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.

What the heck happened here

Running up his post count?

I bet you're right. What a waste of our time and the site's server space. Maybe a mod can swing by and clean this up for us. This is a great thread otherwise.

I do not have much to add to this that probably has not already been said. 2 things kill any bearing

Number one is DIRT

Number 2 is HEAT

A wise man once told me it takes a drop of oil to lubricate the bearing,the rest of the oil is for cooling.

Keep in mind the thick grease actually melts into oil at higher temperatures.

So the guys saying check the temperature of the hub or the center of the wheel portion where you grease it, are correct at predicting bearing failure. Slack in the wheel when if you grab the tire when parked and shake it side to side might be another predictor, but this is a very very bad bearing and needs immediate attention if there is any major movement. It may not make it to a garage if it is over a mile.

All that said there is a great step by step back on page 3 of this post by Keeno (might have spelling wrong) on exactly how to replace trailer bearings. Having done a few car bearing jobs this is text book. I am reading this post for preparing to do my boat trailer and will definitely have this page pulled up or printed out to refer to.

I have read a lot of this post and it is great. You know the guys that know what they are taking about give you very clear and direct information on exactly what you need to do. Not just 2 or 3 sentences.

I would encourage anyone under the age of 30 to most definitely do their own bearing job, just for the experience. I don�t care if you do another one. It is fun and rewarding once. The 5th or 6th time is just pure economics. Having said this keep in mind this is 5 or 6 different vehicles for me not the same one. Vehicles you do once and check the slack (shake) adjust if needed and forget about it. See DIRT above.

I just pulled my 1994 stratos from norton mass. to fort wort tx then to lake fork and then to lake dardenelle ar. and that was after the boat and trailer sitting for 4 years up north. it has bearing buddies on it so i squeezed a little greese in and away i went and no issues on those trips... one thing i was told is everytime you stop just touch the hub and if it is heating up your greese level is low and when i took the 1800 mile trip from up north to here hub never got more that luke warm.

I have my bearings serviced every year. I had them go out one time and that was one time to many.

Can some one tell me what the hell is going on. Last June blew a bearing, Caught it quick, replaced bearing got home and to be safe replaced all four hubs. about a month later running at night I blew another and this time torn up axle. Towed in,new axle new hub. plus after spinning the other three they were squeeking all ready, after a month. Shop replaced all bearings, again. This week dropped another bearing, trashed the spindle. I would have had another spindle welded on but when opposite bearings were checked they were going out as well. Another new axle and 2 more hubs. In 6 months it is like 2 axles, 6 hubs. It is just killing me.

Where is a good place to have the bearings redone in the Arlington, HEB area? I bought my boat at Fun & Sun, and don't know anything about their service dept.