Troubleshooting Hub Play On The Spindle With A Tow Dolly

Question:

I have a tandem tow dolly hd. It has spindle axles part number unknown but when I push at the top of the wheels both sides it moves in and out about a quarter of an inch. Rotor and all. Are spindle axles designed to have free play to allow shift. Or are these toast? I know they arent like hubs that would be wrenched tight but this seems different Just recently blew a tire ripping off the fender and after changing just seems odd. Thanks

asked by: Ryan

Tow Dolly
(click to enlarge)

Expert Reply:

Hey Ryan,

From what I can see in your picture it looks like you either have an electric drum brake assembly so you should have a standard hub/drum setup. If the hub is moving in and out on the spindle then the bearings either are the wrong size or just aren't seating onto the spindle correctly. You should not be able to pull or push the hub back and forth on the spindle. When putting the hub on you'll need to use a wrench to tighten down the spindle nut to seat the bearings and then you'll back it off slightly to get your cotter pin or nut retainer on. If you don't back it off the nut could potentially pinch the outer bearing and cause heat to build and ruin the bearing.

I've attached a short video below where I go over how to install a trailer hub that you can check out and then go back and check your hubs. Let me know what you find and we can keep troubleshooting.

expert reply by: Kevin C