Tire Pressure and Bearing Buddys

[Capt Sully]

Would like some input on what tire pressure you run to trailer your Mac. Also if you where to trailer your Mac say over 8 to 10 hour road trip, how often would you check your bearing buddy for grease. What would be the proper why to fill your bearings with grease? I'm not sure if the type or year of the trailer would make a difference? I have a 2010 trailer hauling a 2010 26M. Thanks for your advice.

[Québec 1]

I run Super Cargo tires on my 2003 trailer, which are range G, and just finished a 6 thousand kilometer trip with no problem at all. I checked the air everyday and had to adjust the pressure (which I kept at 50psi) a little bit to keep a perfect amount of pressure in the tires for a smooth ride.

I greased the bearing buddies at the beginning of the trip and that's it. The BB's did the job without even getting warm all the way down and all the way back. I touched them every time I filled up for gas and they never even got warm.

Before I left I also bled my trailer brakes and put in 2 cans of brake fluid (2 hours of bleeding, which was a drag) cause it seems that the brake fluid evaporated over the summer.
Q1

[Russ]

I run Super Cargo tires on my 2003 trailer, which are range G, and just finished a 6 thousand kilometer trip with no problem at all. I checked the air everyday and had to adjust the pressure (which I kept at 50psi) a little bit to keep a perfect amount of pressure in the tires for a smooth ride.

You run at 50psi? Is that the standard pressure or for those tires?

... cause it seems that the brake fluid evaporated over the summer.
Q1

Interesting. I'm going to have check my fluid levels, but I don't know how the fluid can evaporate. I've never heard of such a thing.

--Russ

[Québec 1]

I run Super Cargo tires on my 2003 trailer, which are range G, and just finished a 6 thousand kilometer trip with no problem at all. I checked the air everyday and had to adjust the pressure (which I kept at 50psi) a little bit to keep a perfect amount of pressure in the tires for a smooth ride.

You run at 50psi? Is that the standard pressure or for those tires?

Yes

... cause it seems that the brake fluid evaporated over the summer.
Q1

Interesting. I'm going to have check my fluid levels, but I don't know how the fluid can evaporate. I've never heard of such a thing.

Well, that's my assumption but it could simply be that use makes the brake fluid go down. Anyhow it's something to check before leaving anyhow.

--Russ

[Catigale]

Inflate your trailer tires to the maximum allowed pressure printed on the sidewall

my 2002 trailer tires say 50 psi cold. You will find the pressure will go up about 10psi on the highway

Do not bleed off air to "correct" for this increase

I check my tires and bearings for heat every hour when trailering. There is very little safety margin on the mac trailer components and they need to be monitored closely.

Bearing buddies won't consume grease on trip of 500 miles or fewer unless they are running hot and failing.

[Duane Dunn, Allegro]

I think all the stock factory tires have always been 50psi cold. Checking once a the start of the day should be fine. You can't really get an accurate ready when you just pull over as the pressure will read high for quite some time.

Fill bearing buddies with a standard grease gun until the spring is about half way compressed, don't over fill or you can end up with grease leaking past the seals. Just visibly look at them occasionally to confirm the spring is still compressed. If over time the spring expands back into the hub you probably have a problem with a seal and are loosing grease. Usually you will know this anyway as there will be a splatter of grease on the inside of the fender and on the hull of the boat. Under normal use there is no need to constantly fill the grease, it is not a consumable item.

[Trouts Dream]

A quick way to check the buddies.
Push on one side then the other, there should be some amount of "rocking". this means there is still grease under pressure. if there is no "rocking" then fill 1/2 like Duanne says.
I keep a grease gun with me on long trips, just in case.

[Capt Sully]

Thanks everyone. all good points. 50lbs is what i'm running, good to know others are also. Bearing Buddys, good info, I would think they would last a few thousand miles without adding grease. This is a great group of people to get questions answered.

[Hardcrab]

As far as the evaporating brake fluid, I don't know what else it could have been in my case either.

I did'nt check my brake fluid level for about 1 1/2 to 2 years, as I only tow about 600 yards every other weekend.
When it was time to tow some distance, I checked the fluid and was greeted with a bone dry and very internally rusted master cylinder.
I towed the 300 miles anyhow on a wing and a prayer with no issues.

No leaks were ever seen anywhere in the system between the few fluid checks that I did do prior to empty and rusted.

Where else did it go?