Wet bolt won't take grease

[bogen2]

I attempted to lubricate the wet bolts on my suspension today and one of the zerks would not accept grease. I really leaned into the lever on the grease gun but it wouldn't budge. All the rest of the wet bolts seemed to take grease, although on most it squeezed out on just the zerk side. Not sure if this is normal as I expected the grease to come out both ends. This is the first time I've done this - I had the shop that repacked my bearings in the past do the lube as well and there was no mention of a problem.

Any ideas on how I can get that one stubborn zerk to take grease? And is it normal for the grease to only squeeze out one end?

Bob

[Jlawles2]

You can try to relieve pressure on the wet bolt by jacking up the trailer by the frame, jacking up the axle, or if you can jack between the axle and the frame (this will help relive pressure on the bolt).

This is a known issue if the exit hole for the grease ends up in the wrong location and the spring or other component pushes against the hole. In the worst of instances you may have a wet bolt that is not completely drilled (noted here on the site by someone with a replacement set). To test the drilled theory, you will need to pull the zerk from a known good bolt and the suspect bolt, then use a wire or something else to measure the depth of the good hole (bend wire over when it reaches the bottom), then repeat on the suspect bolt. If wire is more than 1/8" from the bend then it's probably not drilled all the way. At that point, bend a hook in the end of the wire and "feel" around for the cross drill that allows the grease to exit.

[Cate&Rob]

Hi Bob,

Lifting the frame adjacent to the problem bolt is the best alternative to open the space between the bushing and the grease hole. How confident are you that shop you hired to do this previously was actually able to get grease into this bushing? If this bushing has been running dry, it may be in need of replacement. Seeing the grease squeeze out just one side of the bushing is pretty normal. The clearance in one direction from the grease hole will always be more open than the other direction. Movement of the suspension will distribute the grease.

Rob

[TucsonJim]

You can try to relieve pressure on the wet bolt by jacking up the trailer by the frame, jacking up the axle, or if you can jack between the axle and the frame (this will help relive pressure on the bolt).

This is a known issue if the exit hole for the grease ends up in the wrong location and the spring or other component pushes against the hole. In the worst of instances you may have a wet bolt that is not completely drilled (noted here on the site by someone with a replacement set). To test the drilled theory, you will need to pull the zerk from a known good bolt and the suspect bolt, then use a wire or something else to measure the depth of the good hole (bend wire over when it reaches the bottom), then repeat on the suspect bolt. If wire is more than 1/8" from the bend then it's probably not drilled all the way. At that point, bend a hook in the end of the wire and "feel" around for the cross drill that allows the grease to exit.

Joseph. On my under drilled wet bolt, it wasn't the main hole that the zerk screws into. It was the side hole that wasn't drilled all the way into the main chamber.

Jim

[Country Campers]

On our fifth wheel I usually use auto level and then lower the rear jacks a little bit more, this helps take some of the tension off of the wet bolts.

Brian

[Jlawles2]

Joseph. On my under drilled wet bolt, it wasn't the main hole that the zerk screws into. It was the side hole that wasn't drilled all the way into the main chamber.

Jim

Good Point Jim. This is also why I suggested the "HOOK" on the end of the wire to feel for the cross hole.

[bogen2]

It seems that the best option to try next is lifting by the frame. But I’m not sure how to do that. What type of jack would I need? I have a small 4 ton hydraulic jack but that barely works to jack up one wheel.

Bob

[Cate&Rob]

You will likely need some amount of wooden "cribbing" to get the jack high enough to lift the frame. You probably don't need the "safety" jack stand in the picture unless you start removing things. I agree that you 4 ton is probably not enough . . . I don't think you need the 20 ton in the picture, it was something I had for other purposes. About half way in between would probably work. You only need to lift the frame a small amount . . . maybe an inch or two at the most to take the weight off the hanger bolt. The tire should not lift off the ground.

Rob

[Jlawles2]

You can help the jack out a bit by moving away from the axles toward the rear. Based that you have 5,200 lb axles the max you should see per side is 2.6 ton (each axle is only good for 2,600 lbs per tire). Your little 4 ton is either on its last leg, or extremely over rated by the MFG.

Being that you have a 5er with the self leveling vertical jacks, you could lower the front, then ground the rear jacks and pick the front back up, I would not try to lift the axles but focus on taking about 1/3 to 1/2 the weight off of them. You may not need to completely lift the axle off the ground, but relieve some of the pressure between the bolt and the spring bushing.

[bogen2]

Jlawles2 unfortunately I don’t have the self leveling jacks so I’ll have to try the jack.

I pulled the zerk out to make sure it wasn’t plugged - it wasn’t. Stuck a probe inside and there is grease in there but looks very black. Now getting a bit nervous that this thing might fail.

Bob

[familytruckster4]

My 337 does the same thing, I just run the rear jacks down a little extra and it usually takes grease then.

[Cate&Rob]

[USER="5974"] Now getting a bit nervous that this thing might fail.

Bob

Very unlikely that lack of grease is going to cause a suspension failure. After all . . . the vast majority of RV trailers get towed about with never a thought to greasing the wet bolt if they even have them. If there is no grease, the bushing will likely be badly worn. This leads to suspension noise . . . not a failure. If lifting the trailer slightly doesn’t allow grease flow, we will get into how to replace the bushing and orient the grease hole correctly.

Rob

[bogen2]

Cate&Rob I jacked up the frame a couple of inches but the wet bolt still doesn’t take grease. Any tips on fixing this problem? Is this a backyard repair or is it time to find a trailer suspension shop?

Bob

[TucsonJim]

Cate&Rob I jacked up the frame a couple of inches but the wet bolt still doesn’t take grease. Any tips on fixing this problem? Is this a backyard repair or is it time to find a trailer suspension shop?

Bob

Hi Bob,

Quick question. Do you know how much PSI your grease gun is delivering? I have found that using a grease gun with 10,000 PSI can make a difference.

If it just won't take grease, it may very well be a defective bolt that was not properly drilled. The only solution is to either live with it or replace it. If you elect to replace it, would you like to tackle this job yourself? Any chance you're coming to the national rally or any of the western rallies? If so, I can help you swap it out.

Jim

[Cate&Rob]

bogen2

With the tire still on the ground, you should be able to lift the frame until there is zero load on the problem bolt and remove it. Then you can clean / align / replace as required. A new torque retaining "crunch" nut is required when the bolt is reinstalled.

WRT repairing yourself or taking to a suspension shop . . . everybody's comfort level with these things is different. Definitely do not let us talk you into something you are not comfortable with.

If you decide to do this, hold the bolt with a wrench while loosening the nut (to prevent stripping the serrations in the hanger. Press the bolt out using a C clamp and a deep socket over the bolt head. If the bolt binds, lift/lower the jack to find the exact zero load spot. Reverse this process for reinstalling.

Rob