Front axle seals?

[2000 7.3 6speed]

Originally Posted by Tree Killer

Is that Sig Pic Legal? LOL I know it ain't in the buckeye.

Brought that tractor back from indiana. with close to an extra 1000 pounds worth on suitcase weights on the front of the tractor. haven't had any problems hauling it around yet.

[rjwareagle]

Noticed mine on the pass side today. can you just push it back in? im on the road more than off road and roads in south GA are not to bad. ??

[Scooter9495]

Originally Posted by rjwareagle

Noticed mine on the pass side today. can you just push it back in? im on the road more than off road and roads in south GA are not to bad. ??

You will be fine i would just stay away from deep water and mud.

you cant push it back in the seal has actually torn into 2 pieces when they do that.

[TANK'S 250]

Originally Posted by Scooter9495

You will be fine i would just stay away from deep water and mud.

Like you said,...though it isn't recommended,...I still haven't had an issue with anything getting in there,...and I offroad alot,...water, mud, etc

Originally Posted by Scooter9495

you cant push it back in the seal has actually torn into 2 pieces when they do that.

yup...once it is in 2 pieces,...it's done.

[Scooter9495]

Originally Posted by Mustang1989

About how much would a shop charge me to replace them? Am I safe to wait till just before winter?

I had my front U-joints replaced exactly a year ago. Are those seals something they would have had to replace to do the job?

They dont "have to" replace those when doing axle joints but for me i do them anytime the front axle comes out, its $24 for 2 seals to do both sides, its the outer knuckle seal thats pricey.

[rjwareagle]

so its more work than its worth just to fix the seal? If there wont be any problem with leaving it, I will.

[Scooter9495]

Originally Posted by TANK'S 250

Like you said,...though it isn't recommended,...I still haven't had an issue with anything getting in there,...and I offroad alot,...water, mud, etc




yup...once it is in 2 pieces,...it's done.

Tank, have you inspected the inside of your axle tubes lately?
Im curious as to what condition yours are in since yours have been bad.
about 3 months ago i did these seals on an excursion thats 95% street the owner said they were bad for about 2 years and the insides of his tubes were terrible, scale, rust,flaking (chunks of the tube) i got it all cleaned out but there were huge pitts.

Most of the other trucks i have done just have surface rust inside but i replaced them shortly after they failed.

After cleaning both sides i use a thin coat of grease on the insides of the tubes to slow down rust on the trucks i do.

[GreenF350]

Well, mine have been like that for a few years. Maybe I am looking at it the wrong way, but I haven't seen any other axles have those seals and they are just fine. Sure, it's nice to keep the dirt, water, mud, etc out of there, but does it really matter? I do think that it may help lengthen the life of the inner seals though, especially if you do have a bunch of dirt in there and pull the axle shafts in and out a few times.
-Aaron

[Hank]

Fellow org. member pointed out my flopping seals yesterday while I was doing a brake job. His are that way too. Seems to be real common?

[GreenF350]

Yeah, Most Superduties that I get to look at have them torn in two. Maybe I am asking for trouble, but like I said above. Most other axles don't have those seals and they work just fine.
-Aaron