Craftsman/Husqvarna/Murray front wheel bushing - What are the zerks for❓

[65gtotrips]

Hiya,
I have a Craftsman GT6000, which is just like many riding mowers with the 3/4” front spindles.
— My question is: What are the front rim zerks for, as the rims merely use bushings not bearings
— Both the outer and inner races are closed with the huge flat washers, and it appears to me that if I do grease the zerks, it won’t do anything.
— I usually just grease the spindle by hand, without using the zerks, because the rim rides on the spindle.
— Again, it doesn’t appear that the grease could even get out of the bushings…
— Is the zerk just there incase the bushings are replaced by bearings, or does the grease exit the inner washer face somehow
— Again, the rim rests on the fixed bushings and the bushings don’t spin freely, so I just don’t think that using the zerks will accomplish anything.

Your thoughts are greatly appreciated

 

[65gtotrips]

Hiya,
I have a Craftsman GT6000, which is just like many riding mowers with the 3/4” front spindles.
— My question is: What are the front rim zerks for, as the rims merely use bushings not bearings
— Both the outer and inner races are closed with the huge flat washers, and it appears to me that if I do grease the zerks, it won’t do anything.
— I usually just grease the spindle by hand, without using the zerks, because the rim rides on the spindle.
— Again, it doesn’t appear that the grease could even get out of the bushings…
— Is the zerk just there incase the bushings are replaced by bearings, or does the grease exit the inner washer face somehow
— Again, the rim rests on the fixed bushings and the bushings don’t spin freely, so I just don’t think that using the zerks will accomplish anything.

Your thoughts are greatly appreciated

Never mind, I figured it out…The zerk tap on the inner raceway of the rim was painted over and the threaded hole wasn’t visible. Just punched it through with a pick and voila️

 

[Roadworthy]

You can easily replace the bushings with a bearing. I scored a set on eBay. That's four bearings.

 

[tomplum]

Grease them even if you have to remove the wheels to do it, but keep the wheel hub caps on or dirt will grind everything to bits.

 

[LittleBill21]

the greasing works, it reduces friction, i replaced tires on a 20 year old mower last summer, it had bushings, which i greased every season, the grease was all over the bushings and spindles, both looked as new as the day they were made.