Leak from Hole in front axle

   / Leak from Hole in front axle #31  
I agree, as long as the bearing seats and bolt surfaces are ok, and all the moving parts are "happy", all that housing has to do is hold oil. Of course the ideal fix is to replace, but, depending on price, I would check it closely for cracks, and drill the ends to stop further cracking, grind a groove in crack and fill with JB Weld and not chance warping or cracking with heat.
 
   / Leak from Hole in front axle #32  
I would drill and tap the hole for a pipe plug. From your pictures I would say a 1/4" or 3/8" plug would be about the right size. Use a plug with an internal hex made for an Allen wrench and it should seat about flush with the casting. Put a little sealer on the threads and you will be good to go. No heat, no epoxy, or other band-aid products required.
Ken
 
   / Leak from Hole in front axle
  • Thread Starter
#33  
$259 to replace the cast housing. The other parts I need total about $100. The bearings, other than the shattered one, all look pretty good. Replacement cost for the bearing that blew out is only $8. A new bevel (pinion) gear is $50 and the spindle shaft is $43.

I would hate to have the casting become a recurring leak problem, but for $250 versus the cost (and experience /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif) of trying to repair the old casting, I may take the chance.

Now, that I am semi-familiar with disassembling the spindle case, replacing the casting later won't be as intimidating if that's what needs to be done.
 
   / Leak from Hole in front axle
  • Thread Starter
#34  
Thanks for the lead on castaloy.
 
   / Leak from Hole in front axle
  • Thread Starter
#35  
I won't even ask how you know the casting is supposed to be dished out. But, that means I have less to fill! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif Maybe I should just concentrate on plugging the hole and forget about the dishing.

The outer race is all that's left of the shattered bearing. It was real tough to remove from the seat...very snug fit. I just did a "mic" check on the OD of the bearing race and it seems to be within 1-2 thousandths of round. So, I think the bearing seat in the casting is probably serviceable.
 

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   / Leak from Hole in front axle
  • Thread Starter
#36  
About a year ago I had to replace the seals behind the front wheel hubs that keep dirt out of the axle. I had spent too much time spinning the wheels in deep mud, trying to get unstuck. Shorly after, the seals started leaking.

Anyway, when the hub is removed, I can get a look at a portion of the spindle mechanism. What I noticed (when replacing the seals) was there were some metal shavings settled in a low spot in the left wheel side, but not on the right. I wasn't too concerned, because everything had been working properly and I figured they were just left behind after some milling procedure when the axle was made.

In retrospect, I wonder if the bearing had already failed and was turning up cast iron shavings? I will pull the right wheel hub and look for shavings. Even though the lubricating oil is free to move anywhere in the axle, some of the axle sections seem reasonably isolated from adjoining sections. If there are metal shavings behind the right hub, I don't think they will have migrated from the left side. If all looks good, I may not tear apart the spindle to get a first hand look at the bearing.
 
   / Leak from Hole in front axle
  • Thread Starter
#37  
Don't feel bad. I feel like I'm out of my league all the time...especially here on TBN. My midlife crisis is expressing itself in strange ways. I know I have lived more years than I have yet to live. One way I deal with that is trying to do stuff, that normally, maybe I wouldn't try. I'm not interested in other women or skydiving. I don't need a sportscar or Harley. But, I feel like I get more out of life by trying things like fixing a tractor axle. Doesn't sound too exciting, does it?
 
   / Leak from Hole in front axle #38  
When you go after bearings, I would go to a bearing shop. Replacing that roller bearing with a tapered bearing will far outlast the roller you had. Take both parts and they should be able to fix you right up.
Just for peace of mind. I would take the plug out of sthe center differential and flush the whole axle when you pull the other side. With the amount of parts in your pic it wouldn't hurt.
Something that might help the next time you have to pull a race out of a difficult place, is to take a welder and run a bead around the inside of the race. When it cools it will just about fall out. This is for outers only, do that to an inside and it will shrink it on permenently.
 
   / Leak from Hole in front axle
  • Thread Starter
#39  
I like the plug idea, too. One of the reasons it was hard for me to do a good tap job a few days ago was because the cast iron is pretty thin (whether it's been dished out or just made that way). There's enough thickness to cut maybe one thread. With so little to hold on to, the plug couldn't be tightened very tight. Maybe enough to seal the non-pressurized axle, but it probably wouldn't be the strongest long term fix, unless I tried one of rdbrumfield's suggestions. ie putting JB weld on the threads, then grinding the head flush with the casting. I wish I knew more about this. What if I plugged and ground, then brazed the edges? No matter what solution I try, I appreciate your suggestion.
 
   / Leak from Hole in front axle
  • Thread Starter
#40  
Will check for cracks and stop 'em as you describe, if I find any.
 
 
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