Murphys Law
Submitted: Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 17:13
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Member - Wayne B (NSW)
Purchased 2nd hand camper trailer yesterday $23000. Towing it
home only got 100km down the road and the wheel falls off the trailer. Bearings collapsed.
Trailer is fitted with Alcon Electric 10 Brakes so off I go to get the necessary parts. Assemble it together and find 2mm play in bearings. Old Stub axle is 2 mm too long for new hub and bearing??? Assemble old hub and
check still 2 mm play.
I cant figure out what is wrong all looks ok. No wider bearing available so I find a 2mm thick cir-clip and place it in the hub then press the bearing cone down onto the cir-clip. All Fixed.
I cant find anything wrong so I guess the thing has been like this for some time and that is why the bearing failed. I will
check out the other side to - night.
Talk about taking the gloss of your new purchase Bummer
Cheers
Wayne B
Reply By: Member - Wayne B (NSW) - Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 20:44
Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 20:44
Ok the other side was the same. Axle too long for hub. Only on this side there are two washers one with a larger dia to go over the bearing part of the axle and the other to go over the threaded part. In effect a stepped washer. Problem is during assembly the larger washer falls down onto the threaded part, the guy tightens
the nut up but there is no tension on the bearing.
Anyway my 2mm internal cir clip behind the outer bearing cone has fixed the problem.
Yep Private sale form a nice couple, I dont blame them they would not have a clue about things like that. It is a great trailer Aussie Swag 2004 model
Anyway feeling a little happier now.
Cheers
Wayne B
AnswerID:
478505
Follow Up By: MEMBER - Darian, SA - Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 21:19
Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 21:19
Yep - the Swag looks a good robust all round off road camper - we met the owners of the company at a van show back around 2003 (Noel and Julia as I recall) - seemed like straight up people to me - after a good demo of the ins and outs we later opted for a Campomatic
Ranger M3, preferring that style of kitchen.
Know what you mean about bearings and hubs - I did my own servicing and always carried a complete spares kit on trips, for at least 1 hub - knowing your hubs first hand becomes vital of course, when you get onto the rougher roads.
FollowupID:
754005
Follow Up By: Member - Frank P (NSW) - Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 22:32
Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 22:32
Wayne,
It's an off-road camper, is it not?
With hubs/bearings/axles compromised like that, I'd say it's not fit for purpose.
Your "fix" has cured the symptom but not the disease.
I think you have grounds, even as the second owner and even if out of warranty, to pursue the manufacturer for a properly engineered and manufactured matching set of axles and hubs.
I suspect that without that, in arduous duty (eg corrugations on an extended tour), your current "fixed" rig will fail.
All the best
Frank
FollowupID:
754014
Follow Up By: Shaker - Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 23:07
Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 23:07
How long can you expect manufacturers to hold your hand for?
The trailer is 8 years old, it could have had difference hubs fitted in that time!
FollowupID:
754023
Reply By: Member - Wayne B (NSW) - Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 23:42
Thursday, Feb 23, 2012 at 23:42
I am not worried about it. I am satisfied it will not fail and is structurally sound.
The trap is if the person servicing the Van dose not know about this little quirk then it could be disastrous. However I now know about it and so its no longer a problem for me, I am not expecting any further failure with the bearings.
According to the original owner (I bought it of them) said the bearings were serviced recently before their last trip. I cant say much about the failed side as there was nothing much left however the other side the grease was fresh although not much of it, and there was movement in the hub. Bearings were ok but I replaced them anyhow.
I imagine they have rectified the problem in later models.
I also met the company Owner at the recent
Newcastle show and he is a great bloke. His product is fantastic. That is what made me go looking for a secondhand one. I got a good deal and sometimes everything simply dose not go to plan as I said Murphy s Law is always there.
Cheers
Wayne B
AnswerID:
478525
Follow Up By: member - mazcan - Friday, Feb 24, 2012 at 12:07
Friday, Feb 24, 2012 at 12:07
hi wayne
its ok from your point of view to blame it on poor old murphy
but the real issue is you failed to give the wheels a shake prior to buying it
if you had have done this simple
check you would have discovered that the bearings where loose and needed attention before blazing off down the road and hense losing a wheel
the simple shake the wheel
test is something i practise on a regular basis before driving off with anything on the towbar and it has payed off on several occasions over many years
be a man and admit it was not murphys fault it was clearly yours lol
not having a go at you but i'm a realistic done to earth no b/s bloke
cheers
barry
FollowupID:
754058
Follow Up By: Member - Wayne B (NSW) - Friday, Feb 24, 2012 at 16:05
Friday, Feb 24, 2012 at 16:05
Barry
Hindsight is a wonderful thing everyone knows what should have been done after something has happened. The seller told me the bearings had recently been done and they had been, however the preload was incorrect and who ever repacked the bearings must have been short on grease as there was not much in there.
Anyway I only had to travel a max of 200km
home where the bearings would have been dismantled and repacked as part of my normal preparation.
So I am still going to blame MURPHY lol.
Cheers
Wayne B
FollowupID:
754086