Video how to Grease Dexter axels

ScottG · April 2018

I've wondered the same thing, but haven't lost any sleep over it.

I've added grease at the start of the last two seasons. I pump it in until it starts to come out the front. It takes more than I expect and I don't worry about pushing out every bit of excess grease, so long as I know it's full. Shock of shocks, the trailer still rolls and the wheels haven't fallen off! (Knock on wood, of course...)

This is probably not the most meticulous of by-the-book maintenance, but I figure I'm probably still ahead of what 99% of the population does. :-)

LSkrabut · April 2018

Found this on the web:

Grease Gun 101:

Any person that is having problems with these (or nearly any) grease guns is typically having a problem because they do not know how to use a grease gun. It's called IGNORANCE folks, and people everywhere are guilty of it in some form. (People don't know what the heck they are doing, so they just blame the product instead of educating themselves on how to use it.)

The snap coupler on the end of the hose is SUPPOSED to stay on the fitting when you pump grease into the zerk! If it gets "stuck" when you go to remove it from the fitting, it's because the coupler itself is screwed too tightly together to begin with. All grease gun end couplers have a threaded TWO-PIECE body and is supposed to be left a little loose so that the coupler can "snap" onto the zerk and hold on to it when putting grease through it. If you cannot release the coupler from the fitting, unscrew the two halves of the end coupler some to allow the "ramps" inside the coupler to relax some of the pressure on the 3 or 4 internal ramp ears of the coupler.

In addition, the bleeding procedure is simple, but most people don't understand it either. When installing a new grease cartridge into the gun, pull back the plunger and retain it. Remove the plastic end cap from the new grease cartridge and install the cartridge into the gun body. Now remove the metal end seal. Next, screw the body of the gun back to the pump/handle head until it LIGHTLY contacts the rubber seal in the head. That's right, you heard me correctly - DO NOT TIGHTEN THE BODY TO THE PUMP HEAD! I repeat... DO NOT TIGHTEN THE BODY TO THE PUMP HEAD. Especially, DON'T EVER OVERTIGHTEN or cross-thread THE cartridge BODY TO THE CAST ALUMINUM PUMP HEAD! I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH folks!!! Now, release the plunger back into the body of the grease gun, and push the plunger rod fully back into the body of the cartridge. If the rod doesn't slide back in easily, rotate the "T" handle of the plunger rod a little and it will uncatch from the inner plunger ram and then it will slide right in. Next, with the grease gun hose over a trash can (or wherever you'd like to expend a little grease waste), pump the gun until grease starts flowing and any trapped air should purge out. Typically 5 to 10 full pumps will do the trick. You will likely hear some trapped AIR purge out as well.

If you aren't getting any grease from the end of the gun, or it doesn't seem to be building pressure once greasing a fitting, unscrew the body of the grease gun just a little bit, say about 1/8 of a turn or so. Now, pull the plunger back out and shove it in a couple of times. This will force grease back up towards the head of the grease gun, and any air that is trapped should seep/weep from around the threads of the body where it screws into the pump head. Now pump the grease gun again, with the coupler NOT snapped onto a zerk fitting, over a garbage can is usually best (as previously described).

Dalehelman · April 2018

@Photomom Me thinks you worry to much. Once you see grease being forced out the front the bearing are packed. It is possible but unlikely for the rear seal to be forced out. Causing grease to escape. I recommend using only a hand operated grease gun and slowly inserting grease. Forcing grease in to quickly could could force the rear seal out. Slow is the key word. It really couldn’t get much easier.

Photomom · April 2018

Dalehelman said:

@Photomom Me thinks you worry to much. Once you see grease being forced out the front the bearing are packed. It is possible but unlikely for the rear seal to be forced out. Causing grease to escape. I recommend using only a hand operated grease gun and slowly inserting grease. Forcing grease in to quickly could could force the rear seal out. Slow is the key word. It really couldn’t get much easier.

I’ve never even see one of these things. We’re not mechanics. We don’t even replace our own window wiper blades.

Photomom · April 2018

Also, I’m just asking the question - if the excess comes out the front and you can’t overfill it, how come there are all these warnings about putting too much in? Seems a legitimate question to me.

mona · April 2018

In the words of my dear sweet handyman challenged husband. “this why I work, so I we can pay people to do this stuff”. Way to many stories.

Sharon_is_SAM · April 2018

@LSkrabut - very funny!! But good info to know. I am going to save this for our next Zerk/grease gun adventure!

@Photomom, we are not mechanics either, but it is nice to be able to do at least some work on our Tab. If we can do this, anybody can do this. The only lube I ever needed on my job was K-Y, and I could have done a lot more damage than rupturing a seal:)

Photomom · April 2018

SAM said:

@LSkrabut - very funny!! But good info to know. I am going to save this for our next Zerk/grease gun adventure!

@Photomom, we are not mechanics either, but it is nice to be able to do at least some work on our Tab. If we can do this, anybody can do this. The only lube I ever needed on my job was K-Y, and I could have done a lot more damage than rupturing a seal:)

TMI.

