Packing Bearings - Dutchmen Owners
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Old 05-22-2013, 03:50 AM   #1
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Packing Bearings

I'm wondering what everyone uses as a measure as to when to repack your bearings. Years ago my dad and I automatically did them every two years no matter how many miles were driven. Today while at the Kodiak dealership I asked and they said every 10,000 kms or 6200 miles. It's $250 to have the dealer repack them although for a few more years I'll be happy to do them myself as it gives me a chance to check other things like tire and spindle wear.
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Old 05-22-2013, 04:48 PM   #2
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I do mine myself also .... once a year. For us, that represents about 8,000-10,000 km's of driving. I learned one thing the hard way - don't use a compressor-driven grease gun to apply grease through the grease fittings on the spindles. I did this a few years ago and (unknowingly at the time) pushed the grease past the seals and ruined all my brake linings. That's when I decided to start repacking by hand and installing new grease seals in the process. Good luck!
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Old 05-22-2013, 11:07 PM   #3
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I purchased one of these -
to do my bearings (using the air grease gun). After filling the bearings I take the extra grease that is pushed through and put it inside the seal and hub.
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Old 05-24-2013, 01:19 PM   #4
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Thanks for the info. That's an interesting tool. While watching the video I also watched a demo of the process to remove and replace the races. I haven't done this to date because I didn't want to risk damaging them and also haven't yet seen signs of wear that would warrant replacement. What is your experience with how long or how far one would expect a set of bearings/races to last?
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Old 05-24-2013, 02:39 PM   #5
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My DW and I have only had one camper that lasted us for any extended period of time and that was a 1984 Travelaire 5'er. We had that camper for 25 years and only had to have a complete rebuild of the bearings and hubs at about the 23rd year. Of course it happened two provinces away from home and the credit card sizzled for months after that. I always check the races for scoring, but have never had to replace the outer one. I suppose if a person was careful you could tap it into place using a hammer and a piece of hardwood or plastic. If I had to replace one I would likely take the hub somewhere to have it done.
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Old 05-24-2013, 06:37 PM   #6
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Thanks again. Based on your experience, I won't anticipate having to replace them in the immediate future! I intend to clean and repack my bearings in the next couple of weeks (as soon as I find the replacement seals) so all this info is very relevant. Happy camping!
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Old 08-19-2013, 05:45 AM   #7
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One of my bearings went today. I don't even have two full seasons on my camper yet.
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Old 08-19-2013, 12:39 PM   #8
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Yes. I saw your other post. Thankfully you were able to get safely off the road. I don't know what to say about a bearing failing that quickly. Had you ever serviced these bearings before? Is it possible the one in question was either too tight or too loose? Could the cotter pin have fallen out? Whatever the case, it's always a good idea to do a manual check of these things at least a couple of times a year. As an aside, I am about to acquire a tire pressure and temperature monitoring system from TST. I am hopeful that if a bearing was about to fail it would cause temperature to rise in the whole tire and wheel and that maybe one could avoid your experience. Good luck with your planned repair.
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Old 08-21-2013, 05:14 AM   #9
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The temperature will rise. I couldn't even touch the metal parts of the wheel with my bare hands until about 20 mins afterwards.
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