Tri Seal,not impressed

I had a seal leaking at the bottom of the transfer case where the driveshaft hooks on to my 1365 Oliver. It looks like it'll be a bear to replace,you have to drop the whole box out,take off a snap ring from the inside and pull the shaft out to change it. I went ahead and got the seal,but the guys at the auto parts store had some stuff called Tri Seal that they were pretty proud of. Said on the bottle that it's guaranteed to work.
Jeff told me that it says on the bottle to put one in,if it still leaks add another one,so I got two.

I put one in and after two days,it was all but stopped. I'd set a coffee can under it over night and it would just about cover the bottom. So,I figured the other bottle should finish the job. I dumped that one in along with the little bit of oil that was in the can and it started leaking worse almost immediately. It went from a drip about every thirty seconds to one every three. It filled the coffee can overnight and ran it over. Last night,I put a two and a half gallon pail under it and it filled it over night. I put it back under there this morning and it was full in eight hours.

What a mess. I just poured it back in and now it's running a steady stream. That second bottle worked just like a solvent and dissolved all the progress the first one made plus melting the whole seal apparently.

I suppose that's possible- that whatever softens/swells seals, could in high concentration melt an already compromised seal. Additives like that scare me, in that I wonder what they're doing to all the other components which were working correctly.

Additives like that are for minor weeps, if leaking enough to be a problem it's likely too far gone for that stuff. Fix it right and be done with it for another couple decades

Had a steering rack leaking on a 15 year old truck. Put in just a couple ounces of Lucas power steering stop leak. Much to my surprise, it worked!

I think a lot depends on why it was leaking. If the seal is worn and hard, it might work.

If it's hard to the point it is cracked, if grass or something is wrapped around it, or there is play in the bearing, it probably won't.

Ya,I've used Lucas products a few times with great results. I had a rear main seal leaking once and Lucas sealed that right up. Had a transmission input shaft seal leaking once too and it sealed that right up.
Like I said,I've got the new seal for this,I just didn't want to have to take the time to put it in so soon.

Have you checked the shaft for any movement? Could be more than just the seal is the problem.

Ya,doesn't seem to move. I hoped there was just a nut to pull the end off that thing to get to the seal,but according to the schematic,you have to drop the whole gearbox and take that snap ring off from the inside and pull the whole shaft.

Had decent luck with a product called SealLube.

First tried it +-10 yeas ago, my 5000 was leaking fluid up and out the steering column, it stopped the leak.

So last week, I'm mowing hay, same 5000, and it starts weeping fluid again...added a couple ounces seallube, topped off the PS pump, ran a few hours, added and topped off again, no more leak.

It worked for me.

Fred

Concur with Fred. Used Seal Lube a lot. Bought a 2150 that was puking oil out the rear main and it stopped. Left lift cylinder on the 1955 was leaking and it stopped. I have found trick to using it is not to add it before you are going to use the tractor or whatever. Only works on rubber seals not felt.

Yes usually when a seal goes it is because the bearing on that shaft is wallowing around allowing the seal to be eaten. A seal replacement without a new bearing may be futile.

I've had good luck with Seal Lube too! Like the others have said if it's a loose shaft or torn seal, it won't work.
DWF

I just put the new seal in. The old one had more puckers and rolls than a square dance dress. There was black stuff stuck all over the shaft,I'm assuming rubber. I had to use emery cloth and work the heck out of it to get it cleaned up.

I think somebody has put new bearings in it recently. There was a little gouge in the bottom of the case like the gear had hit it and there was a lot of silicone on the gasket.

Is it possible that the additional fluid raised the level and caused it to leak worse? Also, did you run it a couple hours each time you added the sealing fluid?

That shaft sits right down at the bottom of the tractor so it's constantly totally immersed in oil. There's four gallons above it. I was running it daily. It got to where in the last few days,I had to load feed fast then park it with a bucket under it because it was running out in a stream.