toyorotor Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 i order the wheel seals for my 521 axles and the guy said there are inner and outer seals.....i know the outer ones are on the housing, but where are the inner one mounted at???? Quote Link to comment
yello620 Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 The inner ones are in the end of the housing, visible when you slide the axleshaft out of the truck. The outer seals are not visible until the rear bearings are pressed off of the axle shaft. Quote Link to comment
banzai510(hainz) Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 most time the innser seals wear out.Thats wear most leaks are from the oil getting past that seal. The outter seal as stated you will need ot pull the bearing off.Pain in the ass. Do the inner first. Pry it out then install the new one . Some use the flat end of soft hammer or 2X4 wood and put some grease on the outer edge to help it slid on and grease the inner lips Put axle back in straight as possible and engage the splines so you dont have to rest the axle on the seal and ruin it. I did but still worked OK Quote Link to comment
toyorotor Posted May 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 ok the seal on the axle shaft.... I had the axles coverted to 4lug and they had to take apart the axles when they did it. After i got them back i noticed that after i installed the shaft back on the housing and bolted the 4bolts back on. "if you pull the hub",there was some play in the axle shaft. I took apart the shafts again but i didnt notice anything wrong. "but i never noticed a seal on the shaft" maybe thats were the play is..... does anyone have a pic of the seal on the shaft? Quote Link to comment
banzai510(hainz) Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 is the bearing on all th way? Did they remove the bearing and reinstall it???????? I really havent gone much more than that as I really cant help you more I know Nissan made shims for the hub assmebley ansd axle housing. but if its the same set up I thought you just reinstall. Quote Link to comment
72wagun Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 ok the seal on the axle shaft.... I had the axles coverted to 4lug and they had to take apart the axles when they did it. After i got them back i noticed that after i installed the shaft back on the housing and bolted the 4bolts back on. "if you pull the hub",there was some play in the axle shaft. I took apart the shafts again but i didnt notice anything wrong. "but i never noticed a seal on the shaft" maybe thats were the play is..... does anyone have a pic of the seal on the shaft? I don't know if I can help, but I had my 521 axle completely apart to replace the wheel bearings, and inner and outer seals on both sides. It's been a while, but I just looked in the manual again. Like Hainz said, the outer seal (and wheel bearing) are a pain to replace. You have to get the inner race off the axle, and without the special tools to do this, there isn't much to pull on. You need a puller with really long arms to reach from the end of the axle to the lip of the inner race. Anyway, the only way I know of to adjust the bearing tension (and in your case play) is by selecting the right combination of shims to get the proper thickness. This is very fine adjustment though. It should just affect how easily the bearing turns. I don't think the wrong shims would be enough to result in significant play. Maybe though? The first thing I would check is the four studs the hold the bearing holder onto the end of the axle housing. If there is a small gap at the flange, they ar not completey tight, and would result in end play. Other than that, I think you would need to replace a VERY worn bearing, or remove shims to take out the play. Quote Link to comment
72wagun Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 ok the seal on the axle shaft.... I had the axles coverted to 4lug and they had to take apart the axles when they did it. After i got them back i noticed that after i installed the shaft back on the housing and bolted the 4bolts back on. "if you pull the hub",there was some play in the axle shaft. I took apart the shafts again but i didnt notice anything wrong. "but i never noticed a seal on the shaft" maybe thats were the play is..... does anyone have a pic of the seal on the shaft? I forgot to mention that I don't think the seals will have an affect on the end play you mentioned. They are just there to keep the gear oil in the axle (inner seal), and the bearing grease in the wheel bearing cavity(inner and outer seals). You should be able to have a nice tight smooth running axle even if you had no seals (until all your grease leaked out :) ) The seals don't support the axle in any way. They just hold lubricants in. Quote Link to comment
yello620 Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 ok the seal on the axle shaft.... I had the axles coverted to 4lug and they had to take apart the axles when they did it. After i got them back i noticed that after i installed the shaft back on the housing and bolted the 4bolts back on. "if you pull the hub",there was some play in the axle shaft. I took apart the shafts again but i didnt notice anything wrong. "but i never noticed a seal on the shaft" maybe thats were the play is..... does anyone have a pic of the seal on the shaft? Have you installed both axles at the same time yet? Both axle shafts have to be installed to check for that endplay that you describe. Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted May 31, 2009 Report Share Posted May 31, 2009 Yes. seals have no effect on axle play, That is the bearing. Ball bearings have a tiny little play. Like less than 1/32 inch. Quote Link to comment
