Trailer Brake Maintence
- Thread starter GOA
- Start date
I'm amazed at the number of views and 20+ people who have responded. One thing we know for sure...Trailer Brake Maintence is a concern for all of us!
S/S Kodiaks or D-Maxs may be a viable answer...but I'm still holding out some hope for the rust inhibiting sprays.
Thanks for all the input!
GOA
S/S Kodiaks or D-Maxs may be a viable answer...but I'm still holding out some hope for the rust inhibiting sprays.
Thanks for all the input!
GOA
ROBERTH
GreatGrady Captain
No doubts on trailer maintenance for sure! That is inevitable.
I know lots of manufacturers are trying to make a better product that is more corrosion resistant and I give them a plus for effort, but in some cases, they just fail and we take the hit on the cost.
Lots of folks don't or can't do their own brakes for example and are forced to pay to have it done. I can't imagine how much trailer maintenance would cost me if I didn't do any of all that I have been doing over the years.
What is important here is that I have brakes that work, and don't get stranded on the side of the road. Been there and done that with tires. Don't get me started on tires...... :mrgreen:
All I will say there is went to Maxxis and not had an issue since.
Now, will move to the costly Kodiaks and hope to get a few good years of stopping power and not have to redo or rebuy brake parts every season. Then, it would be just maintenance to check and repack bearings as needed.
I have been asking around for feedback on the Oil Bath systems for long term results and not really gotten anything back. I did this on a previous trailer and sold it before a year was up. It was working great and showing no signs of issue for the period I had it.
Since I am going the expense of new Full SS Kodiaks, I will also get new galvx hubs/bearings and am going to try the Kodiak Oil bath system as well. I will yet be another guinea pig for the oil bath and likely none of this is going to happen until layup this winter as I want to enjoy the boat this season!
I know lots of manufacturers are trying to make a better product that is more corrosion resistant and I give them a plus for effort, but in some cases, they just fail and we take the hit on the cost.
Lots of folks don't or can't do their own brakes for example and are forced to pay to have it done. I can't imagine how much trailer maintenance would cost me if I didn't do any of all that I have been doing over the years.
What is important here is that I have brakes that work, and don't get stranded on the side of the road. Been there and done that with tires. Don't get me started on tires...... :mrgreen:
All I will say there is went to Maxxis and not had an issue since.
Now, will move to the costly Kodiaks and hope to get a few good years of stopping power and not have to redo or rebuy brake parts every season. Then, it would be just maintenance to check and repack bearings as needed.
I have been asking around for feedback on the Oil Bath systems for long term results and not really gotten anything back. I did this on a previous trailer and sold it before a year was up. It was working great and showing no signs of issue for the period I had it.
Since I am going the expense of new Full SS Kodiaks, I will also get new galvx hubs/bearings and am going to try the Kodiak Oil bath system as well. I will yet be another guinea pig for the oil bath and likely none of this is going to happen until layup this winter as I want to enjoy the boat this season!
Doc Stressor
Well-Known Member
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Re: Trailer Brake Maintenance
I switched to oil bath hubs when I lived out west and used to trailer thousands of miles each year. My first experience was bad. I used a Kodiak conversion kit on my old spindles and had leaks right away. There were 2 problems. My old spindles were not completely smooth and kept wearing out the inner seal. After I fixed that with a Bearing Buddy inner seal sleeve, I still had some water leaking into the bearings. I turned out to be the outer cover that was leaking. There are hubs designed for oil bath bearings that have a threaded inner surfaces. These do not leak.
As long as you are starting out all new stuff you should be fine. I ended up putting on a new axle and hubs that came with the oil bath system already installed. This worked fine for several years before I lost axle for a reason unrelated to the bearings. The best thing about oil bath hubs is that they run very cool on the highway. Plus, you can tell right away if you are getting water intrusion. The down side is that you can knock the caps off of the hubs if you clip a curb.
I switched to oil bath hubs when I lived out west and used to trailer thousands of miles each year. My first experience was bad. I used a Kodiak conversion kit on my old spindles and had leaks right away. There were 2 problems. My old spindles were not completely smooth and kept wearing out the inner seal. After I fixed that with a Bearing Buddy inner seal sleeve, I still had some water leaking into the bearings. I turned out to be the outer cover that was leaking. There are hubs designed for oil bath bearings that have a threaded inner surfaces. These do not leak.
As long as you are starting out all new stuff you should be fine. I ended up putting on a new axle and hubs that came with the oil bath system already installed. This worked fine for several years before I lost axle for a reason unrelated to the bearings. The best thing about oil bath hubs is that they run very cool on the highway. Plus, you can tell right away if you are getting water intrusion. The down side is that you can knock the caps off of the hubs if you clip a curb.