Leak from Hole in front axle

[normde2001]

The first picture looks like something hit the casing from the inside. It might be worth a closer look to prevent serious damage. If you take it apart I would go ahead and repair it with 'JB Weld". Actually I would use "JB Kwik" if you can find it.

 

[rdbrumfield]

If you do brazing on cast iron you will have you get it hot for a bit to burn the oil and impurities that have soaked into the metal. Will also have to take it completely apart as just inside the hole is a lower bearing. After seeing the pics,that I mssed the first time I read your fix, I would definitely tear it down and check out the drive and bearings on that side.
The fix you did with the bolt looks good. I might suggest to you, being that any rock or whatever might catch on the head of the bolt, that when you take it apart and clean the oil out, that you cook the area with a torch, put some JB weld on the threads and grind off the head so it will be smooth again.
If you plan to weld it, you can get cast iron rod to use with oxyacetalene. Get it plenty hot, it welds like putty. Good luck.

 

[em14]

Be very careful adding heat to an area near any bearings, grease and oil … if you braze the material to fill the hole you must grind the damaged material out thus forming a cavity for the brazing filler. All oils etc., must also be kept away in order for the brazing to work well … (and not to set your tractor on fire) ... It’s hard to tell from pictures sometimes just what’s going on there … it appears to me that you had a bad spot in the casting … also, it looks to me like you did the very best repair process (one that is as old as dirt) possible …
Leo

 

[OkieG]

Your eyes are better than mine. From my inspection, I couldn't tell that anything had hit that spot. I just thought it was a bad casting, finally breaking loose. But, it looks like you are right. Thank you for your observation!

OkieG

 

[OkieG]

After riding in 2WD for a few minutes on pavement (with no leak) I switched to 4WD on a hillside yard. After coming back to pavement I noticed the axle was leaking again. When I inspected, the bolt I had placed was gone, and the hole was twice as big!

With your advice in mind, I began disassembling the left side of the axle, when something solid drained out of the hole in the bottom of the spindle casing (on the left in the picture). The ball bearings all seem to be present, but this looks like shrapnel from the bottom spindle bevel drive gear. All the teeth on the gear look OK, but I can't see the whole gear. I took the steering arm off, which exposes the top of the spindle case and found a broken fragment of the top snap ring.

Something bad is going on here. How did you know it might be a loose piece in the axle?

Six bolts hold the spindle case to the center portion of the axle. They are very tight. Five have yielded to persuasion, but the sixth was tough to grab. Now, after my best effort, the corners are all rounded off. Vice grips don't budge it. I have read on a recent thread that heat and wax can loosen a tight bolt, but I am reluctant to heat very much because I recall that cast iron can warp with heat. I was going to try to fix things myself, or at least deliver just the spindle case to the JD shop, but now I may have to deliver the whole tractor. Oh well. Thanks for the good advice.

OkieG

 

[OkieG]

Oops. Here's the picture.

 

[OkieG]

Now that the spindle casing has to come off, I will do a proper repair on the hole...if I can get that last bolt to come loose. Thanks, Leo.

 

[rdbrumfield]

Before you get totally discouraged with that bolt, go ahead and heat up the casting, doesn't have to be red hot and give a rap with a flat punch on all the sides of the bolt head that you can, it might come right out.
As far as knowing about the possibility of an internal problem, there isn't much room in there and if a tooth or bearing has failed, something has to give to accommodate it if it gets caught by the gearing.

 

[bgott]

My explanation might not be too clear...You preheat in the sense that you get it hot enough to let the casting melt the brazing rod. The brass doesn't penetrate so much as stick to the cast. If you just melt the brass you'll have a cold weld and the brass can pop off of the casting. You probably need to ask Wroughtnharv for an understandable explanation, I'm sure he has a lot more experience at brazing than I do. And a better way with words.

 

[OkieG]

Jerry,

I did try to look in the hole. But it was pretty small (bigger now) and couldn't/can't see much, although it is big enough to drain out broken metal.