Hi all,
Was just inspecting axles again, and saw the surfaces where the axle seal
seats. I've been waiting for parts to come back from the machinist, and
forgot about this particular problem. I'm glad I looked!
There is a raised highly polished surface (about an inch in length) on the
axle shaft where the oil seal seats against it. I grenaded a Rzeppa (CV)
Joint which allowed the axle to "settle" in the housing (this is a NAPCO 4x4
front drive axle.) The axle rubbed on the metal outer ring of the seal,
causing some indentation on the axle surface. Installing a new seal isn't
going to cure this. It'll leak like a sieve.
I'm brainstorming possible cure's here: Is there a way to "metalize" this
surface and restore it, or machine it and maybe find a seal with the correct
ID.? How about machine it down and re-sleeve it to the correct size?
Possibly make a spacer to install behind the seal to move the location of
the seal further outward on the axle shaft, where it will have a good
surface???
Any experience on this?
Kevin P.
'59 Apache 38/NAPCO
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