East Manufacturing?s Elite wheel-end assembly eliminates the usual practice of replacing the seals whenever a brake job is performed on trailers.
Maintenance savings are estimated at $1,200 over the five-year life of the special limited warranty. An exclusive with East, the Elite wheel-end assembly is now standard equipment on all East aluminum dump, refuse/transfer and platform trailers.
The only regular maintenance required is a visual inspection of the East Elite assemblies for traces of leaking oil. If any problem occurs, the first owner is covered by a special limited warranty good for five years or 350,000 miles, whichever comes first.
Typically, wheel-end seals are replaced as a preventive measure whenever the brakes are overhauled. The wheels are off, and the wheel-end assemblies are accessible. The cost for replacing the seals averages about $60 per assembly, parts and labor. The cost of doing a two-axle trailer would be $240. Do that annually for five years, and the owner of a conventional trailer would be out $1,200.
The East Elite wheel-end assembly employs a hub machined to the precise dimensions of the Timken bearings it will house. The seals are Scotseal Plus XL by Chicago Rawhide.
The hub nut on the East Elite wheel assembly locks securely and allows only 0.003 of an inch of end play, a 40% improvement over current industry standards. The locking feature means that the nut cannot back off over time. The less end-play in a wheel assembly, the less wear on the seals, and the less likelihood of seal failure and burned-out bearings.
The East Elite wheel-end assembly is filled with synthetic oil, which resists the high-temperature breakdown that is characteristic of refined oils.