# Adding grease to Bearing Buddy



## Lowe14owner (Jan 20, 2015)

HI! This is my first ever posting here. I've reading and learning a whole lot, and I love TinBoats!! Now, I have a question, and it's probably already been addressed, but I can't find it. 

I packed my trailer wheel bearings over the weekend--the first time ever for me. When I went to get the seals, I also picked up a can of lithium wheel bearing grease along with a set of Bearing Buddys. Packing the wheel bearings went pretty well, I think. The problem is I didn't think about the grease for the Bearing Buddys. The grease I used was Champion Disc Wheel Bearing Grease. Unfortunately, I checked Champion's website and found that this grease does not come in tubes.

My question is this: can I use another lithium complex grease in the Bearing Buddy? Or, do I have to go back and repack with a wheel bearing grease that comes in a tube?


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## lckstckn2smknbrls (Jan 20, 2015)

I've always heard not to mix greases. At this point I would leave the bearing buddies off and just use the dust caps.


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## bcbouy (Jan 21, 2015)

grease is grease.it won't catch fire or something if you mix them.some have different applications viscosity/heat wise.as long as its axle/bearing its ok.


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## Loggerhead Mike (Jan 21, 2015)

IMO-Buddy bearings are only good for falling off while you go down the road or allowing water intrusion at the ramp.


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## NautiBuoys (Jan 23, 2015)

As lckstckn2smknbrls mentioned above, the best rule of thumb is don't mix the greases. Mixing different types of grease can cause the bearing to fail; in reality, its the grease that fails. Example-mixing a sodium based wheel bearing grease with a lithium based wheel bearing grease will cause the grease to liquefy and fail. 

Since you know what type grease is in the bearing just match it-get or empty a tube cartridge and pack it with your WB grease.

BTW, never had a problem with Bearing Buddys, but I can say the same for the regular trailer dust caps too...


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## earl60446 (Jan 24, 2015)

I got Bearing Buddys on my boat trailer. Noticed that they have a small hole in the side of them, what is that? Kinda defeats the purpose of them doesn't it? Seems like regular dust caps would work just as well, maybe better.
Tim


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## ggoldy (Jan 24, 2015)

earl60446 said:


> I got Bearing Buddys on my boat trailer. Noticed that they have a small hole in the side of them, what is that? Kinda defeats the purpose of them doesn't it? Seems like regular dust caps would work just as well, maybe better.
> Tim


Is that hole not a sort of 'vent'? Or pressure release? To prevent over filling?


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## NautiBuoys (Jan 24, 2015)

The hole is an overfill/pressure relief vent so you don't overfill and blow out the rear seal.


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## Lowe14owner (Jan 24, 2015)

Thanks for the responses. I'm going to go back and repack the bearings with a wheel bearing grease that also comes in a 14 ounce tube for the bearing buddies. There's no need to be worrying about the grease matter on the road to and from my fishing. I only want to worry about the number of fish I'll be catching.


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## Boat2fast (Jan 27, 2015)

You could always fill the grease gun manually from a tub. (From the days before tubes)

Take the pump off, pull back the plunger till it detents into place, fill the gun with a spoon or something, screw on the pump end, release the the plunger and push the handle in. Your done, full gun. You will need to pump a few slow cycles to work out some air maybe...depends how well you packed it.

Bearing Buddys will let water in, IF you don't keep them greased(pressurized).
They will also fall off, IF you don't install them right, or IF the hub bores are damaged.
The directions included with BearingBuddys deal with these situations.


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## DaleH (Jan 27, 2015)

Boat2fast said:


> Bearing Buddys will let water in, IF you don't keep them greased(pressurized).
> They will also fall off, IF you don't install them right, or IF the hub bores are damaged.
> The directions included with Bearing Buddys deal with these situations.


So true ... most don't RTFM!


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## JMichael (Jan 28, 2015)

Boat2fast said:


> You could always fill the grease gun manually from a tub. (From the days before tubes)



Ha that's one of the first things I thought of when I read the post but didn't figure there were many that would understand about manually filling one up. LoL I couldn't begin to count how many 5 gal buckets of grease I've emptied by filling grease guns, to do the daily maintenance on a lot of heavy equipment. 




Boat2fast said:


> They will also fall off, IF you don't install them right, or IF the hub bores are damaged.


or if you buy the wrong size. I've noticed that on the less expensive brands, there is often a size mismatch or quality issue where they don't fit into the hub properly and they end up falling off.


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## New River Rat (Jan 28, 2015)

Bearing Buddy (the brand) lists quite a few sizes. Be certyain you purchase the correct one for your application. The wrong one could come off or allow water to enter.


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## bcbouy (Jan 28, 2015)

i lost a bearing buddy 2 years ago.the tire guy says to junk them and not use them. last year a trailer mechanic says they work great. who to believe? i keep them on.last season i drove over 5 thousand miles towing my boat down forest service roads and highways.no bearing failure.the bearings are 5 years old and have over 20 thousand miles on them.i repack every spring.


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## jethro (Mar 19, 2015)

I love bearing buddy hub caps. I have them on my snowmobile trailer that I pull over 5000 miles a season. They are on my boat trailer too that get's at least 5000 miles a year. Never had an issue and I am able to keep them packed. I grease my snowmobile trailer bearings once a month at least.


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