NEW 192 pod tomorrow...

My problem was with a standard car axle long ago, and there was no zerk, I just put too much grease in when I packed it. So you can blow seals with too much grease even without a zerk to apply pressure. Since then I pack the bearings only, with only a little grease smeared on the spindles to prevent corrosion. That works fine and I never had a dry bearing so the point is that more isnt always better.

Coincidentally I was doing the annual on my airplane a couple weeks ago and my A&P mechanic who is overseeing my work came over while I was repacking my landing gear bearings and told me to be sure not to pack too much grease in there or I'd get grease on my brake discs.

Whether that article is a good example/statement or not is a glass half full/half empty kind of debate. The bottom line is the guy who wrote it will never use the super lube system again, so he certainly thinks it's relevant. As do I.


We all make decisions based on our experiences. So if you have had good luck with the zerks and feel comfortable enough with your brakes to skip the annual brake inspection and that's fine with me. I've had bad experiences with both grease seals and trailer brakes and choose to do what I do. It only takes me maybe an hour to do both wheels so it's really not a big deal.

Well here's one guys Lippert Super Lube horror story

Super Lube Disaster

I've not had that happen myself but back when I was young and foolish I did get over exuberant about packing some bearings and decided it was a good idea to pack the hubs too. Dumb idea. The seals blew out, ruined my brakes, and that was without any forced pressure on them from a grease gun.

The other fishy thing to me is why Lippert would offer the Super Lube system but not extend the maintenance interval for pulling the drums, which remains at once per year. So if you need to do that anyway why bother with the zerks?

Anyhow, everyone has their own way of doing things, which is fine. In my case I really want to take a close look at those brakes and lubricate them frequently, which are safety critical and have been problematic for me so I just don't trust them to go a couple of years without attention. So I'm pulling the drums off anyway. Once I do that it only adds a few minutes to pop off the seals, press some new grease in the bearings, and reinstall.

I disagree. I have greased the bearings that way and I do see the old grease coming out the front just like it should. If it did not work, neither Lippert nor Dexter would make them that way. The "Grease Buddy" type caps that one could pump grease and it went in the front side is a different matter. Those, I would agree, are trouble waiting to happen since they use a spring to keep pressure on the grease, supposedly to keep water out. However, that pressure can also force grease past the rear seal. Since the EZ-Lube type hubs do not have a spring to force pressure and since the grease can come out the front side of the bearings, it doesn't have the same level of risk to the rear seal.

When you use the Zerk fitting to grease, you are supposed to rotate the wheel while pumping grease in. That helps make sure the old grease is being pushed toward the front instead of out the back seal. also, I guess one should not use a really high pressure pneumatic grease gun to force grease in. By using a hand grease gun, one can only pump it in so fast.

That's the spindle but it's the bearings you need to repack. The outer one should be loose now that you've pulled the drums off. Try to grab it so it doesn't fall down and get dirty. The inner bearing is behind the grease seal. Get a seal puller (around $20) to pry out the old seal. Be careful not to gouge the steel surface when you pry it out.

Here's a good video on how to pack bearings by hand if you haven't done it. You can just press new grease through which will replace the old grease unless the bearing fell and got dirty in which case you should clean it completely out with gas or some other solvent and let dry before repacking.

Also you can also lightly coat the spindle and races (the rings in the drum the bearings run on) but don't pack the whole hub or the grease can force it's way out the seal and get on the brakes.

Put the repacked inner bearing in the drum and then press in the seal. Do replace the seals every time you repack. You can use a wood block and tap with a hammer to get the seal in flush. Wipe off any grease that's exposed outside the seal and clean the inner surface of the drum where the brake shoes press. Use brake cleaner or gas to be sure no grease remains on that surface.

Slide the drum with the inner bearing and seal onto the spindle, carefully to avoid damaging the seal. have the outer bearing ready to go and slide it on along with the castle nut and washer so the drum doesn't slip back off.

Set the play per the Lippert manual, I forget what it says. There is a torque setting to seat the bearing then you back off the nut. Use a new cotter pin every time.



Packing bearings by hand