Dana 70 Hub Seal Advice ???

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Seal in question : 9864S

Some years ago, I bought several 9864S Chicago-Rawhide seals at a going-out-of-business sale at a price that no smart man would refuse.
I have several Dana 70 trucks around here and it just makes me feel better to have some on hand for various "I wish I had a new seal" situations.

That being said, how do these seals compare with Timken for quality and longevity ?

I have a hub seal that is leaking, but it will be several days before I have opportunity to replace it; in other words, plenty of time to order in a Timken seal; seven bucks to my door.

My question is: Would you feel safe in using one of the Chicago-Rawhide seals that are already here --- bought and paid for ---; or, would you order a Timken instead ?

Thanks for reading.

 

[ShadetreeV]

Only cross application experience on some d44 based axles here. . Consensus is Timken is topnotch if you can find it use em. But have used the CR brand as well and never had an issue with performance or longevity. I wouldnt hesitate to run them. If it were some Chinese Skf crap, I would steer clear.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Consensus is Timken is topnotch if you can find it use em. But have used the CR brand as well and never had an issue with performance or longevity. I wouldnt hesitate to run them.

I appreciate the recommendation.

Today, I happened to unexpectedly have the afternoon available and it quit raining a lot earlier than was predicted, so I went ahead and flew in on my leaking seal replacement project.

It is good that I had more than a single new seal at hand; as, like a raw beginner, I somehow messed up a brand-new seal when I was trying to drive it home; thankfully, I had several more of the Chicago-Rawhide seals.

On the second go around, I used a short piece of 4" Schedule-40 PVC with a piece of steel plate over the end (the end I hit with the hammer) for a driver and the seal seemed to just jump into it's place that time.

I have an actual seal driving kit, with numerous driver-gizmos, but the largest one nearly falls through the center of these seals.

I have put in hundreds of seals with good results and yet I have never really properly knew how; I would be all for a seal seating seminar or maybe night classes on the subject.

 

[ShadetreeV]

A big socket set is the next best thing to a driver set, hell with some emergency fixes a taped up piece of wood got the job done . No special science needed when it comes to installation though, I like to put a real thin layer of Rtv on the od to help glide it in to place with the added benefit of sealing and an inspection mirror to check that it's seated evenly.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

and an inspection mirror to check that it's seated evenly.

Thanks for the mirror idea.

It would take one heck of a socket to work with these seals; my 2-9/16 axle nut socket is too small.