elements.

2) What role (if any) do the zerk fittings play in current or future greasings? I know that one poster used them as a workaround for starters. I also hear that these zerk fittings like to break.

3) Am I using the longer cylinders that go in a grease gun or a tub of grease? Does it matter?

Thanks

You could always swap out the zerk fitting for a flush/button style fitting. They don't break off, but it's important to clean the crud out of them before injecting grease
 
When I had my boat, (single axle trailer), I used Valvoline Wheel Bearing Grease when we moved from Chicago to Lake Havasu City, Arizona back in 1991. (1,864 miles door to door). I don't think the brand of grease matters anywhere as much as how you apply it.

My trailer had the clear plastic "Buddy Bearing Cups", or some similar name. I can't remember off hand. I could see the grease inside was milky tan in color, which means WATER. So I deliberately kept filling them until they popped off. (They are a snap on fit). I then cleaned everything out, and washed them out with Kerosene. After that I blew everything out with compressed air and refilled them until they again popped off on their own.

I then cleaned out as much as I could with my fingers, and finally filled them to max capacity. I never had an issue the whole trip. I stopped around every 100 miles to check them, and never saw anything worrisome. In your case I doubt water will be an issue, but you never know. Start out with good, fresh grease, and plenty of it, and you won't have a problem. Most bearing problems on trailers are from neglect, or lack of grease. Not from a bad brand.
 
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