[Healeys] Rear seal kit

[Michael Salter]

Q1--As said earlier my car does not have a great amount of leakage through
the cotter pin in the bell housing, though I do seem to remember that it
leaked more after the engine was freshly rebuilt about 70K miles ago.  My
oil pressure has also dropped about 10-15 psi from where it was after the
rebuild.  Assuming that a fresh engine will have higher oil pressure will
that result in higher crankcase pressures which would tend to increase
leakage past the scroll seal?
*Michael I would be interested to know why you are thinking that a rebuild
is necessary at this stage. The drop in oil pressure alone would IMHO not
be reason enough. Is the engine making odd noises or burning excessive
amounts of oil? Perhaps a "ring and bearing" job would be the best way to
go.*

Q2--My car has an early aftermarket valve cover and looks like the ones
sold by Ray Juncal minus one fin and with a flat versus a slightly convex
top surface.  There is no vent nipple and it has a spring-loaded filler cap
that probably does not make a tight seal though there is no oil blow-by.
Is there a real advantage to installing a PCV valve and if so where should
the hose terminate?  I removed the original LeMans kit CAB some time back
and would prefer not to refit it.
*The PCV system that I've developed doesn't involve the rocker cover at all
and, by the sounds of it, your engine would be an ideal candidate. Check
the web site that I showed  ... the system is virtually invisible but does
require the replacement of the manifold balance pipe.*

M

On Sat., Nov. 4, 2023, 6:06 p.m. Michael Oritt, <michael.oritt at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Michael--
>
> Thanks for your input and I am certainly willing to forgo the expense and
> trouble of having a rear seal fit if there is a strong chance of it not
> being successful.
> Besides (being an aging male) I should probably have the grace to allow my
> car to have an occasional drip or two.
>
> A couple of questions....
>
> Q1--As said earlier my car does not have a great amount of leakage through
> the cotter pin in the bell housing, though I do seem to remember that it
> leaked more after the engine was freshly rebuilt about 70K miles ago.  My
> oil pressure has also dropped about 10-15 psi from where it was after the
> rebuild.  Assuming that a fresh engine will have higher oil pressure will
> that result in higher crankcase pressures which would tend to increase
> leakage past the scroll seal?
>
> Q2--My car has an early aftermarket valve cover and looks like the ones
> sold by Ray Juncal minus one fin and with a flat versus a slightly convex
> top surface.  There is no vent nipple and it has a spring-loaded filler cap
> that probably does not make a tight seal though there is no oil blow-by.
> Is there a real advantage to installing a PCV valve and if so where should
> the hose terminate?  I removed the original LeMans kit CAB some time back
> and would prefer not to refit it.
>
> Thanks--Michael Oritt
>
>
> On Sat, Nov 4, 2023 at 4:04 PM Michael Salter <michaelsalter at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> I've fitted a couple of those kits and have been somewhat underwhelmed.
>> Firstly you have to be VERY careful with the rear cap machining
>> alignment,  definitely a case of measure twice, cut once. I would strongly
>> recommend that the cap is in place on the block for this operation.
>> Secondly I was very disappointed to find that the designers decided that
>> it was just too much effort to utilize the 3 tapped holes already in the
>> block to secure the upper half of the seal holder and instead required that
>> one drill and tap 2 more holes for that purpose.
>> Thirdly, and I appreciate that there is possibly no way around this but,
>> the scroll on the crankshaft has to be machined off which is something that
>> you should have your crank grinder do when the crank is being machined. I
>> did mine in my 8" lathe and it's pretty scary having that huge hunk of
>> steel spinning between centers (don't forget to disable the chuck brake ...
>> rather frightening to notice the chuck winding off the spindle as you power
>> it down😳😳).
>> Finally, after all that effort, there was still a small leak from the
>> rear main which I finally resolved by installing my PCV.
>>  kit.
>> https://precisionsportscar.com/austin-healey-100-engine-oil-leak-solution/
>>
>> In future I'm not going to bother with the seal kit and just fot the PCV.
>>
>> M
>>
>> On Fri., Nov. 3, 2023, 11:19 p.m. Michael Oritt, <michael.oritt at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> I'm having my 100's engine done this winter and though it's not a
>>> terrible leaker I''d like to install a rear seal kit to tighten things up
>>> as much as possible.
>>> I know there are several different kits available and would appreciate
>>> any input on which one to select along with installation tips.
>>>
>>> Best--Michael Oritt
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