ClassicCar

No dissagreement with any other comments mind you, but that is a lot of work/expense . Don't know how this stuff will work on that type of seal , but it's magic on revolveing seals . I've been using it as preventive maintaince for about 15 years . TRI-SEAL , it softens and swells seals . think I would give it a heavy dose , 2 cans , drive it a couple hundred miles and see what happens , if it slows it down it's working, drive it some more . just leave it in there do not drain and refill oil . then toss in 1 can with oil changes , before I went to pulling the engine . Look up HAPCO PRODUCTS on the net , you can get it from them if your parts house does not have it . BUD

This stuff most likely won't work on the rope type seal normally used in Step-down engines. Jet was the first time Hudson uses a decent type neoprene lip seal, and it may work on these, but usually a leak is a sign that something needs to be fixed properly. My Hornet leaked badly out the rear seal - left a constant trail behind it, and the underside of the car was liberally rust-proofed with engine oil. Problem was twofold, there was no pan gasket, and the sealant used had been wiped off in places as the pan was installed. Plus, somebody had got a hook of some sort in the seal, obviously trying to remove the bearing cap. I got lucky, just replaced the bottom half of the seal, and it hasn't leaked a drop since.

Dale Cooper now sells the correct,neoprene rear crankshaft oil seal for the Hudson big 6 engine. This IS NOT made for something else. I also believe that the teflon rope looking seal that comes in the engine O/H set works very well. The only problem with it is that you cannot pull it thru the slot to replace it.Something else that will create a leak is the crankshaft sealing surface. It is not unusual to find these pitted. This can be a leak you will never stop,but I have found the teflon seal in the O/H set does the very best at resolving it. No more sticks are supplied in the O/H sets. These are just a short cut and usually end up leaking. Cotton packing works the best. CG

hudman51 wrote:

per Geoff - not an easy job; is easier if most of the steering links are out of the way. Paul Largetype (Schuster) can provide a 2 piece molded seal; one must devise a "puller" for the bearing cap - I used a piece of angle iron & a washer stack to pull the cap. When reinstalling the cap, you might consider checking bearing clearance with plasi-gage shims - will assure that everything is just right. I didn't and now that the seal started leaking again after 3-4 months, I have to suspect that bearing clearance is suspect. (I didn't start with a fresh rebuild like you). Hope it all goes well.

J Cronk

After ordering Paul's 2-piece seal, I went to the local steel yard and had them cut a 2” slice of 8” x 2-1/4” (outside dim.) channel stock for me. I drilled a couple 5/16” clearance holes in it, spaced 2-3/8” apart. Then I cut a couple 4-1/2” chunks of 5/16-18” threaded rod, and I had a puller tool for a stepdown 6 rear main cap.

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I would always recommend pulling the oil pan off before flipping any engine over on a stand. You don’t want pan sludge running down (up?) into the ring lands. Get this gunk in the rings and the motor will smoke like a Sicilian sailor from now on.

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The tool works well. Alternating between the two tightening nuts became more important as the cap was pulled farther out, as I didn’t want to get it cocked in the block. The reason I'm replacing the seal should be apparent.

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And here’s the obvious reason for the leak. The main seal was rotated in the block a fair amount. I was told decades ago to cock any new 2-pc. main seal in the block by a small amount to move this parting line away from the cap-to-block seam, but I've had leaks that way. Some of you may have had luck with this method. I like to line the ends up flush with the block, so I know how close I’ve trimmed the length. A tiny dab of ultra-black silicone seals the parting line just fine.

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And here’s the cap removed from the engine. The bearing from this mystery motor looks almost new, although there are some signs of uneven wear. I’ll lay some Plasti-Gage on the crank journal to see what the bearing clearance is.