Bearing buddy to blame?

[goducks14]

This is the first I have heard that. And it is pretty hard to believe.
The EZ lube has an opening (where the grease exits when the zerk is used) that will guarauntee water will enter the bearing cavity when it is underwater... Especially when it is hot. Fresh water, or worse salt water contacting the bearing grease is a very bad thing.

Bearing Buddies is a sealed system that prevents water from entering the bearing cavity....

I do not doubt that some are using Bearing Buddies on RV axles, and I do not doubt that some are using EZ lubes on boat trailers. Both would be an incorrect use of the products

That has never stopped some people from doing it wrong though.

I have owned a boat trailer that I installed Bearing Buddies on, and sucessfully used it. I have also owned two RVs with EZ lubes..... I never used them as the mechanic in me knows what can
go wrong.... And it simply uses too much grease to do a complete purge of ALL of the old grease

https://www.dexteraxle.com/Resources...brication-type

E-Z Lube® Lubrication

First, you will need to remove the rubber plug from the end of the grease cap. Then place a standard manual grease gun onto the grease fitting located at the end of the spindle. Do not use pneumatic powered grease guns as these can inject grease too fast and force grease past the seal, or in rare cases dislodge the seal. You will want to make sure the grease gun nozzle is fully engaged on the fitting. While you rotate the hub, pump the grease slowly into the fitting. The old, displaced grease will begin to flow back out the cap around the grease gun nozzle. When the new clean grease begins to come out, remove the grease gun, wipe off any excess, and replace the rubber plug in the cap.

Pro-tip: The E-Z Lube feature is designed to allow immersion in water. Axles not equipped with E-Z Lube are not designed for immersion and the bearing should be repacked after each immersion. If hubs are removed from an axle with the E-Z Lube feature, it is imperative that the seals be replaced BEFORE bearing lubrication. Otherwise, the chance of grease getting on brake linings is greatly increased.

[Riverbug]

The OP has EZ lubes, They are NOT for boat trailers Bearing Buddies are a different system and they ARE for boat trailers. About the only thing the two systems have in common is they both have grease zerks.

I see this all the time on the forums. People use the two names interchangably to the point that a lot of people think they are the same thing.

Sorry, my boat trailer has EZ Lube spindles on it. Still have the instruction manual that shows it and explains how to use them. So yep, they are used on boat trailers too.

[huntindog]

https://www.dexteraxle.com/Resources...brication-type

E-Z Lube® Lubrication

First, you will need to remove the rubber plug from the end of the grease cap. Then place a standard manual grease gun onto the grease fitting located at the end of the spindle. Do not use pneumatic powered grease guns as these can inject grease too fast and force grease past the seal, or in rare cases dislodge the seal. You will want to make sure the grease gun nozzle is fully engaged on the fitting. While you rotate the hub, pump the grease slowly into the fitting. The old, displaced grease will begin to flow back out the cap around the grease gun nozzle. When the new clean grease begins to come out, remove the grease gun, wipe off any excess, and replace the rubber plug in the cap.

Pro-tip: The E-Z Lube feature is designed to allow immersion in water. Axles not equipped with E-Z Lube are not designed for immersion and the bearing should be repacked after each immersion. If hubs are removed from an axle with the E-Z Lube feature, it is imperative that the seals be replaced BEFORE bearing lubrication. Otherwise, the chance of grease getting on brake linings is greatly increased.

All I can say is WOW.
I cannot believe they are marketing it for that application!
OTOH, this is the same company that had (has still?) a video showing how to use the EZ Lube feature.
That was a joke. It showed a single band of dirty grease exiting the outer bearing (where water will enter) and they call it done. That dirty grease was from the outer bearing. The inner bearing dirty grease is still in the hub!

[Laurie 1799]

Correct answer, I do the same never had an issue. Also better to do when it’s warm .

[Riverbug]

All I can say is WOW.
I cannot believe they are marketing it for that application!
OTOH, this is the same company that had (has still?) a video showing how to use the EZ Lube feature.
That was a joke. It showed a single band of dirty grease exiting the outer bearing (where water will enter) and they call it done. That dirty grease was from the outer bearing. The inner bearing dirty grease is still in the hub!

My boat trailer has been in and out of the water since I purchased it new in 2003. I've never once had a bearing problem. I have replaced the brake assembly due to wear and maintained the bearings even though the manual for the EZ lube states it will be good for 50,000 miles with proper maintenance. If these were so bad for boat trailers I would think something would have gone wrong in the past 20 years - maybe I'm just the lucky one. Except that my fishing buddies have the same setup and they don't seem to have a problem either. I'll just let it rest now we all have our biases.

[Laurie 1799]

Correct answer, I do the same never had an issue. Also better to do when it’s warm .

Was replying to number 6

[Second Chance]

Correct answer, I do the same never had an issue. Also better to do when it’s warm .

@Laurie 1799 -

What are you calling "Correct answer?"

1) If you use "Reply With Quote" (to the right of "Reply") as I have here, folks will know to whom you are responding and that person will get a notification.

2) You can also tag folks using the "@" symbol and their user name (as I have done yours) - they'll also get a notification that way.

Rob

[Laurie 1799]

@Laurie 1799 -

What are you calling "Correct answer?"

1) If you use "Reply With Quote" (to the right of "Reply") as I have here, folks will know to whom you are responding and that person will get a notification.

2) You can also tag folks using the "@" symbol and their user name (as I have done yours) - they'll also get a notification that way.

Rob

Was a reply to number 7. Still have a hard time with this forum sometimes.

[Hoopy Frood]

All I can say is WOW.
I cannot believe they are marketing it for that application!
OTOH, this is the same company that had (has still?) a video showing how to use the EZ Lube feature.
That was a joke. It showed a single band of dirty grease exiting the outer bearing (where water will enter) and they call it done. That dirty grease was from the outer bearing. The inner bearing dirty grease is still in the hub!

The rubber plug keeps water out of the bearing, so as long as the plug is in place there will be no way for water to enter the bearing. If you leave the rubber plug out though...

[jkwilson]

Several brands have used them on boat trailers for a long time. I have first hand experience with them on a 96 Stratos, a 2020 Venture and 2011 Load Rite and several Tracker boats from the last 20+ years. The hubs are great on boat trailers, and IMO only used on RVs because they don't have to make two different spindles. Even the latest hybrid grease Vault hubs use the same design as the EZ Lube without the zerk installed. I don't think Dexter even offers a torsion arm without EZ Lube ports, so you are stuck with EZ Lube or Vault on those since you can't put Bearing Buddies on the ported spindles. If you count Vortex, Sure Lube and Super Lube hubs, which are basically the same as EZ Lube from other manufacturers, they are probably the most common spindles in the recreational boat market by a long shot.