mjwalfredo

Hi guys,

A couple of weeks ago, I pulled my rear axle apart to replace the bearings and and some maintenance done on the gears (I am so proud of myself, heh). I assembled everything back together and used Permatex "The Right Stuff" for the seal between the carrier assembly and the axle housing. Yesterday I noticed that the axle housing was moist with gear oil all around the seal and a few drops were getting ready to fall of the bottom of the housing. Here is some info about the process I went through: I tried to clean the old gasket off as well as I could with gasket remover, a razor blade and sand paper. I applied the Right Stuff to the axle housing and then got the carrier assembly on as fast as I could. It probably took me about 10 min to get all the bolts tightened from the time I applied the sealant though. Used anti-seize on the bolts and used the "two-finger" method for torquing them down. Also, in the process of getting the carrier off, I gouged the axle housing a bit at one spot with a screw driver because I had missed removing one bolt on my locker (It didn't look like it was holding the carrier to the axle housing, I swear! ) The sealant directions said that it should fill all imperfections so I wasn't that worried about it, plus, the oil seems to be seeping out all around the carrier and not at that one spot.

Should I even try tightening the bolts for the carrier assembly to stop the leak or did I do something seriously wrong based on the outlined steps above? Anyone have any tips to make sure I get a perfect seal? Thanks!

ewong

I prefer an old fashioned "paper" seal.

I coat the paper seal with Permatex 300 - both sides.

Place the paper seal on a piece of alum foil, coat one side, flip and coat the other... wear latex gloves or sumpthin - the permatix 300 is sticky...

IMHO ya shouldnt have used sand paper -= maybe scotch brite but even that might have been too much.

Did ya glean the mating surfaces ont he axle housing AND the diff with brake cleanener BEFORE applying "rite Stuff?"

mjwalfredo

Well the sand paper was pretty fine grained and I didn't go to town with it so maybe there was no harm done there.... I did spray the axle housing with brake parts cleaner but I a can't remember for sure about the carrier housing. I think I just used the gasket remover and wiped it down with a paper towel afterwards. Maybe that's my problem.

I think I might try your method with the gasket and permatex, ewong. Is the dealership the best place to pick up the gasket or can i get one from carquest? Will the permatex gasket remover I used for the paper seal work on the "Right Stuff" seal as well?

ewong

As far as I know "right stuff" is more like FIPG than "gasket"... so it should peel off.

Once you use paper gaskets coated with permatex 300 - the gaskets dont stick any more.. they peel off very nicely.

I get the paper gaskets from the dealer - places like Randy R&P might have em... helps to have a perts person who knows what they are doing - most noob will insist that there is no such part....

mjwalfredo

Nice, I like... (end Borat impression) Good to know that FIPG just peels right off too!

GSGALLANT

Did you tighten it down in multiple steps in a criss-cross pattern? I know you said you used the "two finger method" instead of using a torque wrench (you should get a torque wrench). The torque spec for the carrier with a locker is 18 ft-lbs, which is a good push for two fingers on the standard length ratchet handle. Are you sure you got it tight enough? Borrow or buy a torque wrench, and check to see if you got the torque right. You'd be better off taking the carrier off, re-cleaning the surfaces, and starting from scratch, but you may get away with just re-torquing it as is.

The torque spec for a carrier without a locker is 54 ft-lbs. Anybody know why there's such a big difference between the two?

4Crawler

iTrader: (3)

I've had trouble with the Toyota paper gaskets leaking, but I put them on dry. THey would hold fine for a few years then start wicking oil out though the paper. I now use silicone, last stuff I tried was Permatex Ultra-Gray, same stuff Marlin uses. I like to let that sit and skin over for a while before putting the pieces together.

I have re-tightened the 3rd member nuts if I see a leak. Just be careful with the torque, they will snap off pretty easy. That was the reason I last had my rear 3rd out, stud snapped off, I tried to drill it to install a screw extractor but it ended up backing off inside the housing.

ewong

Maybe its an east coast / west coast thing???

Also - I seem to be pulling the diff by the time it gets to where it starts seeping a tad