Safari ('88) front axle seal.

[FreddyN]

Has just started leaking. Google tells me that it's possible to remove hub and slide axle out to get at this seal, without disassembling the knuckle (I hope this is right). If anybody has done this, then tips appreciated. Will I need a slide hammer to get the axle out, and how easy is it to get at the seal to remove and replace it?
Does anybody happen to know the size of this seal, as I'd like to pick one up today before I start the job.

[mike barnett]

yes it can be done ,take locking hub off etc and pull axle and cv out ave a cleanup and remove seal easy as,just tell the parts person what make and modle truck you have and they will look up the part for you,no need to have a size or part number.hope that helps. no slide hammer needed it will just pull out

[crazyclark31]

yep. take the king pin bearings out, the ball seals off and pull it off.Be warned it WILL be heavy.
if you go to bnt the part number is 33-44-10,
make sure the seal is seated properly otherwise it will leak real quick. and get the king pins back in asap so the axle doesn't flatten the seal.

[FreddyN]

yep. take the king pin bearings out, the ball seals off and pull it off.Be warned it WILL be heavy.
if you go to bnt the part number is 33-44-10,
make sure the seal is seated properly otherwise it will leak real quick. and get the king pins back in asap so the axle doesn't flatten the seal.

aaargh - that's what I was hoping I wouldn't need to do. Was thinking that once the hub was off, I'd be able to get in to replace the seal - without removing the knuckle. My worry (until I read your post) was that it would be uber-tricky to get access to the seal to get it out, and seat the new one.
My guess BNT # 33-44-10 might be a 44mmOD, 33mmID, 10mm seal? ('tis just a guess - but another guess is that it should cost about $4, I might find one for $10, Nissan price will be about $120)

[mudlva]

yep. take the king pin bearings out, the ball seals off and pull it off.Be warned it WILL be heavy.
if you go to bnt the part number is 33-44-10,
make sure the seal is seated properly otherwise it will leak real quick. and get the king pins back in asap so the axle doesn't flatten the seal.

aaargh - that's what I was hoping I wouldn't need to do. Was thinking that once the hub was off, I'd be able to get in to replace the seal - without removing the knuckle. My worry (until I read your post) was that it would be uber-tricky to get access to the seal to get it out, and seat the new one.
My guess BNT # 33-44-10 might be a 44mmOD, 33mmID, 10mm seal? ('tis just a guess - but another guess is that it should cost about $4, I might find one for $10, Nissan price will be about $120)

im picking that is a Lc seal as a mate has just done his two seals this afternoon and i measured his axles and they measure 34mm.
now im a Lc man and have plenty of spares and the inner seals are just one of the many.... and Lc axles measure 33mm .... being that me mate didnt have his new seals i compared the two and yes the LC seals will slide over the axle and sit snug onto the axle shoulder
what we dont know is if over a long period willl the seal wear a groove into the shoulder thus creating a second problem.... time will tell as we were running out of time and installed the LC seals to get him moble again

there you go quite a little story and still while quite fresh as well

[coxsy]

BNT # 33-44-10 thats the right size bud

[FreddyN]

OK - that didn't go too badly, BNT had the seal, which is 44x33x10, and they also stock the grease seal, cost for the two was about $20.
The axle was not ridged around the seal (210,000km, but not a lot of off-road use), so no dramas there. A 32mm socket on a long extension is a perfect drift to drive in the new seal.
Someone in another forum said he could do the job in a hour. I'd say that's not recommended. The leaking diff oil had washed out the half the grease in the CV, so that needed to be cleaned out thoroughly and repacked, while I was at it I cleaned out the bearings and re-packed them as well, as well as inside the knuckle. A messy sh1t job. Sliding the axle back in you need to be really careful, as the ridges on the axle will tear out the new seal, then you need to lift the diff end of the axle by twisting it up on the CV end, with a slight tweak to line up the splines.

I bought a new steering drag-link from BNT, as the ball joints in mine were a bit stuffed. They had these in stock, adjustable ends, with double brackets to fit either steering damper, at trade price just a little above the price to replace the ball joints on an OEM bar.