I’ve just installed new inner seals in my D60. In addition to carrier/shim problems (another thread) I have some seal problems.

Looks like the old seals were not bottomed in their seat. There is a fair amount of rust, crust, and pitting about 1/8” wide between the old seal bottom and the cup/receiver bottom. The top of the seal (inside, next to carrier bearings) was flush with the machined surface. If it were bottomed, the inside edges of the seal would be about 1/8” down in the cup. Does this make sense? Is this correct?

They were a pain to get out as it was. I would hate to try getting them out if they were bottomed. Is there a trick to getting them out?

Also, looks like my inner shafts have quite a bit of wear where the seal rides. Is there a quick-sleeve type repair kit for these things? Maybe time to get a new pair and set these back for spares?

So, here are my questions again:

1) How far in do the seals seat? Flush with the machined surface, or at the bottom of the machined “cup”? If at the bottom, I’m in trouble because I think a machine hone would be needed to clean up the scale and crud down there.

2) How do you repair the seal groove in the inner axles?

Russ, since there is no pressure in it, I would think that as long as the seal is in far enough that the hole seal is in the tight part of the bore, it should be OK. Would it be possible to put them in a little less than the old ones, so the seal is riding on a different part of the shaft (inboard of where they were before)?

Pete

Actually, my guess is that the original owner may have done just that, which is why they were not fully seated. The wear area is actually quite wide on the axles. Wider than I've ever seen on spindles and yokes that I've repaired before. Anyway, the seals are in right now, flush with the machined surface, just like they were last time. They might be maybe 1/32 or so further out (I didn’t have anything to seat them flush down into the bevel, where they were before, so I left them flush), but that’s it.

when i replaced the seals in my front high pinion they were flush with the machined surface. i am nearly certain the were the original ones. there was about 1/8" behind them like you said. dont know about repairing the axle surface though.

Originally posted by BadDog
The wear area is actually quite wide on the axles. Wider than I've ever seen on spindles and yokes that I've repaired before.

That could be due to the fact that the hub doesn't move back and forth on the spindle, but the shafts on a floating front axle do move in and out.

Pete