1952 TO30 split

[Carolina boy]

Howdy Y'all Getting ready to split the tractor to replace the transmission input shaft seal and while I am in there planning on replacing the clutch as it is down to the last 1 inch of travel. I have been noticing oil coming out of the weep hole at the bottom of the bell housing since this summer. I drained out the hydraulic system oil today because I wanted to make sure the level was below the input shaft. I have done this on my Ford 8N but wanted to know if there is anything lurking peculiar to a Ferguson that would help me.
This board has been a gold mine of help along the way.
Any help , tips and hacks would be great. Thanks, Rick

 

[Steve@Advance]

A leaking engine rear main seal will also dump into the bell housing and drip from the hole.

Can you tell if it's engine oil or transmission oil?

Changing the input shaft seal is easy, the oil pan and flywheel have to come off to get to the rear main seal. The rear main seal is a rope seal, not an easy fix, and often the seal leaking is a symptom of other problems like loose main bearings, excess blow-by, or a clogged crankcase vent tube.

It can also be as simple as high oil level (contaminated with gas?) or running down from a leaking valve cover gasket. Most times running the oil level a little below the full line will help with a leaking rear seal.

 

[Carolina boy]

I'm running 15W40 in the hydraulic system so can't tell by what's on the floor. I suspect it is from the transmission side because only about 3 gallons came out when I drained it. Oil level in the engine stays at the right level and the few drops of oil on the floor under the engine do not appear to be diluted. Wii know for sure this week. Thanks, Rick

 

[pomester]

There are two seals associated with the rear of the crankshaft. The rear main bearing cap is sealed to the block with a rope seal.

The crankshaft is sealed from the clutch by a spring backed rubber seal. The crankshaft seal can be renewed by removing the flywheel and oil pan.

Frankly, I would replace this seal if I had the tractor split and I didn't know the specifics of when it might have been done last, it is a wear item. Given your observations about the crankcase oil maintaining level, I seen no reason to fuss with the rear main bearing cap and the rope seal. If I did, I wouldn't replace the rope, but rather sparingly butter the area with an appropriate gasket forming material and replace the cap. There should be safety wire associated with the cap bolts.