Product Description
LM 68149 Trailer Bearing (1-3/8" Inside Diameter)
L68149 is a high quality tapered roller bearing found on boat and utility trailers. The 1-3/8'' trailer bearing is intended for high speed use and is stamped with industry standard number L68149. The L68149 trailer bearing can typically be found on standard 5 lug 3,500 lbs trailer axles. Trailer bearings are sold individually, in trailer wheel bearing kits, and in bulk purchase. Matching races L68111 and L68110 can be purchased separately.
Specifications:
- 1-3/8'' Inside diameter
- For use with 3,500# to 4,200# trailer axle
- Fits the #84 trailer spindle
- Can be used with races L68110 and L68111
Rule of Thumb for Trailer Bearing Maintenance: Grease filled trailer bearings should be serviced once per year or every three thousand miles for safe trailering. Oil filled bearings have a different service time frame depending on if you are using Reliable Hubs or TIE DOWN’s Turbo Lube Hubs.
Hub and Hub Drum Packing Procedure
For Spindle Lube Axles:
It is not necessary to pre-grease (pre-pack) your bearings and hub drums. With the SPINDLE-LUBE axle, the bearings can be installed dry because the SPINDLE– LUBE axle contains a built-in hub packing tool in each spindle. You can properly pack and grease your hub or hub drums after they have been installed on the axle.
For Plain (Non Spindle Lube Axles)
When installing bearings in a hub or hub drum for a “plain” spindle axle, it is necessary to pre-pack the bearings prior to installing them in the hub. To pre-pack your bearings you can buy a bearing packer at your local auto parts store, or you can pre-grease your bearings using the grease in the palm method. The standard bearing packing tool contains two convex shaped plates attached to a threaded rod with a grease zerk fitting on the end of the threaded rod. With the bearings in place in the packing tool, you pump grease into the zerk fitting forcing grease through the rollers of the bearing. This bearing is now ready for installation into the hub. With the grease in palm method you put grease in the palm of one hand and then with the other hand, you methodically roll and rotate the bearing into the grease, carefully forcing grease through all the rollers. Once you have pre-packed both the inner and outer bearings, carefully lay them on a totally clean surface. Dirt in the greased bearings and races can drastically shorten bearing life. Next lay the hub or hub drum face down on a table and fill the rear of the hub cavity with liberal amounts of grease, carefully coating the rear race surface. Now install the inner bearing (bearing next to seal) into the rear of the hub, matching the cone of the bearing to the race. (DO NOT INSTALL BACKWARDS). Now, with the pre-greased inner bearing sitting in the hub, add more grease to the top of the rear bearing. There will be a space of about 1/4’’ between the inner bearing and the seal. It is essential that this cavity is filled. Now set the double lip seal squarely atop the rear hub bore. Set a wood block on top of the seal and tap with a hammer until the seal is flush with the rear of the hub. This completes the rear bearing and seal installation. At this point turn the hub over on the table, being careful not to get dirt into the grease at the rear of the hub. Now pack liberal amounts of grease into the inner hub cavity. You are now ready to slide the hub onto the spindle. Clean the spindle with a rag (The inner surface of the bearing and spindle shaft are machined to close tolerances. If the spindle is marred, unclean, or if the rear bearing is not square with the spindle shaft, the bearings may temporarily hang up as you slide the hub in place). Once the hub is fully on the spindle, slide the outer bearing onto the spindle and into the hub (DO NOT INSTALL BACKWARDS)
Pre-Loading Bearings:
Whenever you install new hubs or new bearings and races into an old hub, you should pre-load the bearings. Pre-loading the bearings assures that the races in the hubs are 100% in place against their machined stop points and keeps the hub from wobbling after a few miles. To pre-load the bearings, install the spindle washer and spindle nut onto the spindle with the hub and bearings in place. Tighten the spindle nut finger tight (until snug) and then with channel-lock pliers or a crescent wrench, tighten the spindle nut another 1/4 turn or about 15 to 20 ft pounds of torque. Now turn the hub ten revolutions. This will fully seat the races. Now loosen the spindle nut very loose, then re-snug to finger tight, and engage the nut retaining device (some reverse lubricating spindles use a tab washer for the retaining device). After 20 to 40 miles of highway travel, check to see if the hub is loose on the spindle. Pull the tire in and out a few times. If your hub is loose, you will need to re-snug the spindle nut and re-engage the nut retaining cotter pin or tab washer. NOTE: Never reuse the same tab on the tab washer. They are designed to be used one time only. NEVER run your spindle nut too tight, this will cause your bearings to over heat. And never run your bearings too loose. A very slightly loose spindle nut will run adequately, but too loose and the individual rollers may come apart in the bearings, causing the hub to fracture. You are now ready to install your dust cap. A short piece of 2’’ ID water pipe makes a good tool to install either a plain or spindle lube dust cap. Don’t forget to check out our dust cap installation tools to make the installation even easie
