How do you carry extra wheel bearings?

[REHinH20]

I'm going to start carrying an extra set of wheel bearings (already packed with grease) along on all my trips.  Does anyone else do this?  If so, what do you keep the packed bearings in.  I was thinking plastic coffee can, but would like to hear your ideas.

[jk13]

Trailer mounted spare tire carrier with a spindle on it is the best I’ve seen. With a rubber block that contacts the tire to keep it from spinning. 

[justgary]

19 hours ago, jk13 said:

Trailer mounted spare tire carrier with a spindle on it is the best I’ve seen. With a rubber block that contacts the tire to keep it from spinning. 

I like that idea.  I like that idea a lot.

On 5/29/2020 at 3:09 PM, REHinH20 said:

I'm going to start carrying an extra set of wheel bearings (already packed with grease) along on all my trips.  Does anyone else do this?  If so, what do you keep the packed bearings in.  I was thinking plastic coffee can, but would like to hear your ideas.

Carrying the whole hub makes a lot more sense than loose bearings unless you are prepared to pound the races out and replace them on the side of the road as well.

[oldjeep]

x2 on the spare hub - if you feel the need.   But let me ask you this - do you carry spare wheel bearings for your tow vehicle?

[REHinH20]

On 5/30/2020 at 3:31 PM, justgary said:

I like that idea.  I like that idea a lot.

Carrying the whole hub makes a lot more sense than loose bearings unless you are prepared to pound the races out and replace them on the side of the road as well.

I like the idea, but I would need to carry 2 assemblies, one with brake drum and one without.

[REHinH20]

16 hours ago, oldjeep said:

x2 on the spare hub - if you feel the need.   But let me ask you this - do you carry spare wheel bearings for your tow vehicle?

No, but I've never known anyone have tow vehicle bearing issues. Is there something I'm missing

[oldjeep]

6 hours ago, REHinH20 said:

No, but I've never known anyone have tow vehicle bearing issues. Is there something I'm missing

I've had unit bearing failures on a couple of trucks and cars, but never a trailer bearing.  If you properly inspect and maintain your trailer bearings a failure should be an incredibly rare thing.  Nothing wrong with having spare parts that you will never use, but your energy would be better directed towards just making sure that the bearings and seals are in good service every once in a while.

Edited June 1, 2020 by oldjeep

[REHinH20]

So back to original question.  Any thoughts on how to carry the packed bearings?

[oldjeep]

5 minutes ago, REHinH20 said:

So back to original question.  Any thoughts on how to carry the packed bearings?

In a spare hub. They make several spare tire carriers that are specifically designed to carry a spare hub and the spare tire.  These are mostly made for trailers with tiny wheels that do actually have a lot of bearing failures due to rotational speed.  Or mount a small ammo can to the trailer to hold them, or weld a couple of spindle stubs to the trailer and install them on the stubs.

https://www.iboats.com/shop/tie-down-engineering-spare-tire-carrier-with-removable-hub.html?gclid=CjwKCAjwztL2BRATEiwAvnALcu5KG0T8KWw4CzvaD80J7f62FfN7NpI4yxRMmCt5EcVQmzMfj87eyhoC4G4QAvD_BwE

[REHinH20]

I like that idea, but I would have to come up with that one and one with a drum for my brakes.  Didnt' think of an ammo can, that's a thought...thanks!

[oldjeep]

1 hour ago, REHinH20 said:

I like that idea, but I would have to come up with that one and one with a drum for my brakes.  Didnt' think of an ammo can, that's a thought...thanks!

How about putting brakes on the other axle, then you only need one spare

I always forget that some states let you get away with only one braked axle.

 

Edit - no reason you couldn't put a hub with a drum on your non braked axle.  Isn't going to hurt anything.

Edited June 1, 2020 by oldjeep

[justgary]

10 hours ago, oldjeep said:

How about putting brakes on the other axle, then you only need one spare

I always forget that some states let you get away with only one braked axle.

 

Edit - no reason you couldn't put a hub with a drum on your non braked axle.  Isn't going to hurt anything.

Exactly.  The hub with a drum will run just fine on a plain spindle.

And I agree on the maintenance thing.  Know what's going on and maintain/change them on your schedule, not on the road somewhere.

[Pra4sno]

You can put bearings in a ziplock, but changing races would be a pain on the side of the road.  

How much are you towing?  Carrying bearings seems excessive unless it's long distances in secluded places.  A tandem or tri axle would even further reduce the need.