AD3.152 rear main (rope seal) improvement

[H4diggin]

Hi all,
I'm wrapping up the bottom end of my AD3.152 rebuild (from a MF2244 crawler) and I'm to the point of doing the rope seals. Seems like the best I can ever do with a rope seal, I still end up with leaking. I spend quite a bit of time fabricating and machining, and was trying to figure out a good way of adapting a different seal onto mine when I ran across something someone else already created:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxBqGHQ10J8
https://www.ebay.com/itm/263894940033
Has anyone tried one of these yet? It looks like a pretty decent kit, my only concern is whether they used a polymer that is compatible with the environment of a rear main seal.
Any thoughts?

 

[miner09]

Just rebuilt one and I used rope. Soaked rope in oil for 24 hours before installing and it's holding. I was told that was the way to do it. I thought they should have had a different type seal also.

 

[Phill Tibbetts]

There has been some postings on here about the new lip seal. Haven't seen anything negative about them. I would definitely give it a try if I had the motor out.

 

[John Deere D]

Reach out to a YT Member [email protected]
[email protected] has experience with a Perkins A3.152 Perkins Diesel..

I also received the below communications

Allen Buckley <[email protected]>
Attachments
Fri, May 22, 2020, 12:55 AM
to me, Kendal

Good Morning ( for me ) Mr Sipe

This product was my design so I can talk about it all day long. I saw the project from design to testing.

It works like a charm. To install, boil water and put seal in for 5 mins.

Then put over crank boss and install new housing.

You need midget fingers to install the top centre and bottom centre screws but youll get there.

If it leaks ill come over and clean it up for you.

I have ccd in this email our Canadian distributor who will put you in touch with your nearest dealer.

Im not sure I keep stock of that item in Canada so I will send it over on the next container.

Perhaps if you have a shopping list, order the whole lot together, to reduce shipping.

Now your tractor is a 35X. The FE35 is a 4 cyliner 23c Standard Motor Company grey and gold machine.

To help you on your restoration quest her is a pdf copy of the original mf workshop repair manual

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1PK5bUNSO7IojpOzedkGR-CcJuFtzpiaM

I have also attached the original workshop repair manual for your engine gratis.


Kind Regards,

Allen Buckley

Global Business Development Manager.



The seal is available through a wholesaler in Ontario Canada KH Supply carries the brand Quality Tractor Parts from Ireland. They supply several retailers in Canada.https://www.easytractorparts.com

The part number for the modified lip seal is 64965 (As per 1963/64 MF 35 X Tractor 3 cylinder Diesel Perkins)


Quality Tractor Parts is good quality.

 

[Drew.Styduhar]

Does the lip seal require a new housing? Or is it plug and play? Cant find a thread on it.

 

[Drew.Styduhar]

duplicate

This post was edited by Drew.Styduhar on 07/19/2022 at 10:00 pm.

 

[John Deere D]

Quote:
Does the lip seal require a new housing?

YES...Lip SEAL requires a new housing........Housing supplied with conversion package...

Quote:
Or is it plug and play?
NO..it is NOT plug and play....
Information supplied from manufacture of SEAL Package..

Information that I have read Installation MUST BE INSTALLED AS PER SUPPLIED Written PROCEDURE

I have not installed a conversation Crankshaft Seal...I shall when and if I ever replace the Crankshaft Flywheel end
OI SEAL on my 1963 MF 35 3 cylinder Diesel Perkins.
Bob..

 

[Drew.Styduhar]

Thanks for the information.

Do the rope seals just not do a good job?

Is there back to back comparison where someone had leaks with rope and the lip seal fixed all that?

Im getting some oil leaks from the bellhousing cotter pin. Not real bad, a medium drip every once in a while. Is this normal with the rope seal and do the lip seals stop this?

thanks,

Drew

 

[John Deere D]

May I ask, did you verify the compartment the oil is leaking from..?
Engine, or the common sump of the Transmission, Hydraulic, Differential...?

On MF 35 there are TWO drilled drain holes at the 6 o'clock position. One just below the flywheel, the other as per
picture.

After a very robust 4 to 8 hours of field work, the Engine OIL drips out of the drain hole on my MF 35...over night
approximately five drops.....I'm not going to change the Engine Crankshaft oil seal until the oil runs out the drain
hole.
Bob..

 

[H4diggin]

Thank you very much to those providing a sanity check. Based on Bob's information, I found out that Kendall Hills (khsupply.ca) out of Canada has a whole list of distributors down in the USA. I have one on order now.

Drew,
I can't attest to the quality of the rope seal for MF/Perkins as I haven't rebuilt one until now. I will say that the one on my 60's/70's era crawler was leaking, but it may well have been the factory seal. My experience comes from automotive rebuilds, and I can say that it seems like a shot in the dark as to whether I will have a good result. I've had everything from a few drips occasionally to a steady stream. Some people have good luck or know what they're doing, but I don't fall into that category.

Seal technology and materials science has made huge progress since these machines were built, and a one-piece seal will almost always be a more repeatable effort. In my case, I plan to keep this crawler for the duration of my existence... I'd rather put off pulling the engine again until I wear the clutch down 30 years from now If I use that rope seal, the chances are good I'll be pulling it again in a couple weeks! I couldn't even get the replacement rope in the housing without needing to trim it.

Some would argue that the original design is the only way to go, but I much prefer the one-piece piston rings that came in my Maxiforce rebuild kit vs the older multi-piece style. Times change.

 

[Drew.Styduhar]

I have been reading on rear main leaks for these tractors and it seems common that people will try multiple times and sometimes just live with some leaking? Maybe its just a crappy design. Maybe this new lip seal fixes it but why? Better seal design? Maybe where the lip seal rides is a different part of the crank from where the rope seal normally rides. Two benefits of switching to the lip seal?

Something I have NOT heard many talk about is the surface where the seal rides on the crank. Is it common to sleeve the rear crank because I cant seem to find much on that?

Just some thoughts...

Drew

 

[Massey3518]

Yes I've bought and installed one of these modified rope seals at Christmas last and so far thankfully there has been no leaking of engine oil. I've clocked many hours on the tractor over theast few months as it works on the farm. I posted about it here at Xmas. I had fitted a new clutch after an engine rebuild so the leaking at the rear crank was something I didn't want.

I've yet to see a Massey Ferguson with the rope seal not leaking some amount of oil. I had tried 3 different manufacturers of the the rope seals and all were useless. Found that rolling them into the groves of the plates they would start to break away.

An old time engineer told me that they used to be made with asbestos and did not leak for many years.