VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND NEWER 1949-1954 rear axle seal removal 52 chev

I did some research on this question but found nothing. I am removing the rear axle seals on the 52,the manual shows a slide hammer puller in use. I do not want to remove the bearings but am having trouble doing so using a standard puller which looks like a slim headed hammer with a hooked end. I am pretty positive the seals have been in place for over 20 years and have begun to soak the area with Liquid wrench. Any suggestions would be helpful.

You can hook behind the seal with the grove on the inner end of the axle shaft and pry it out.
I suppose that you could drill the seal to weaken the flange and help to collapse it if its really stuck.

Fo general interest, the problem I had was due to a small plate that fits outside the seal and press fits over the end of the axle housing. Once I got my nose down there and took a good look through the tri focals the problem became obvious. Once the item was removed the seals came out realtively easy. Next time I go to the parts manual and check the schematic.

I can't picture what the "small plate" is.Every one that I have ever seen has the seal the last thing to go in place after the bearing and is very much visable when the axle shaft is removed.Perhaps its some after market item?

I have never seen this before either. Just one more thing that one learns so I thought that it was worth posting a comment. Later today I will check the master parts cataloug and see it it lists this item. If so will report back.

The part in question is shown and described as a "deflector" in the parts cataloug. The picture is very similar but not exact as the part in the cataloug appears to have hole in it where the one on the 52 is solid. The deflector is concave in shape and fits over the end of the axle housing with the concave portion fitting over the axle.

Regarding the plate that is on the end of the axle housing. I do not see it listed in any parts books. But on the last three cars I worked on recently, 52,53,54 these plates were found and had to be pried out before getting to the seal. the rear hub deflector, group 5.815 is shown as attached to the axle assembly.

I sold hundred of those seals in my day and never saw the "plate"...must besomething that came with a later replacement seal.
The history of that seal goes back to the 1933-36 Standards.Was then used in the 1937-54 cars.Prior to the early 1950's the seal was leather.Chevrolet bought them from Chicago Rawhide.In 1952 I recall the new cars as having an epidemic of leaking rear axle seals.Around this time the seal material was changed to more modern neoprene.Bowman products sold a seal that had two narrow sealing lips.One was leather and one was neoprene.We installed many of those also.
The plate is not shown in any of the (later) parts books.The plate may have served as some type of seal retainer.

Gene thanks for the history, if this is indeed a "deflector" the only thing that would be deflected would be 90w gear lube leaking around the seal, eventually any such lube caught on the "deflector" would run down to the bottom and drip onto the brake drum, certainly would not stop any lube from contaminating the brake area.I reinstalled them but see little use for them.