check your wheel nuts...

[Trailer Guy]

Now that we're all starting to venture out on to the water a bit more often, after the boats been laid up for a while, just do a couple of quick checks before you set off, it may save you a bit of swearing and tyre kicking further down the road....

1. check your coupling head - make sure the catch engages
2. make sure the breakaway cable / secondary coupling is safe and use it too
3. check your tyres for perishing and cracking over winter (check the pressure while your at it)
4. make sure the boats' secure (don't just rely on the winch strap)
5. make sure your wheel nuts / bolts are torqued up....

[peterwhite]

Good bit of advice. Definitely +1 for that one. On a separate note what would be your advice ref wheel nuts. At a service would you recommend the studs be changed? A friend has just had his trailer serviced and after 150 miles both back wheels came off. (Twin axle). He also checked torque before leaving? Police claimed trailer was incorrectly set up??? Checked nose weight and gauge reads 80 kg. I would appreciate your thoughts. Cheers.

[Festinghouse]

cant quite see why youve posted the pics, looks like theres plenty of life left in those hubs yet

[spartacus]

Originally Posted by Festinghouse

cant quite see why youve posted the pics, looks like theres plenty of life left in those hubs yet

That's what I thought.

I worked on the bearings on my trailer yesterday, repacked them and checked for play. Need to order a spare set of bearings and hub nuts as a back-up. Also checked wheel nut torque.

Don't wont to be overtaken by one of my wheels like something out of Laurel and Hardy!

[Poly]

Originally Posted by Festinghouse

cant quite see why youve posted the pics, looks like theres plenty of life left in those hubs yet

and there is 4 of them - 2 more than really needed.

Out of interest what causes them to go like that? is it corrosion or has the wheel worked loose and worn them down? I've never seen any obvious wear on my car or trailer ones.

[wavelength]

had a near do with wheel studs many years ago, trailing a mate's boat to Ireland for a fishing festival. Middle of the night, pulled up at a T junction in darkest Wales, when we set off I thought the car's half shaft had gone. On inspection with torch however we found we had lost two trailer wheel studs from one wheel completely and the two left were "waisted" and about to go. Mate had had puncture on beach and replaced wheel down on the sands a week before and not rechecked the torque. Various lessons learned - very nearly the hard way Trailer recovered home by Green Flag and we set off again the next night.

[9D280]

Seen that before - it's got something to do with matching the wheel nuts to the dents in the wheel.

Wrong profile allows a lot more play than if I the matching set is used resulting in huge amounts of wear (& if you are unlucky the un-doing of the nuts) as the wheel moves around.

Someone I'm sure can give a better explanation than me.

[Poly]

Originally Posted by 9D280

Seen that before - it's got something to do with matching the wheel nuts to the dents in the wheel.

Wrong profile allows a lot more play than if I the matching set is used resulting in huge amounts of wear (& if you are unlucky the un-doing of the nuts) as the wheel moves around.

Someone I'm sure can give a better explanation than me.

Ah that makes sense.