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Mark99
03-15-2005 18:00:26
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Re: moisture in final drive in reply to james in Ontario, 03-03-2005 11:10:03
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James,
I suggest it is entirely due to large changes in air temperature inside / outside the final drive. As the air in the final drive heats up due to operation, the air expands and escapes via the breather holes. On my 57 Fordson, they are located in the filler plug behind the seat. When the tractor stops and cools down, the air inside contracts and draws fresh relatively warm air into the casing. As the casing continues to cool overnight, the amount of water the air can hold reduces until it reaches dew point. At dew point, the air is at 100% relative humidity and cooling below that point will form condensation / water droplets on surfaces in contact with the air. The problem is then compounded, as next day when the tractor is used, it warms up, expells the air (but not the moisture) and the cycle repeats, bringing more water into the casing.
Just thinking out loud, but I am wondering if you could turn the casing into a non-pressurised closed system? To test the theory, you could tape a polythene shopping bag over the breather such that it would allow the air to go into and out of the bag without drawing fresh moisture laden air from the atmosphere. Sure there would be some moisture in the air in the casing to start with, but you wouldn't be adding more moisture everytime the machine heated up and cooled down. Some dessicant placed in the bag would absorb the moisture eventually. If that worked, you could try something more permanant, by perhaps enclosing the bag in an old oil container drilled to allow air between the bag and the container to escape.
The last thing you want to do however, is pressurise the casing as this will drive oil out of the seals. I don't seem to have this problem where I live, but when I bought the old girl she had milky oil in the final drive.
I would like to hear how you get on.
Good Luck !
Regards,
Mark
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