Trailer tongue weight and other ?'s..

[newracer]

My brand new trailer came with what is comparable to bearing buddies installed by the axle manufacturer.

[def90]

OK, so the plywood shifted the balance point just enough that the trailer now rises up on it's own when I release the lever on the hitch.. So it rides with the tongue pulling up. I'm going to try loading the bikes backwards later this afternoon, that will probably put plenty of weight on the front but will make it tougher to load. Thinking of adding a set of eye bolts in the middle so that I can get the handlebar straps in line with each other.



I'm also going to either weld a piece of round stock to the outside edge of the trailer so the straps have something smoother to ride on or weld an extension off the bottom of the frame forward of the fender to bring the straps further out to the side to avoid touching the sides at all.



Overall not a bad trailer for the $$.. I'll see how it holds up over time after driving on some rough roads and so on. Tractor Supply sells basically the same trailer for about the same price. This trailer is messed up in the fact that it is a drop bed/tilt trailer, however when you release the tongue to tilt the bed the end of the tongue under the bed pushes up on the metal grate. I noticed that the trailer at Tractor Supply has a cutout in the grating to account for this. Even though it's just made out of angle iron I don't know how anyone can make money on one of these at $450 when you look at the supplies and the labor involved..

[brutal]

IMO Bearing Buddies are for lazy people who are not mechanical. Going on a trip, time to lube the bearings, EVERY TIME THEY LEAVE THE DRIVEWAY!! One can and so often Over Lube. It does more damage than good (campers & trailers with brakes) especially.
If you're serious about maintenance you pull the hub, clean the bearings & race. Inspect them for pitting , discoloration etc. You also check the spindle. Then Hand or Mechanically repack them. New wheel seals, reinstall, tighten spindle nut to spec, slap a cotter pin through nut, pop the dust cover back and away you go.

You're entitled to your opinion. I agree with the rest of what you're saying, but not this. See below.

Bearing buddies are for trailers that go in the water to launch a water craft. They're completely wasted on any other trailer and like kazoo said lead to damage by forcing too much grease and overflowing thru the rear hub seal.

Agree WRT watercraft trailers or any trailer that might get submerged. However, proper bearing buddies are designed that excess grease comes out the weep assuming it's clear, not forced through the seals. They are designed to keep positive pressure on the grease inside and keep water out. SOME people tend to, like GK says, over-use them and that can, and will, lead to issues with anything running brakes. Like everything else, you need to know how to properly maintain and use your gear. My trailer axles, bearing, brakes get inspected/repacked yearly. The boat trailer (jetski trailer for 17 years) with bearing buddies gets enough fill to create that positive pressure then I keep an eye on it. Never back a hot trailer in the water...

OK, I know bearing buddies are not a replacement for regular maintenance. What I've read though is that it doesn't hurt to use them on these cheap trailers with small wheels.

...and carry a spare set of bearings...

[brutal]

P.S.

These are NOT proper bearing buddies. They're dust caps with a zerk.



These are proper bearing buddies.



or these

[USMC88-93]

Just dont do what I did and bend the frame from too much tongue weight. (Had no alternative to move a trailer a "short distance" unfortunately) This was self caused and I am afraid to find out what the repair cost would be should it be easily repairable.

[HoneyBadger]

Dannnnnnnnggg! I've never seen that before. Major bummer.

[def90]

Holy crap! How much overweight was it?

[brutal]

Wow, I hope you didn't do that on public roads.

[newracer]

To bend the frame and tub it had to be a lot of weight.

[ruthabagah]

To bend the frame and tub it had to be a lot of weight.

Yeah. What he said.
How much weight was that? I am just wondering, if the jeep already had some frame damage.