More Rear Axle

So the manual says, remove the 6 nuts from the bearing retainer studs and remove the half shaft. What it should say is spend 4 hours with a hammer, drill and various other tools drilling out the studs before you can remove the shaft. The studs had corroded themselves to the axle flange so that removal of the half shaft was impossible without drilling them out.

Anyway, job now done and half shaft removed as per the photo. Two of the part drilled studs can be seen still in the left hand side of the retainer.

I now have the much harder job (according to the manual, so God help me!) of removing the bearing in order to get to the oil seal I need to replace. This will require fabricating a tool to press the shaft through the bearing. Luckily, I have acquired some 2" galvanised pipe and fittings and I intend to use these for the tool. With a bit of luck, I hope to have the tool made for the end of the month (competing in the Dublin Marathon next weekend), and it will be all systems go for the next stage. In the meantime, I've started to clean up the removed brake components ready for a coat of paint.

Rear Axle

Perhaps the Cider making was to much. Last Sunday I noticed a ominous looking leak from the nearside rear brake drum. It appears an oil seal (in fact two most likely have failed, allowing the rear axle's oil to escape. See pic below

Some research on the FoFH forum suggests I have a challenging task in front of me. The outer seal appears to need the half shaft and associated wheel bearing removed. The inner seal is easier in that once the half shaft and axle housing is removed the seal is a more straightforward replacement.


Picture above shows the brake drum removed. Process is slow as I've never attempted this before and nothing seems to want to come apart. Having drained down the rear axle oil this looked emulsified and in poor condition.
With the dark nights drawing in, its a weekend activity (my garage isn't big enough to fit tractor and remove the half shaft).

Thankfully, the brake shoes and drum look in reasonable condition. So new bearing and seals is the first job.