Dalehelman · April 2018

Photomom said:

SAM said:

@LSkrabut - very funny!! But good info to know. I am going to save this for our next Zerk/grease gun adventure!

@Photomom, we are not mechanics either, but it is nice to be able to do at least some work on our Tab. If we can do this, anybody can do this. The only lube I ever needed on my job was K-Y, and I could have done a lot more damage than rupturing a seal:)

TMI.

X2 but still funny

dragonsdofly · April 2018

@Photomom, X2!

dsfdogs · April 2018

I too was concerned about the statement of not much grease in them coming from the factory as I start my first camping trips. I emailed tech at nuCamp and Creed in Warranty responded: "Dexter greasing their axles in factory so your trailer should be ready to go – and we recommend every 12,000 miles or year for a bearing repack. Dexter recommends a Lithium Complex grease (ex. Valvoline Multi Purpose Grease is what we use here). Just as long as you don’t mix the types of greases."

I followed up asking about the preferred method of traditional repacking or squirting it in per the video and he replied they don't have a recommendation, that it's up to us, and either method is fine.

@Photomom re the minimal amount of old grease that came out, I think the video was cropped so we didn't see him doing the same thing for long minutes, so maybe it just didn't show all that came out. I also thought I read or someone told me that the grease dissipates with use.

mgreen2 · April 2018

below is a video from the manufacterer. i found they had grease and quickly the old grease was coming out. it was obvious when the new grease started back out, just like this video.

https://youtu.be/XT0RKDGgDm8

Verna · April 2018

@Photomom, the best $100/year I spend is to the utility trailer guy, Henry. He takes care of it, tells me if there is a problem and I plan to see him next year. He does replace the bearings every year (included in that price) and I know he does a great job.

It’s one thing that I don’t want to do, I don’t want to mess it up, and I don’t like grease anyway

Photomom · April 2018

Verna said:

@Photomom, the best $100/year I spend is to the utility trailer guy, Henry. He takes care of it, tells me if there is a problem and I plan to see him next year. He does replace the bearings every year (included in that price) and I know he does a great job.

It’s one thing that I don’t want to do, I don’t want to mess it up, and I don’t like grease anyway

We have to take our trailer in every year for state inspection and I may well have them do the greasing. We pay $6 for the inspection Which takes 45 minutes and NY graciously shares $1 with the repair shop, so we always feel guilty if we don’t buy anything else from them. But if we use the trailer a lot it might not be a bad idea to do it in between inspections.

Dalehelman · April 2018

mgreen2 said:

below is a video from the manufacterer. i found they had grease and quickly the old grease was coming out. it was obvious when the new grease started back out, just like this video.

https://youtu.be/XT0RKDGgDm8

It doesn’t get any easier than this. IMHO

jkjenn · April 2018

Verna said:

@Photomom, the best $100/year I spend is to the utility trailer guy, Henry. He takes care of it, tells me if there is a problem and I plan to see him next year. He does replace the bearings every year (included in that price) and I know he does a great job.

It’s one thing that I don’t want to do, I don’t want to mess it up, and I don’t like grease anyway

I am with @V@Verna on this one! It is a small price to pay and with the very dusty conditions in the southwest, it is worth the peace of mind that I am starting out each trip with clean grease, good seals, and healthy bearings. I too, don't want to deal with the grease involved with repacking. It is not difficult to do your own maintenance, but it is messy!

Hammick · April 7

Verna said:

@Photomom, the best $100/year I spend is to the utility trailer guy, Henry. He takes care of it, tells me if there is a problem and I plan to see him next year. He does replace the bearings every year (included in that price) and I know he does a great job.

It’s one thing that I don’t want to do, I don’t want to mess it up, and I don’t like grease anyway

That's a hell of a deal. Wish I could find someone like that.

Slackers · April 7

We do our own yearly repack using the zerk method. Like others have noted we use a hand pump lube gun and rotate the wheel as the new lube is pumped in. For our 2019 CS it takes about 1/2 tube for each hub. It's not difficult but can be messy (removing the blackish grease coming out the front).

Tabnero · April 8

how long are the seals lasting before they should be replaced

tabiphile · April 9

Seals can actually last forever. What makes them fail is improper use of a grease gun or use of a high-pressure gun blowing them out, presuming that they have been properly installed in the first place. Incorrect installation is more common than it should be.
What causes the need for seal replacement is bearing service and hand re-packing or bearing replacement. In order to remove the bearing to re-pack, you must pop out the old seals. They are considered to be a disposable part so don't plan on saving them. Plan on using new ones. So.....no need to buy the special seal removal tool since you will wreck them. Just use a screwdriver.
If you are doing the zerk packing method annually, you still should be removing the wheel hub annually to inspect the brakes and also to check the spindles. This service is when you might notice if your seals are blown. A sign of blown seals is grease inside the drum or in the brakes.
During this service you should be using brake clean or something equivalent to clean the drum surfaces including the electric brake.
When you put it all back together, properly torque the retainer nut or risk bearing damage. Also torque (and after a few miles) re-torque the lugs.

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Video how to Grease Dexter axels

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