O-ring replacement for cork seals

[Mike(NEOhio)]

It's been discussed here for model H using them in the flywheel spacer and steering sector. What sizes would work in a late A? Mother Deere wants
$60-70 for them.

 

[Hay maker2]

(quoted from post at 07:50:36 12/18/22) It's been discussed here for model H using them in the flywheel spacer and steering sector. What sizes would work in a late A? Mother Deere wants
$60-70 for them.

You can buy cork sheets and cut your own

 

[Loosehandle]

Nobody said old tractors were cheap, be glad they are available

 

[dan_41jdh]

When I selected an o-ring for my H, I measured the OD of the crankshaft and the ID of the groove in the spacer/slinger where the cork seal would normally reside. I selected an o-ring with the same ID as the crankshaft OD, and an OD just a bit larger than the ID of the slinger groove. This results in a little compression of the o-ring that sealed very nicely. Although the groove width was significantly larger than the cross-sectional thickness of the o-ring, it really doesnt matter as its only necessary to seal at the ID and OD of the o-ring.

I believe the OD of your crankshaft is 2-3/4, but I have no idea what the ID of the groove in your slinger is. Youll have to measure that with an inside micrometer.

O-rings (at least the U.S. Standard versions) are listed by dash numbers, with the first digit of the number indicating nominal cross-sectional thickness. -0xx means 1/16, -1xx means 3/32, -2xx means 1/8, -3xx means 3/16, and -4xx means 1/4 thickness. Two of the closest sizes to select from would probably be -335 (nominal 2-3/4 ID x 3-1/8 OD) or -411 (nominal 2-3/4 ID x 3-1/4 OD). Its possible some metric sizes might be better candidates.

Check out some suppliers such as McMaster-Carr or Fastenal for their offerings. I used -329 for my H about $4.50 for a package of five from Fastenal.

 

[Lee B]

I found the cork seal in the kit and rescued the fragile thing on first sight before it got damaged or cracked. Cork needs to be treated like a Faberge egg until the time you need it. Then apply some old school knowledge about how to handle cork gaskets by soaking in very hot water first. That allowed the undersized offering to stretch over the crankshaft OD and thin application of RTV silicone then made the fit to the oil slinger tight and perfect. No leaks there. Cork is quite adequate if it's been soaking long enough in very hot water. Half hour at the very least for that 1/4 inch thick thing before it becomes supple and willing to stretch.

 

[Mike(NEOhio)]

Thanks for the reply Dan. That's exactly what I'll do. I understand the sizing and I have an industrial O-ring catalog from my tool designing days and a good hardware with a large selection of rings.