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Rear main rope oil seal install


Frank Blackstone

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For engine 1120804-3    does Felpro B53141    73004   list as the correct rope type rear main upper  oil seal for my P-15

Beside bitching about how hard this is to do please offer any constructive ideas. I have frayed the end of the rope trying to install by pushing.. No parts store has or even heard of a sneaky pete puller. Reviews say they break easily. Wire mesh cable puller appears to be too large for opening. I have loosened the 1st, 2nd and 3rd  bearing caps, lubricated the rope with silicone grease and used picks to push in the rope but only goes 1/2 way. Never goes far enough to see anything coming out. Manual useless saying remove flywheel (requiring, transmission , drive shaft removal) to access seal retainer plate  .OK to think outside the box
Beside bitching about how hard this is to do please offer any constructive ideas. I have frayed the end of the rope trying to install by pushing.. No parts store has or even heard of a sneaky pete puller. Reviews say they break easily. Wire mesh cable puller appears to be too large for opening. I have loosened the 1st, 2nd and 3rd  bearing caps, lubricated the rope with silicone grease and used picks to push in the rope but only goes 1/2 way. Never goes far enough to see anything coming out. Manual useless saying remove flywheel (requiring, transmission , drive shaft removal) to access seal retainer plate  .OK to think outside the box
Beside bitching about how hard this is to do please offer any constructive ideas. I have frayed the end of the rope trying to install by pushing.. No parts store has or even heard of a sneaky pete puller. Reviews say they break easily. Wire mesh cable puller appears to be too large for opening. I have loosened the 1st, 2nd and 3rd  bearing caps, lubricated the rope with silicone grease and used picks to push in the rope but only goes 1/2 way. Never goes far enough to see anything coming out. Manual useless saying remove flywheel (requiring, transmission , drive shaft removal) to access seal retainer plate  .OK to think outside the box
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1 hour ago, Frank Blackstone said:

No parts store has or even heard of a sneaky pete puller

 

PERFORMANCE TOOL W84019

 

LISLE 27000

 

Are two options

 

 

1 hour ago, Frank Blackstone said:

I have frayed the end of the rope

 

Superglue the very end to keep it from fraying

 

1 hour ago, Frank Blackstone said:

I have loosened the 1st, 2nd and 3rd  bearing caps

 

Make sure they are all loose and you may need to rotate the crank to help work it in, or out for that matter.

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If you have the upper and lower three bolt seal retainer plates sad to say you need to remove them to properly install the rope seals into upper/lower seal retainer plates out of the car.

Then you have to work the newly installed rolled and shaped rope/retainer upper/lower plates to fit the crankshaft. Not at all easy to do with the engine in the car as the upper plstes three bolts have poor access.

 

The rope needs to be packed firmly into the seal retainer plates and also have  full 100% contact to the crankshaft journal for minimal leakage.

Both seal plates need to press the oiled rope seals firmly against the crankshaft to seal.

Also the ends of the seals need to be cut accurately flat and up maybe .010" to .015" above the block and cap mating surfaces. Tough to do in the car.

I use a .002" narrowed feeler gauge to see if it will slide under the installed rope seals. It should not go in between the rope seal and crankshaft anywhere.

Like I say...a very tough job in the car for a leak free rear main seal repair.

 

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Edited by Dodgeb4ya
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Frank....I don't know if this info is any use to you but when I had my 1941 P11 Plymouth with its P11 stamped original engine it had a bad leak from the rear main.......I had a new complete Best Brand Gasket set that had only the neoprene rear main seals, no rope seal so I bought a nice new rope seal......dropped the sump & rear main only to discover that the engine had a neoprene seal fitted with the steel brackets......but no side seals had been installed by whoever last played with the rear main.......I installed the side seals and a new lower rear main seal which reduced the oil loss substancially..........had the correct or any for that matter side seals been installed?.............andyd

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  • 2 weeks later...

Andyd     It is good to hear from you and that you are still active.  I have not been on here for years but remember you and your wisdom when Don Coatney was here.  I still miss him and his wisdom to decipher my posts for others to understand . I am going to leave it alone as all work must done with engine installed.
DodgeB4ya gave excellent pictures and detailed instructions that convinced me I can not do this from under the car and do a good job.    Like Dirty Harry said" A man has got to know his limitations."   So thank you to you both.

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6 hours ago, Frank Blackstone said:

Sniper  Thanks for the info and even with that they could not even order  either one.  keep your eye on the ridge line.

If you change your mind and decide to do it, both Amazon and Summit Racing have the tool available.

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Really need to see what style of rear main seal design your engine uses.

On the 1946-52 Plymouth engines the rope seal is only mounted into the three bolt retaining plates as shown.

Those retaining plates must be removed to fit the ropes into them.

The plates need to be slightly spread open to install the ropes then sqeezed carefully back..this locks the ropes in place.

The are replacement rubber lipped steel  three bolt seal plates you can use to eliminate the rope style seal plates.

Note....The rope seal is not pushed into the machined groove in the cap and block!

The rope fits into the steel retaner plates.

1953 and later engines use a upper and lower modern style seal that fits over a raised steel lip on both cap and block...no bolt holes drilled into the cap or block. Easy to replace on 1953 and later engines.

 

 

 

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Edited by Dodgeb4ya
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