The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts Strange real axle flange seal question

Has anyone seen an axle seal like this? I've spent no less than 20 hours looking and have not come up with a part. I'm thinking that a replacement seal was used; one that comes up is a CR 25135 and I can't find that seal either. This is a 2 speed rear end application. Any help from the fellow big bolts is appreciated. A GM part number would be a helpful lead. The link to a picture. Thank you
Old GMC

Can't get past the site login page!
Jerry

Hy Micksurfer, welcome, yes I've seen thousands of seals like that in my career, they are used when you use grease packed rear wheel bearings rather than oil bathed bearings. I came up with some other non o.e.m. numbers, but none of them would cross back to the o.e.m. number, they are just not in the interchange book any longer. the other numbers I came up with are
5904S National, which you already knew
25135 C/R, which is actually a kit which consists of one seal p/n 503702 and two gaskets p/n 450185
SS49859 is a Victor number, none of those numbers show as available at RockAuto.
If you would like to eliminate the outer seal and just use flange gaskets, simply wash all the grease out of the bearings and hub, and allow differential oil to be your lubricant. Make sure the lube level is full and then jack up each side of the rear axle and allow some lube to run down to the hub bearings, hope that helps.

To ensure they don't run dry I always grease rear wheel bearings as I would fronts, just pack the bearings and no extra. In time the differential oil will get there too. Have heard several occasions of folks putting them in dry and expecting the diff oil to get to them and it didn't happen quick enough..
Tilting the truck sounds good in principal but how do you know without a doubt if it's tilted enough and the oil ran out to the bearings without checking and or making a mess?

Grigg

Hy Micksurfer, I completely agree with what Grigg said above, better safe than sorry.

OK - thanks for info. This helps clarify my next steps. I'll use the old seals as they seemed to work prior to removal. I'll pack the bearings with grease and if some diff oil gets past the seal should be fine as long as it doesn’t make it to the backing plate and break pads. Thanks again for the insight.

Micksurfer,

Can you post the image so we can see it on this site? WW2 Chevy military 1 1/2 tons (1940-45)have an outside oil seal that sounds very similar to your description. Does the outer seal press onto a bearing lock nut and seal on the inside of the axle flange? WW2 military truck manuals call for greasing the rear bearings while single speed civy trucks do not. I have no experience with two speed rears. The basic design and parts images appear to be VERY similar and has been hotly debated on military restoration sites. I have taken apart several military rear axles, and the seals are there but they have not functioned for long periods, and the bearings are lubricated soley by gear oil. Oddly enough, the bearings all looked servicable. It would be interesting to see if it is the same part as military trucks used a GM corporate banjo axle and some parts appear to "taken off of rack" from civy production.

Paul

Click!

This type of seal sits in the flange and the oil seal itself rides on the outer bearing nut. I have only seen a few of these on ebay in all the years I've been looking. Depending on the type of oil seal, you can probably remove the oil seal and replace with a new type that will sit in flush on the mounting flange.

Or you can replace the inner seal and omit this outside seal letting the bearings be lubricated by gear oil rather than grease.

I chose to run grease rather than oil in mine.

Jeff

Paul - I have some pictures of my axle and will post. Might take a few days as I need to find out how to place them on another web page.

[image]http:http://s1287.beta.photobucket.com/user/micksurfer/library/?

Just testing posting pictures.

Micksurfer,

I can't get the image to open, but I am probably not a good judge as I have not figured out how to post images myself. I hope to make the effort when cold dark weather takes hold.

I found an image I took of the rear axle seal on a military 1 1/2 ton truck.


http://www.surfacezero.com/g503/showphoto.php?photo=146122&title=img-24331&cat=3176