Trailer brake install part II

[snowfish]

Only the spindle needs to be sanded. Not the bearing itself. This is an extremely close tolerance fit. Thus the Very Clean & Oil recommendation. Any oil will do. Even the WD-40's and JB-80's, of the world, will work fine. I use oil or spray lube because it's easier to clean off When you have to sand again.

I see some rusty, crusties, and knicks behind the bear on the last image, that needs to go. The seal surface look pretty rugged too.

Yep, lots of elbow grease!

Really doesn't matter how you clean up the castle nut threads, as long as you can move it by hand.

I picked up a full tap & die set for $75.00 from tools & more, which included the 1 inch tap & die.

No worries, Mate! You about have 'er wooped!

 

[dmsrx]

Buy an extra nut and use a small three sided file to make a thread chaser by filing across the threads. Works great.

 

[polarisrider1]

Don't use regular sand paper. You need emory cloth. tear into 1" or so widths by at least 1' lengths. Sand paper falls apart way to easily when it gets oil on it. 120 grit to start, finish with 400 grit. You want to remove the burrs not the gouges. After this project you will never neglect your bearings again. I like to use "bearing buddies" they keep a constant preasure on the grease and seals so water can't get in and they are easy to use.

 

[snowfish]

Should have emphasized that we're not sanding in the oil. The oil is just for test fitting the bearing since it's such a tight fit. The oil gets cleaned off to sand some more. Hang in there Chad. Rain is about over.

 

[chadlyt]

i would like to state this:

I bought the trailer a few weeks ago. I was replacing the surge brakes with e-brakes due to the shape they were in, and also that i could control the trailer form the truck.

I ended up tearing into this due to the fact that i kept finding problems. thus where is am at now.

Once i get this thing back in shape, i can get rid of my open trailer, which has perfect bearings

 

[snowfish]

Since you're probably going to get crackin', on this project tomorrow, I thought we could summarize the problem childs that need attention.

A Clean Up Threads so nut can be installed by hand
B Outer Spindle - Cleaned up so Bearing can slide to taper. In reality, the outer bearing will not go all the way to the taper. But it needs to be able to seek it's own level when the hub is installed.
C Center Cavity Spindle – Not critical as long as Inner Bearing can slide past to the Seal Shoulder. Nothing rides on this part. It's just filled with grease.

D Inner Spindle – This is the part that's giving you fits. Inner Bearing needs to sit flush against the Seal Shoulder.
E Seal Shoulder – Needs to be nice and smooth. I'd clean it up a little further back past the rust ridge. Fine grit sand paper or emery cloth. Then we're sure that the need seal has a nice place to live.

The Bearings are a really close tolerance fit. One little frog hair bur will stop it dead in it's tracks. When you think that you're getting close, stick with the finer grit sand paper. The course grit is just to knock down the big stuff. We're not port and polishing a head here, so it really doesn't have to be mirror finish smooth. Bearings need to slide on, by hand, no hammering, but without any slop. It's easy to get them cocked and think that you need to sand more. That's where the oil, grease, spray lube, etc will help you out.

Even on brand new trailers, that have never been down the road, the bearings can seem to not fit. (adding brakes to an idler axle) When you find the sweet spot, you'll know it. She'll slide on with little to no effort.

Again patience, tenacity, and a lot of elbow grease. Tomorrow this will be all behind you. Be sure to share the finished product and any insights about the project. Cheers.

 

[chadlyt]

just an update. success so far. I was able to assemble one of the four brake/hub assemblies!

this was one of the easier ones, but was one of the first that gave me fits. everything went together perfectly after some light sanding with the emery cloth.

I was able to test fit the bearings on the troubled spindle and they went on. But i need to do a little bit more finish work before i am satisfied.

So far so good. I will probably get to the other side tomorrow to see what kind of a mess i have to deal with there.

One odd thing, I have had one heck of a time finding the tang washers for the castle nuts. I have some on the way from etrailer, so that will be my only hold up. Dummy me thought i could go to any parts store to pick them up.

snowfish, thanks again for you persistence in helping me though this and also thanks to the others that contributed to this little project of mine, or now, ours.

I'm sure i'll be back with questions from the "right side" stay tuned...

 

[chadlyt]

another update.

pulled off the passenger side bearings. Had them redone in a matter of minutes. Literally. they were pristine. I'm still waiting for the tang washers, but i should get them today.

Next up. Wiring these bad boys up and replacing the coupler and chains. I have to figure out how to wire into the existing cables yet as they are hidden in the frame real well.

The only item i think i will buy for future work like this is a bearing packer, no more globs on my hands.

 

[snowfish]

Nice work! Now that you're on the home stretch, there's one tiny item that can be a hassle. Used grease caps usually tap back on fairly easily, but the New Ones, sometimes, will fight you all the way. One can buy a Grease Cap Install Tool, but a basic 2" i.d. pipe coupler works great! Or even just a 2" hunk of pipe, trimmed down, will do the trick.

This way you can keep the cap straight while getting it started. Then you can seat that baby, solid against the hub, without buggering up the new cap.

This tool works on any 4-5 lug hub. Unless it's an antique, then that’s' a different story.

At some point soon, you may want to finish off the project with either Acorn Lug Nuts,

Some nice hub covers, or even both.

Eventually your newly installed rims will have to come off. A rusted on nut can be a real treat to remove. I have a feeling that you've already experienced that.

Nice Job! Don't forget to show, us all, the finished product. Cheers!

 

[polarisrider1]

Nice idea for the grease cap install tool. I have always used a large socket over the cap and tapped them on.

 

[snowfish]

So brakes or no brakes, Mate? Show us the stuff. How'd she work out?

 

[chadlyt]

the boss said i needed to take a break. plus getting ready for hunting this weekend. I still need to run the wiring and tie all of that into the plug. I'll maybe get to that next tuesday...

 

[chadlyt]

one more update.

I've got the wiring all set. ended up just running a new 7 plug on the trailer. wiring had to be the easiest part of this whole thing.

Took her for a spin and the Prodigy controller worked great. (had to wire the controller in the truck too)

I've been looking to get pics taken, but daylight savings time screws everything up. Hopefully, in these next few days, I can get some pics up...

snowfish, what kind of trailer cabinet is that you had shown me in the other post? If i cant make it up there, i'd at least like to try to find one locally.

 

[snowfish]

Nicely done Chadlyt! The Helmet Cabinets are made by Haulmark trailers out of Bristol IN. If you have a Haulmark dealer, close by, they should have one or be able to order one for you. Cheers.