Driveshaft seal

[powerstroke]

my L4400 hst front drive shaft has recently started leaking from rear seal
is it easy to replace seal?
will i loose a lot of fluid ?
should i replace both ?

 

[rentthis]

That sounds familiar. Where exactly is the leak?

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

I would not call that an easy seal to replace.
There is only one rear seal.
You'll loose all the fluid.

You will have to one split the tractor in 2 at the bell housing to get to the seal, 2 drain all the hydraulic fluid, remove quite a bit of parts then replace seal and the reverse the process and put it all back together.

 

[rentthis]

If this is the same seal, I had that problem with an L3430. Kubota Knew of the problem and repaired it under warranty, The original warranty had long expired.

 

[eserv]

The most common reason for that seal to leak is the wear sleeve that is supposed to be inside the seal has moved forward. this shouldn't apply to a L4400 because it should have a sleeve on the shaft between that wear sleeve and the rear coupling. But yours might not have a spacer sleeve! Remove the drive shaft under the oil pan and observe if there is an oring and then a thin tube (spacer sleeve) in there. If there isn't get one and install it, if there is one there changing that seal is a BIG job unless you have the special tools!

 

[powerstroke]

thank you for the information, this tractor only has 400 hrs. it makes me wonder if something is missing . oil is dripping from plug on bell,

 

[powerstroke]

oil leaking from plug on bell housing

 

[powerstroke]

how long had the warranty expired, when they fixed it ?

 

[rentthis]

If you are referring to my post,It was over a year and several hundred more hours. They knew what was wrong and that it was their fault. If you remove the front driveshaft, the splined front output shaft should move fore and aft. When pulled forward it leaks. When pushed back in, it will stop leaking. If those are your symptoms, it's fairly certain that's your problem.

 

[MODiesel]

The most common reason for that seal to leak is the wear sleeve that is supposed to be inside the seal has moved forward. this shouldn't apply to a L4400 because it should have a sleeve on the shaft between that wear sleeve and the rear coupling. But yours might not have a spacer sleeve! Remove the drive shaft under the oil pan and observe if there is an oring and then a thin tube (spacer sleeve) in there. If there isn't get one and install it, if there is one there changing that seal is a BIG job unless you have the special tools!

I'm curious - will a L5030HST have the sleeve? If so, can it be "lost" the shaft is slid forward (don't ask...)?

 

[MODiesel]

If you are referring to my post,It was over a year and several hundred more hours. They knew what was wrong and that it was their fault. If you remove the front driveshaft, the splined front output shaft should move fore and aft. When pulled forward it leaks. When pushed back in, it will stop leaking. If those are your symptoms, it's fairly certain that's your problem.

I recently had this happen. I had to replace the front pinion seal and that meant removing the front driveshaft. While removed, I had to reposition the tractor and when I went to replace the driveshaft I found the output shaft had slid forward. After some finagling I was able to line up the internal splines and slide it back in, but now that it's all buttoned up I've got a nice hydraulic fluid leak. I also can't tell if it feels like 4wd is engaging (I didn't drive it long enough since it was leaking). I'm trying to figure out if there's anything short of splitting the tractor that will allow me to address it.