Hey guys i have an 04 mastercraft with the trailer that comes with the boat its a dual axle and one of the oil baths has turned white and the wheel gets really hot when i trailer, the dealer told me to take the tire off and that it would work fine as a quasi single axle trailer. <BR> <BR>Does anyone have experience with this, will it work or is it bad for the trailer, I'm afraid I will do more damage trailering it to even get fixed, It gets extremely hot just going less than 5mins. <BR> <BR>Any tips advice would be greatly appreciated, Hope everyone gets some waking in this weekend!

It will work temporarily while you get the bearings, races and seal replaced. Not sure why you would do it other than to just take it to someone to get that fixed???

Hey Brett <BR> <BR>I know its an easy fix but with work I havent had a chance to get into the dealership and I want to go wakeboarding this weekend, <BR> <BR>So it will be okay?

What boat do you have and do you know what the mastercraft axles are rated at, weight wise? If it is a somewhat short drive to the lake then I think you will be ok. Is it on the front or rear axle. If it is on the front you will have more tongue weight. Do you have a full size truck?

Brett, <BR> <BR>04 x2 small boat <BR> <BR>Yeah I have an f250, its on the front axle, dont know the weight but they sell single axle trailers with the boats so the they should be good to go, or that is my thought? <BR> <BR>real short drive 5-8mins <BR> <BR>My main question is what is the smarter move let it get hot or remove? <BR> <BR>Thanks for the help <BR> <BR>Mike <BR> <BR>(Message edited by shoulin on July 02, 2009)

Also are there brakes on that axle that you want to take the wheel off of? Some trailers have brakes on both axles, and some only on the front one. Would not want to drive any distance with brakes only on one wheel. <BR> <BR>I had a flat on a Shasta trip, pulled off the flat one and drove a few miles to a tire store. Many have done this before. No problem. (VLX on an Extreme trailer).

If I am thinking correctly, the MC trailers have the torsion springs, not the typical leaf spring setup. On my leaf spring setup, I would downright scared that the hub might hit the ground and scrape. Heard it said you can chain the axle to the trailer frame so it won't bottom out if you have to run without a tire and rim. <BR> <BR>At least check it first by removing the rim and removing the jack to see how close the hub get's to the ground. If it's the brake axle, be careful because the rotor is even bigger in diameter. I'd also consider disengaging the brakes if it's single axle and you are gonna lose one side. <BR> <BR>DRIVE SLOW. Good luck and happy 4th.

For that kind of distance with an f250 just take it off. If the bearing are shot and they get hot there is a possibility of causing damage to the axle. <BR> <BR>Buzz may have brought up a good point on the brakes though. I don't think it should matter too much though. I don't think you can mess up the brakes just having them on one side. the only problem is maybe it pulls to one side when you slow down. Crap, with that boat and an F250 I would just put in the lockout tool for the brakes and not use them at all. Just give yourself a little more room behind the car in front of you.

i think that the smarter move is to take it off and get it fixed before you trailer it. but if you have to I would take the tire off because the bearing are most likely shot and if you keep on driving it you could ruin the bearing races then you would be looking at replacing the whole hub rather then the bearings. do you know if it is the bearings or does it just need greased? does that axle have brakes on it are the brakes dragging?

I drove a boat for over 3 hours at 55 mph in an emergency situation with 3 tires, with no damage or no issues, 5-8 miles ( no problem) imo <BR> <BR>(Message edited by supra on July 02, 2009)

If I could squirt some grease in it I think it would be okay its just all white for whatever reason, <BR> <BR>Yeah to trailer to dealer is at least 30 mins away so either way im screwed im just worried Im gonna really f something up and instead of under 200$ to fix its going to be a lot more, Im going to check with the dealer again and then take it off and get it fixed soon, Thanks for the help <BR> <BR>Yeah don't know about the brakes?

Damn, $200 for that is kind of ridiculous. Bearings, races, seal and a boat buddy is only about $40 cost and For a mechanic it shouldn't take more than 30 minutes to do this.

Get it fixed when you can but a short trip on three tires is not a problem.

Cool thanks for the help guys I appreciate it,

If you have leaf springs chain that end of the axle up to the frame while its on the ground with weight on it. Then jack it up and take the tire off. That way the axle rides close to the normal height going down the road. For that short of a trip I wouldnt sweat it. <BR>Since you have a 250 I would disengage the brakes too. <BR>Its not that hard of a fix though...get the parts and change them yourself. But if thats not an option you should be ok.

I have tied one of my axle's up with the tie down straps for my boat a couple of times. Had to drive 20 miles that way. Just tie it up and drive slow.

Depending on the trailer you might not have to tie up the axle. My Extreme trailer I don't have to and I can drive all day on 3 tires.