Camshaft Oil Leak

[andy oliver]

My 1800 K-series inlet camshaft front oil seal leaked from new.I replaced it with great care about 200 miles ago and it has started to leak again.Before I change it again is there anything I should know?The surface of the camshaft appears to be smooth and undamaged,could it be leaking from the housing in the head and if so would fitting the new one in some Hylomar do any good?

Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

[oilyhands]

Its highly unlikely that its leaking from the housing itself although a light skim of sealant cant hurt, it's more likely that

 

i) the seal was damaged or 'popped' when being fitted

ii) it wasn't fitted entirely squarely

iii) it was fitted across an existing wear groove on the cam surface.

 

There is a technique for fitting small oil seals of this type that precludes i).. Oil the lip of the seal and the chamfer on the end of the cam, place the seal at an angle of around 20 degrees and slip one side over the end of the cam past the chamfer, press down hard on the outside of the seal on the side which is on the cam, this deflects the 'lip' and provides some leeway to guide the other side of the seal onto the shaft. Slide the seal as far as you can with your hand and then drive home with a sutibale drift or suitably sized socket. If there is a wear groove you can either tighten the helical spring inside the seal by unscrewing the end and clipping off 3 or 4 coils before re-joining, or you can drift the seal nearly all the way home but leave a gap of (guesswork) 1mm between the inner end of the seal and the bottom of the recess. This will ensure the seal lip runs on fresh material rather than a wear groove.

 

Oily

[andy oliver]

Many thanks for the info,oilyhands.I'll give it a go.