I have a set of galvanized 14 inch wheels. 5 in the set and they have 5 lug studs on them. Selling price is $150.00 for the entire set and they are brand new. I took them off my trailer when I got the boat in August and they have been sitting in my garage boxed up since then.

http://www.ufpnet.com/Portals/0/PDFs/Trailer%20Buddy%20VAULT%20Axle%20Maintenance.pdf
My trailer came with theese on it. When I bought the boat the dealer said "Do NOT Mess with the bearing covers" They are a NO maintenance, NO service, NO inspection bearing cover.

Just to keep this going I do it about every 300 miles. I use buddy brngs and wouldn't be without thme.

These are what Roadrunner just put on my new jetski trailer and swear by them, 100,000 mile bearing.

I'm sorry I have Vortex hubs on my new trailer.

http://www.tiedown.com/avortex.html

Are you on every forum??? Yeah, the Vortex hubs are the bomb. 6 yr 100,000 mile no maintenance. Unlike the UFP hubs where you have to find a service center and you void your warranty if you pull them apart, Tie Down is taking a no questions asked replacement approach on hubs and the Lucas Marine Grease can be found anywhere, if you just feel like repacking every few years for your own peace of mind. We see very few hub failures from lack of service, though. Usually it's the brakes causing the problem, so take good care of those too.

Yep// had some of those buddy bearings almost cost me a fishing trip was coming out of Corpus few years back hit a chug hole popped buddy bearing out barely made it to aransas pass just happened to stop for gas [OMG WHEELS LEANING ON BOAT TRAILER ]3HRS later beating,cussn,sanding,more cussn,nother hub,now check and pack hubs regularly and grease w/buddy bearing then off back on w/reg caps. problem solved..

I like the idea behind the Vortex hubs which I just looked at. They are like the inexpensive hub system Ranger Boats has had on their trailers since the mid 90's using a needle fitting through hub grease injection instead of the vortex zerk fitting. The vortex hubs being threaded is a plus too.
I know I would not go by the 6 year 100k mile no maintenance bit though. Those hubs will need new grease if and when they are immersed in cold water since they are not under any pressure.


I like the Vault hubs since they are like most oil filled hub systems and use minimal service. Not being serviceable would not be an issue for me since I've never had to mess with an oil filled hub anyway. They are very reliable and trouble free most of the time.

I have the oil filled hubs on my trailer have not had a problem.
But what type oil is in there? Looks like 90w gear lube.

I got to Fayette yesterday morning and my passenger trailer tire was leaning off to one side and the hub was cracked. I had just greased the bearings a few days ago, so I wouldn't have thought that it was a problem.

Launched the boat and fished till 1:30PM. Dropped the trailer after loading and went into La Grange to NAPA. $80.00 later I had everything I needed including a grease gun, marine grade grease, waterless hand cleaner and towels. 30 minutes later I was on the road.

I'm not sure if my spindle is going to make it, it will probably need to be replaced, there is some scarring that I couldn't get off. Drug it the hour and a half back checking every 20-30 minutes, it got warm, but not hot.

I'm going to repack and get new seals for the other side and re-grease.

The guys in NAPA deal with this all the time being next to Fayette, and they said that there are two things to make sure of:

1. Do not over-grease, it can build up pressure and blow out your bearing buddy or cover when it gets warm. Just fill it until you start to see the new stuff coming out. I don't have bearing buddies.

2. Use the marine grade grease. It is made to get wet... the red stuff. If you have the wrong stuff in now, the best thing is to disassemble, carb clean everything, re-pack and re-grease.

I just replaced the bearings on one wheel, and it took me about an hour but I'm slow. I've done it a few times so it wasn't a big deal.

I haven't used the boat this year yet and last October was actually the last time it saw water but I knew I had a bearing going bad.

I get in the habit when I stop on the way to and from the lake, and at least make a quick stop just to check my trailer hubs. If they feel warm the better not be warmer than the other trailer parts around the wheel, and if the hub feels hot to the touch, then you have a time bomb in your hand.

Best way to check before you hit the road is jack up one wheel at a time on your trailer and spin the wheel. If you hear anything that even remotely sounds like a growl then you have a problem that needs to be fixed.

Sometimes it could be just a dry wheel and it needs grease, but once you grease it and it still makes noise then it's bad.

Check the hubs often, compare them for heat (hot to the touch) even if you greased them before the trip. Do that on the way to the lake and back and make it a habit and it can save you problems on the road.