Leaking swivel ball joint

[Discobro]

I posted a week or so ago on other forums about this problem. Noticed gear oil leaking on my front pass wheel so I checked the swivel ball level and yes it was low. I added more gear oil and it doesn't seem to leak now. Should I be concerned about this? Possibly the oil was coming from the hub seal and not the swivel ball? I also checked the diff level and seemed OK.

Any suggestions? I also heard that if you add a heavier wt. oil to the swivel balls that the seals are less apt to leak...

-Corey

 

[Rikstaboogie]

A few discussions could be started here, such as, do you top up with oil? In which case what type? etc...

Or

Do you use 'one shot' grease.

IMHO I use one shot on all my landy's and keep an eye on the swivel seal. If after an outing with my rangie (prolonged driving through deep water etc) i found my swivels leaking, then i would strip and clean the grease and renew. One shot won't leak as easy as normail oil. If your truck has an easy life then just top up with oil and off you go.
Hope this helps...

 

[Sergei]

That swivel ball thingy is nasty with leaks - sometime it wont leak on normal occasions, but then,when got hotter and oil thins, or you pushing steering too far - it finds its way. Just keep an eye on it, or replace with grease, if you feel like it.

 

[geoff]

The swivel seal gets hard with age and doesn't seal as well. Also the swivel preload needs to be set right. If too much play allows movement and then seepage from the swivel seals. Replacing the seal is a real PITA. I pulled the whole hub assembly off from the axle tube. Heavy, but the shortest way from A to B.

 

[Lutzgaterr]

Geoff,
now there's an idea for a shortcut, I like that.
I, like a dumbass, added Lucas, now I have a weeping seal.
So I filled the swivels back-up with one-shot, see how it goes.
Truck , 97, swivel housing only has fill-hole, has 87K miles, so it's time for a swivel tear-down/rebuild.
I am going to search for a swivel rebuild kit, so if you know who offers a comphrehensive kit of parts, please sing-out.

Thanks,

 

[spmDvl]

Whats wrong with using Lucas Oil Stabilizer?
Thats what I was told to use .. of course it still leaks as bad as it ever did.
I think my other one is starting to leak when it didn't leak before ... could be Lucas!!!

 

[Lutzgaterr]

Simply the viscosity difference. They both seem relatively thick, but once that swivel heats-up, lucas will thin-out and leak from the seals faster than the one-shot-grease.
Now then, if your swivel has drain holes, then I would use 90wt instead of one-shot.

 

[Blue]

Discobro,

It should be very apparent if your hub seal is leaking. You'll have fluids radiating outward from the center of the wheel. Yank the wheel and inspect the hub - pop off that little black plastic axle cap.

If the leak is your swivel ball, either replace the seal, or switch to a heavier weight lubricant (like the one-shot grease). If the leak is bad, increasing the viscosity is just treating the symptoms. Sounds like your leak isn't that bad, though.

Also inspect your brake caliper - you may have a leaking caliper, which will drip down onto the wheel.

 

[Discobro]

Thanks for the info. Any specific brands to use of the "one shot" grease? And how hard would it be to get the grease out if for some reason I needed to? I have a 96 and the swivel balls have drain plugs for the gear oil but the grease would just stay in there, wouldn't it?

 

[Discobro]

BTW- are you the same "Blue" as on the last D-web forum? Or is that a "need-to-know" basis?

 

[Blue]

Thanks for the info. Any specific brands to use of the "one shot" grease? And how hard would it be to get the grease out if for some reason I needed to? I have a 96 and the swivel balls have drain plugs for the gear oil but the grease would just stay in there, wouldn't it?

LR sells the one-shot grease. Yes, grease is harder to get out....therein lies the problem. If there is no contamination, you theoretically don't ever need to get it out. LR considers it a one-time lubricant (hence the name). If you need to get it out, I'd suggest running on the highway to get the grease warmed up, then removing the drain plug and blowing through a tube into the fill plug. Then add some lighter oil and repeat until the system is flushed.

 

[Blue]

BTW- are you the same "Blue" as on the last D-web forum? Or is that a "need-to-know" basis?

I'm not quite the same.....I'm a little older.

 

[spmDvl]

One shot ..

One shot will still drain out .. but to get all of it you may need to run regular oil a few times through it to flush it fully.

 

[96discoI]

Geoff,
now there's an idea for a shortcut, I like that.
I, like a dumbass, added Lucas, now I have a weeping seal.
So I filled the swivels back-up with one-shot, see how it goes.
Truck , 97, swivel housing only has fill-hole, has 87K miles, so it's time for a swivel tear-down/rebuild.
I am going to search for a swivel rebuild kit, so if you know who offers a comphrehensive kit of parts, please sing-out.

Thanks,

atlantic british- it is in NYC and on the web

 

[96discoI]

Whats wrong with using Lucas Oil Stabilizer?
Thats what I was told to use .. of course it still leaks as bad as it ever did.
I think my other one is starting to leak when it didn't leak before ... could be Lucas!!!

or it could just be a land rover that needs some maintenance...