How does one know if it's time to do this job?
I'm especially concerned about having it done
before towing my newly acquired '59 from
California... 600 miles to Oregon.
Jill
--- Jim Dunmyer <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> In my experience, the wheel hubs do NOT
> get even slightly warm, let alone "quite
> warm". They might be adjusted too tight, but
it's hard to tell from here. I do know that
proper periodic maintenance (every 10 -> 12,000
miles) is very important, especially on a
single-axle trailer. Things get very nasty if a
bearing goes to hell on the road. It'll sieze up,
spin the inner race on the axle stub, maybe even
destroy the axle stub. I once let the rear wheel
bearings on my VW go too long without maintenance
and it took a lot of fooling around to get all
the galling filed off the axle stub before I
could install the new bearing. That wasn't so bad
because I heard the noise from the bearing as it
disintigrated and was able to stop for repairs.
Had it been on a trailer, I wouldn't have heard
it and it would have been a REAL mess.
> I usually disassemble the brakes, clean up the
wear surfaces and put a TINY bit of grease on
them. The adjusters get disassembled, cleaned,
and the screws coated with grease. It's a good
idea to replace them so you always adjust in the
same direction to "tighten"; reversing them will
reverse that action and confuse you if they're
not all the same. FWIW: I set mine so that
pushing the adjuster spoon "up" (towards the
center of the axle) tightens the brakes, but it's
unimportant as to which way you go as long as
they're all the same.
> You should always use new seals so as to keep
the bearings free of dirt and grease out of the
brakes. Besides, you usually destroy them when
you remove 'em.
> This is a too-important issue to ignore and
> there's little excuse to let it go, as easy as
it is to repack the bearings and adjust the
brakes. I spend about 30 minutes/wheel total, so
it's not a big deal. Although you don't need any
special tools, a universal brake spring tool and
adjusting spoon are helpful. Vice-Grip pliers and
a large screwdriver will serve in a pinch.
> <<Jim>>
=====
"It's not the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow...
It's the RAINBOW."
JillyWon Is Outie...
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