roy 13 #1 Posted February 25, 2021 About to install my spindles (418-A -48" deck) & I;m following the advise learned here on Red Square. Inner seals removed, outers in place & I;m filling up the cavities with "red & Tacky". as suggested. Now, down the road, when I add grease I;m assuming the 2 holes on the small covers on bottom of spindles are grease weeping holes to let you know when you;ve greased enough. But, with outer bearing seal installed, there not gonna weep unless you blow the outer seal, eh? I saw a solution on u-tube, tell me if this makes sense. The guy drilled a tiny hole on the side of each spindle, when grease weeps out of this tiny hole you know enough grease has been added. What you think? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pullstart 62,807 #2 Posted February 25, 2021 @peter lena is the resident grease guy.... sounds like you’re on the right track though! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc724 925 #3 Posted February 25, 2021 I am not a resident grease guy. I am a mechanical engineer. Every deck I rebuilt, I installed high quality double sealed bearings. Same for front wheel bearings. With a single sealed bearings when you pump grease into them you are bound to pop the other seal. Now water gets in and you know the rest. The hole in the spindle housing sounds like a good idea, but it operates in a really dirty environment and the hole will get filled eventually. There goes your "safety valve" Bear in mind that all these tractors were designed in the 50's and 60's and even the newer ones carried over the old designs because they worked. I don't think the Ponds ever dreamed that the useful life of many of these machines is 30+ years. By the way, when buying bearings, you get what you pay for. Sure, you can buy Chinese made front wheel bearings with drawn steel cups for $5-6 (maybe a bit more now). I opted to buy bearings with cups machined from billet steel. Yes, they did cost $12-$16 each, but I never had to touch them again and I never had grease oozing out around the spindle, only to drop on the ground, and then get tracked into the house, onto the carpet, and then have to pay a person to come clean the carpet. Not to mention the grief I would get from the Mrs. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
roy 13 #4 Posted February 25, 2021 Yes, I get what your saying, I thought about adding a little set screw in the drilled hole to stop debris blocking it up. But, this machine, 1987 418-A hasn't been touched other than regular services, so I have to think with new bearings ( set was 120 bucks) & a bolt kit to hold her all together I doubt I will have to worry about her letting me down, at least in my lifetime. I will leave a note for my kids, " Boys, if the wheel horse acts up, go to red square & they will look after any issues". Thanks for your comments Cheers Roy 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
peter lena 8,583 #5 Posted February 26, 2021 ROY , just a reply on your tiny vent / grease proof hole , never did that on mine , or had an issue after the grease upgrade. but if you want to verify grease is full , that would be it . pete Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cschannuth 3,816 #6 Posted February 26, 2021 6 hours ago, doc724 said: I opted to buy bearings with cups machined from billet steel. Do you have a source for those high quality front wheel bearings? Thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JoeM 7,871 #7 Posted February 26, 2021 18 hours ago, roy said: with outer bearing seal installed, there not gonna weep unless you blow the outer seal, eh I have taken many of these spindles apart and never have seen the outer seal blown out. The decks spindles that I have now, that are still grease-able, were assembled full and just topped off with a couple shots of grease at the beginning of the year and mid year. Over the years I have moved away from serviceable bearings. Contamination is always and issue. I am with @doc724, using high quality double sealed bearings is the way to go. Bearing manufacturers like Timken, and SKF, use high quality grease in their bearings and no need to pop any seal to regrease. If you are using cheaper manufactured ones. it may help. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
roy 13 #8 Posted February 26, 2021 Just loading spindles up now, using the Lucas Red & Tacky stuff, even smells good. I got my bearings from Brian at K & B horse parts, along with a new center shaft, other odds & ends. I decided to use as much new deck hardware as I could, got the sliders for the deck adjuster thingy, & a couple of 3/8" -16 carriage bolts all from local Toro dealer, seemed a bit pricey. So for the rest of the bolts, almost all 3/8" 16 x 1" or 1.5" I went to Bolts Plus in Newmarket & got 8-1" carriage bolts, lock nuts & 6- 1.5" bolts, lock nuts for 1/2 the price of what at Toro hit me for! I;ve left the top & bottom seals on, filled up the spindles with the Lucas stuff, I figure I can tell by the gun pressure if she needs a drink of grease couple times a season. I use the horse for lawn only, which is only 1/2 acre, the big old 418-A never breaks a sweat cutting my place. I;ve been looking for a snowblower up here in the great white North, but on the very rare occasion one does come up, you could buy a 2nd car for what they're asking for them. I;ve only seen two come up in the last few years, one a rusted pile of junk, parts missing, for only $1,000. the other, a nice looking 2 stage machine, no numbers or distinguishing markings to figure out what it would fit, owner claimed it fit every Toro/wheel Horse ever made, so its still available. I;m trying to get him to send me some pics, to post to hopefully determine its identity Thanks for all the comments gentlemen, Roy 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
roy 13 #9 Posted March 3, 2021 On 2/25/2021 at 11:27 PM, cschannuth said: Do you have a source for those high quality front wheel bearings? Thanks SKF pretty well known to be one of "the" bearing makers world wide. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lee1977 6,648 #10 Posted March 3, 2021 13 minutes ago, roy said: SKF pretty well known to be one of "the" bearing makers world wide. You can find the machined front wheel bearings on Ebay. I don't know if any company makes better ones. The stamped steel housing ones will not last. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
roy 13 #11 Posted March 3, 2021 All I know is the original bearings were SFK & have been in those spindles since 1987. One of them started getting noisy last season so I figured if they lasted that long, I'm okay with using the same brand again. I will certainly keep an eye on them & thanks for the tip Roy 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cschannuth 3,816 #12 Posted March 3, 2021 51 minutes ago, Lee1977 said: You can find the machined front wheel bearings on Ebay. I don't know if any company makes better ones. The stamped steel housing ones will not last. Denny Clarke turned me on to the machined sealed bearings at ME Miller tire. They just arrived and they are very impressive and about $6/each. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
roy 13 #13 Posted March 3, 2021 Man, that's a great price for good bearings! Roy 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites