Knott Waterproof Hubs

I have a late model EZ Loader trailer. It has Knott Waterproof hubs. Did some quick googling and apparently these are "no maintenance" and maker says to not add bearing buddies. Anyone have experience with how these hold up?

I don't, but I am curious as to why no buddy hubs.


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They are a sealed bearing. No practical way to add grease.

This thread suggests they are not very reliable. You may want to change to std tapered bearing hubs.

https://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.php?306544-Knott-trailer-bearings/page2&s=b69c6abc82dd2f0b0dd379d1347a0cf9

This is not encouraging. Looks like I have a little time before I might have to take some action.

Gator, not sure why they (the manufacturer) say not to use bearing buddies other than this is supposed to be a sealed system. Truth be told, I know next to nothing about the whole subject involving bearings, spindles, hubs, etc. Looks like I will be getting an education soon. Haha.

I hope it's "Knott" too late but....STAY AWAY!!!! I bought a Magic Tilt trailer new in 2013 and it came with these hubs. I used the trailer exclusively in saltwater and after the first year I went to repack the bearings. I disassembled the hubs and removed the bearing, which is like an inner and outer bearing in one single race...if that makes sense. I googled the numbers on the bearing and couldn't find any matches. Ended up calling the dealer and getting a whole new torsion axle under warranty. The new axle had normal tapered spindles luckily.

One reason not to use bearing buddies is they pressurize the hub, hub has a rear seal. What happens to the rear seal when you put pressure on the hub ? Ever wonder why you have grease on the back side of your wheels when bearing buddies I mean killers is used. The pressure blows out the seal and wala grease everywhere. That's not the bad part, that seal also keeps water out, YIKES I don't know who invented the easy lube axel with the grease fitting in the end of the axel but that's the cats meow. Its the one that has a little rubber plug in the dust cap that you just pull out and pump grease into the end of the axel which flows out between the bearings and back to the dust cap to tell you its full with out pressure. No place for water because the hub is full of grease and the seal stays intact. Now that's some good engineering right there and no bearing killers needed.

Well the hubs your referencing is from Tracker. Are at least there the ones they have been using for many years. I have found with my trailer hubs, that the rubber plug on the end. Will get old and shrink are crack. This will sling grease out and let water in.

So what I do, and a few other guys I know. And a few guys on another site does. Some just buy new plugs every year so they stay tight and good. Or as I do. 2, after putting new grease in with the zerk until old grease is pushed out and new grease is showing. I take the zerk out. And put a Buddy Hub on. Then put just enough grease in it to take the air out, usually just one pump of the gun. This totally keeps the water out and the grease in. You're not putting any force on the seals. Doing this I have gone to seasons before taking the hubs off. And no water in the grease looks brand-new still. Yes it's a little more work but like I say, I don't have to touch them very often. The easier path would be just to make sure those rubber plugs are new every season so that they stay tight and not dry rotted.


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Darn...this is such a great site! Thanks, Gator Glen et al.

" The easier path would be just to make sure those rubber plugs are new every season so that they stay tight and not dry rotted."

I have those types of hubs. I just bought a new rubber cap since the old one crumbled when I went to put grease in. I did buy an extra cap but never thought about a replacement system every year. I'll own a handful of them now.

thanks again, richg99

p.s. just made a note to do this job on my birthday, every year!

Now I am confused, which is kind of my normal state I guess.

GatorGlen and Rich, I think you are referring to something different than the Knott Waterproof hubs I have. As far as I can tell there is no rubber plug. Am I missing something?

Sorry if I added to the confusion.

I believe that the hubs that GatorGlen referred to are called EZHubs.

They are NOT Knott hubs.

I found this video. They appear to be the ones that are on my spindles.
https://www.sltrailers.com/site/mobile?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sltrailers.com%2FWhat_are_EZ_Lube_Hubs_.html%3Fgclid%3DCjwKEAjw1PPJBRDq9dGHivbXmhcSJAATZd_BCIeQX56Ldyp-t9m6m6NIPFm_hMCBAx4_z8-5wB8sgxoCRC3w_wcB#2618

Sorry, yes the hubs me and skipper 123 where referring to are the ones in richg99 video


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No problem guys. Got my hopes up for a minute. Hahah.

gatorglenn said:

Well the hubs your referencing is from Tracker. Are at least there the ones they have been using for many years. I have found with my trailer hubs, that the rubber plug on the end. Will get old and shrink are crack. This will sling grease out and let water in.

So what I do, and a few other guys I know. And a few guys on another site does. Some just buy new plugs every year so they stay tight and good. Or as I do. 2, after putting new grease in with the zerk until old grease is pushed out and new grease is showing. I take the zerk out. And put a Buddy Hub on. Then put just enough grease in it to take the air out, usually just one pump of the gun. This totally keeps the water out and the grease in. You're not putting any force on the seals. Doing this I have gone to seasons before taking the hubs off. And no water in the grease looks brand-new still. Yes it's a little more work but like I say, I don't have to touch them very often. The easier path would be just to make sure those rubber plugs are new every season so that they stay tight and not dry rotted.


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Hi guys, I've worked on most all brands of trailers over the last 10 years. The only problem with "Bearing Buddy's" is the bad information you find on their, and other's, website(s). You only need to put 1 to 2 pumps of grease into the Bearing Buddy about every 6 months. This does not create pressure on the grease seal. After about 3 years of doing this you will most likely see the spring in the Bearing Buddy begin to compress. When this begins to happen the cavity inside the hub has become full, and pressure is most definitely beginning to be exerted on the seal. When you first see the spring begin to compress you want to remove the Bearing Buddy, remove the hub, and clean all parts therein, including the bearings. Repack the bearings, using a tool, mine is like a canister, that squeezes fresh grease into, through, and out the Bearing. Apply clean grease to the spindle and the inside of the hub. Put it all back together and begin the 2 pump method all over again. Unfortunately, most sites, including, Bearing Buddy's, tell you to pump grease into the Bearing Buddy until it begins to compress and repeat this process, over and over again. Problem being, as others have mentioned, is that pressure IS being created and the only place for all this excess grease to go is out the back, through the grease seal. And trouble begins. If you do not want to undertake the above cleaning process, find a good marina near you and they should be able to direct you to a reputable trailer service repair shop.

skipper123 said:

One reason not to use bearing buddies is they pressurize the hub, hub has a rear seal. What happens to the rear seal when you put pressure on the hub ? Ever wonder why you have grease on the back side of your wheels when bearing buddies I mean killers is used. The pressure blows out the seal and wala grease everywhere. That's not the bad part, that seal also keeps water out, YIKES I don't know who invented the easy lube axel with the grease fitting in the end of the axel but that's the cats meow. Its the one that has a little rubber plug in the dust cap that you just pull out and pump grease into the end of the axel which flows out between the bearings and back to the dust cap to tell you its full with out pressure. No place for water because the hub is full of grease and the seal stays intact. Now that's some good engineering right there and no bearing killers needed.

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Every bearing buddy that I have used had a relief hole so it is next to impossible to put any real pressure in the hub.

That said I have also never had one that actually worked as marketed (kept positive pressure in the hub). I still use them but will occasionally pull the hubs and grease the bearings. The inner bearing will never get any fresh grease with a bearing buddy.

Old thread, but thought I'd throw this in.

After having bearing buddies on all my boat trailers in the past, the two newest trailers will not get them. Per the above, I always overfilled them. Only had one seal go over many years, but I don't put allot of miles on the trailers.

The two newest trailers have the type of hubs that push the old grease out. Seems like a much better design. On the Jet boat, have to grease the jet after every use, so easy to give the hubs a couple of pumps to make sure no water got in there. Both use 2-4-C. The new pontoon trailer has them too. While it will only get dunked twice a year, its good to know that water isn't sitting in them over that time. I do need to get some spare rubber plugs for the covers.

I am in the minority here, but I remove the grease nipple and install Bearing Buddies on them, and it works great.

You do NOT have to add a ton of pressure to them and blow out your rear seal. Just a single pump, normally, just enough to make sure it remains full of grease. I have a trailer with unknown many miles on it with this system, and zero issues. Never rebuilt, and I'd take it to Florida today, if I wanted to with no concerns.

My all-time favorite hub system, is a dead tie right now. I have a boat with an oil-filled hub with a clear window. I've got to say, it's pretty nice. You never have to do anything. At least I haven't yet. I need to google to see the process to change the oil, but that may be awhile before needed.

Besides that, my long-time favorite has been the E-Z Loader, Flow-Thru hub system on their torsion suspension axles. This is one with a relief valve through the back of the axle. You grease normally, but a couple of times, a year, you pump grease until all the nasty old grease comes out of the back of the axle and fresh grease emerges. This system is awesome, if used right. Essentially, you are changing your grease several times a year. I put a bazillion miles on my previous E-Z Loader and am putting a bazillion more on my current one with zero rebuilds.

I've heard they don't make them anymore due to guys leaving grease everywhere, instead of catching it and disposing of it properly. If so, that's a real shame, because it was an excellent system.

LDUBS said:

I have a late model EZ Loader trailer. It has Knott Waterproof hubs. Did some quick googling and apparently these are "no maintenance" and maker says to not add bearing buddies. Anyone have experience with how these hold up?

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I worked in Manufacturing Maintenance for over 40 years. Anytime I saw "No Maintenance Required" meant I had to add a stock part to my In-House Stock Inventory because when (not if) the part failed, I had to replace it which meant "Downtime" instead of "Scheduled Maintenance" Depending on the age of your trailer, I would schedule at time, and install Bearing Buddies, then you can perform routine maintenance on the bearings.

WVHillbilly said:

I worked in Manufacturing Maintenance for over 40 years. Anytime I saw "No Maintenance Required" meant I had to add a stock part to my In-House Stock Inventory because when (not if) the part failed, I had to replace it which meant "Downtime" instead of "Scheduled Maintenance" Depending on the age of your trailer, I would schedule at time, and install Bearing Buddies, then you can perform routine maintenance on the bearings.

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Thanks. The Knott waterproof hubs are a completely sealed system. I wish I could add bearing buddies. To do that would require swapping out the hubs.

LDUBS said:

Thanks. The Knott waterproof hubs are a completely sealed system. I wish I could add bearing buddies. To do that would require swapping out the hubs.

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Given it has been 7 years since you asked about them, they are doing just fine!

FuzzyGrub said:

Given it has been 7 years since you asked about them, they are doing just fine!

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Yeah, actually it has been 5 years. I bought a new boat/trailer in 2018 and it had the same hubs as the old boat/trailer.

Either way, like you say it is so far so good. They aren't getting enough wear this year. I need to get the boat out!