toyorotor Posted June 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2009 Ok first let me say thanks for the many replies...... Now the tension on the end of the axle is more than 1/32 as ggzilla stated and yes the bearing is all the way in and the 4 bolts are tightend all the way and this is after removing some of the shims on the hub. With more shims there was even more play. When i took the axles apart a month ago, i inspected the bearing and there was really nothing wrong with it, i think we even took of the race to see if there was anything wrong with it also. but it was fine. i know i didnt see no seal on the axle, i thought with all the "play" i had on the end of the axle, i thought i was missing something in there "I thought the machine shop forgot a washer or spacer" thats why i took it apart to see for myself. but everything was there and everything looked fine. I noticed with the less shims i used the less play i had. so i only used 1 shim on each end. does anyone have a pic from the manual as to what the seal looks like installed on the axle shaft. Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted June 2, 2009 Report Share Posted June 2, 2009 (edited) The seals are not installed on the axle shaft. They are in the axle housing. The shims are for end-play (4 to 18 thousands) not for up/down (axial) play. Axial play is not adjustable. Even if you leave seal out, it wont' affect end-play. If there is too much end-play, the bearings were not pressed on to the corrrect depth. Edited June 2, 2009 by ggzilla Quote Link to comment
72wagun Posted June 2, 2009 Report Share Posted June 2, 2009 (edited) ...i think we even took of the race to see if there was anything wrong with it also. Just edited this: I didn't notice that ggzilla just mentioned bearing seating on the end of his post. Also, there is a spacer that goes on the axle before you press on the inner bearing race. The hole in the spacer is radiused on one side, and square on the other. If you put it in backwards, it will not seat properly, and cause the play you are describing... At least that's the way I remember it :D Edited June 2, 2009 by 72wagun Quote Link to comment
toyorotor Posted June 6, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2009 ok guys thanks again for your help guys, I just took it all apart, and installed the seal on the housing , and then took apart the axle shaft to get to the seal behind the bearing, fairly eazy job to do, EXCEPT for the fact that i bought the seals from autozone and the seal behind the bearing is to big. i called every local autoparts and they all come up with the same part# Timken 1974. So now i have to wait to order the correct seal# 40227-32201 from the dealer on monday. hopefully they can still order them.... if anyone needs pics let me know. Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted June 6, 2009 Report Share Posted June 6, 2009 Yeah but be prepared for the big bucks. That seal is $5.84 list price. It looks like the 521 has taper-roller bearings. They should have no discernable play -- unlike ball-bearings. Be careful to tighten them per the factory procedure. Quote Link to comment
72wagun Posted June 6, 2009 Report Share Posted June 6, 2009 You just reminded me of how much trouble I had with seals for my 521. I can't remember which seal it was, but one of them they could not get right. Luckily, I took the old one in with me. When they would brind one out, I'd compare it to the one I pulled out, and tell them to try again:) For that seal, they ended up selecting a replacement based on dimensions. One of the guys behind the counter happened to be pretty sharp, and that finally worked. Quote Link to comment
toyorotor Posted June 8, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 ok a call to the local dealer got me nowwhere.... I hate when you call the dealer and then second you mention the year of the car they wont even bother with you......:mad: Anyone know were i can find the OEM seals for these axles??? Quote Link to comment
banzai510(hainz) Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 http://www.nissanparts.cc/cart/?pn=40227-32201 the 521s and up to the pathfinder use the same bearings well here is the seal. You try Rockauto or maybe NAPA also????????? Quote Link to comment
yello620 Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 I got a set of inner seals for my 620 last year at NAPA. Sorry, i dont have the part number though. I could get it if your local NAPA cant find it. Quote Link to comment
toyorotor Posted June 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 i just tried napa, they say they can order them all, so will see in a week when they get the seals and brgs in..... i'll keep you guys posted. Quote Link to comment
banzai510(hainz) Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 theres the seal that goes in the axle(inner) and the outer seal thats near the bearing. A guy told me once dont worry to much about the outer seal as its more to hold the grease in for the bearings. If the inner seal goes bad then the oil goes past everything anyway and gets the drum with with gear oil past the drip hole on the brake drum. Quote Link to comment
yello620 Posted June 10, 2009 Report Share Posted June 10, 2009 i just tried napa, they say they can order them all, so will see in a week when they get the seals and brgs in..... i'll keep you guys posted. In a week?? Holy shit, around here parts are almost always available the next morning by 8:00am. Quote Link to comment
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