[zahndok]

In search of my front end pull to the right I removed the wheels and calipers for inspection and noticed these dried out looking rubber seals on both left and right sides just loosing spinning with the shafts when I engage the 4x4 hubs and turn them by hand. Can these just be pushed back in or is it indicative of bigger issues?

http://community.webshots.com/album/377384727HIEKbW

 

[sdpj]

i have the same problem, ive been told its not a big deal. hopefully someone else will chime in with some advice.

 

[turbobobby]

there seems to be a problem with your link.


i know what your talking about. my 2002 has the same thing. it is the machanical seal thing. i broke the stub shaft that runs on the seal. after getting it all apart (which,BTW, is a real pain in the rear!) i find the seal your talking about is 30 bucks and a nightmare to replace.
anyhow, after tearing it down i find the seal to be fine. it seems to be just a dust lip or something like that.
maybe someone else will chime in and tell you more about it.

 

[zahndok]

Hopefully I have fixed it. Not very familiar with webshots.

 

[jsf]

it works. and looks just like mine i`ll fix them some day. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif

 

[firemedic8104]

The one in the first pic is the axle seal. It is a dust shield that keeps dirt out of the axle. It is not designed to be an oil seal since no oil is in there. If there is then you have a bad inner differential seal.

The second pic is the hub seal. It keeps dirt out of the spindle and hub bearings. I found the same thing with both of my hubs and changed them out. The parts aren't that expensive and you can actually buy a kit from powerstrokeshop.com with all the items you need.

You will need to fabricate you a seal tool to seat the seal right or you will damage it and be paying another $30 for another seal.

 

[JimTJr]

Is that second pic actually loose? As the other poster mentioned,,the one inside the ujoint is no big deal. I really wonder what good it does. I did replace ALL my seals on both sides when I did ball joints. My axle seals..the hi priced ones, Came out in two pieces,, I guess they were bad!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shrug.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/phoney.gif

 

[zahndok]

The hub seals are loose too. It doesn't show well in the pic. Is there a post around here that explains what is involved and instructions to replace these seals? Is it necessary that I should at least replace the hub seals? What causes these seals to pop out. Do the shafts have too much end play knocking them out.

 

[Dale_Lakin]

Hub seal= F81Z3254CB
Axle tube seal= F81Z1S175HCA


Hub seal IMO is important if you have auto hubs if you don't sure it is important but not as much with Manuals. Axle tube seal in my mind is a waste they didn't use them for YEARS on front axles with no problems. I have a 97 Explorer that has a Dana 44 out of 77 Bronco and every time I pull it apart to fix something I have broken it is PACKED full of crap. As long as your inner axle seals (ones at the differential) are good you have no need for the outter tube seals IMO

 

[turbobobby]

hey, i just got my parts from the powerstroke.com fellas. man was that super quick!! great fellas to deal with. i spoke with chris when i ordered my parts.
well as it looks my hub seals that had a ring loose were bad. it seems that the large seal is some sort of mechanical seal. i do believe that ford didn't intend for these style 4x4's to be ran down the road at speed in 4x4. the seal is so stiff it will tear up. now thats my opinion....for what thats worth. once you get the new seal in your hand and spin it like it did you will see what i am refering to. i would say if your auto hubs dont work then that seal is why. my auto hubs did not work.
lol, you always have manual so i would not bother with the seal if that were the only reason to chang it. (for the auto to work again)
i had to use a press to get my new seal on my new stub shaft! there is no way to drive it on with a hammer. you will destroy it if you try to with the hammer! there was .025 interferance fit between my seal and stub shaft!!!! seems like a lot to me.
other than the seal install on the shaft, everything else involved with the the dis-assembly and re-assembly was simple as pie.

 

[jat99]

What is the main concern here about the seals? If I am remembering correctly these seals are pressed onto the axle shaft, therefore they are going to turn with shaft. They do not go into the axle shaft housing. There is a seal inside the axle shaft housing on up toward the chunk that seals the fluid internally. The outside seals you are referring to a simply a dust, large dirt seal. There looks to be no problem with them as far as I can see so I would not pull them unless I had to.

I may have misunderstood the question or what exactly you are talking about, if that is the case then I apologize. To clear up any confusion, you could find another SD and look at the exact same seals on it and see what they look like. Good Luck

 

[Wayne B]

[ QUOTE ]
it seems that the large seal is some sort of mechanical seal. i do believe that ford didn't intend for these style 4x4's to be ran down the road at speed in 4x4. the seal is so stiff it will tear up. now thats my opinion....for what thats worth. once you get the new seal in your hand and spin it like it did you will see what i am referring to. i would say if your auto hubs dont work then that seal is why. my auto hubs did not work.

[/ QUOTE ]

You would be amazed. GM uses that type of seal of lots of stuff now. Even rear axles that spin ALL the time. They seal so much better than the old style seal. So your "OPINION " would be wrong, stuff just fails some times.

Wayne B