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jkmccoy
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Joined: 07 October 2005
Posts: 142
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| Posted: 09 July 2009 at 10:44pm | IP Logged
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No big news, no questions, just an observation that some people might find amusing...
I'm going to tow my boat to the coast (350mi.) next week so this week I repacked the wheel bearings on the trailer and adjusted the brakes. This afternoon I hooked up the trailer and went for a little run on the highway to make sure everything was working right. Before I left the driveway I checked the temperature of the hubs with my non-contact IR thermometer. It was a pretty typical west-Texas afternoon (hot) but I was a little surprised that the hubs were 130F (on the sunny side of the trailer) before I towed it anywhere. I wondered how hot the hubs would get if they started at 130F. Actually, after 20 miles the hubs had cooled off to 125F and stayed there for the next 60 miles!
I really liked using the IR thermometer to check temps. It gives great confidence about what is happening to the bearings. Also, I probably won't blister my hand the next time a bearing does go bad!
Cheers,
Kelly McCoy
West Texas
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jeffnick
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Joined: 04 April 2003
Location: Spartanburg, SC USA
Posts: 512
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| Posted: 10 July 2009 at 5:46pm | IP Logged
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My brakes, both drum and disc, surge and electric, will almost always show higher temps at the very beginning of a trip. I attribute this to slight rust/corrosion making the clearances tighter, but eventually the stuff wears off and the brakes/hubs run cooler.
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Nick in Spartanburg, SC
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jkmccoy
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Joined: 07 October 2005
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| Posted: 14 July 2009 at 1:15am | IP Logged
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Jeff,
I may not have been completely clear. The point of my post (and what I thought might be amusing) was that the bearings were cooler running down the highway than they were just sitting in the driveway.
Cheers,
Kelly McCoy
West Texas
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jeffnick
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Joined: 04 April 2003
Location: Spartanburg, SC USA
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| Posted: 14 July 2009 at 1:31pm | IP Logged
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I understand - it is strange. My point is, now that you're monitoring the temps, not to be surprised if they run hotter than 'normal' at your first checkpoint.
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Nick in Spartanburg, SC
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TranquilityBase
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Joined: 02 April 2004
Posts: 3777
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| Posted: 15 July 2009 at 12:38am | IP Logged
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I used my IR thermometer to record operating temperatures for many sections of my twin engines such as manifolds, thermostat housings etc, etc, etc.
I recorded the readings on a hand drawn diagram of the engines with the idea that if I ever feel I have temperature issues in future I will have a baseline of measures.
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Delusion 47 (with Phantom drives).
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SwampNut
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Joined: 08 February 2006
Location: Chandler, AZ
Posts: 3843
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| Posted: 15 July 2009 at 9:33am | IP Logged
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Same here.
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2001 Bayliner Ciera 2455
5.7 Bravo III
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jkmccoy
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Joined: 07 October 2005
Posts: 142
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| Posted: 25 July 2009 at 9:50pm | IP Logged
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We got back from Port Aransas yesterday. 360 miles down, 390 back (I took a longer route home to avoid construction in San Antonio). Using the IR thermometer to check tire and bearing temperatures gave a really confident feeling.
I also use the IR thermometer to check temps at various locations on the engines and transmissions.
Cheers,
Kelly McCoy
West Texas
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BoatUS Club House Messageboards : Trailer Boating
Topic: Trailer bearing temperatures.
