Stopping a leak in a crack in front differential housing

Clutch, transmission, rear axle

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Montana71-F100
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Stopping a leak in a crack in front differential housing

Post by Montana71-F100 »

My father bought the 1971 F-100 I have in 1972. The front differential has always leaked. A few years ago I discovered that the leak was caused by a crack that went all the way around the tube where it connects to the front differential on the right side. When I took the cover off of the differential I saw broken teeth on the gears. That and a slightly different shade of blue used on the left front quarter panel made me realize that the original owner had had some kind of accident. I didn't want to take the time, money and effort to replace it or do a proper repair so I crawled under and used a TIG welder to weld it the best I could. It still leaked so I covered my weld with Liquid Steel (I think) and silicon rubber. That stopped the leak for several years but now it's leaking again. I still don't want to do a proper repair. I removed as much of what I applied as I could. I don't see any cracks in my weld so I'm not worried about strength. Is there something I could cover the weld with to stop the leak that would last longer?
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jzjames
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Re: Stopping a leak in a crack in front differential housing

Post by jzjames »

Re apply your liquid steel (JB weld) to a very clean surface and hope for the best?

I would think that vibration might make it crack again, but maybe not.
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Montana71-F100
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Re: Stopping a leak in a crack in front differential housing

Post by Montana71-F100 »

jzjames wrote:Re apply your liquid steel (JB weld) to a very clean surface and hope for the best?

I would think that vibration might make it crack again, but maybe not.
Thanks for the suggestion. I looked closely and didn't see any cracks. I was afraid to do the same thing I did before so I decided to try Seal All. I drove the truck on ramps placed in front of the right front and rear tires so the weld was above the oil level. Then I cleaned the area on and around the weld with paint thinner and applied several coats of Seal All. After it dried I filled the differential with gear lube, put it in four wheel drive without the hubs in and drove for a few miles. The next morning I noticed a small drip of oil. I found a place that I missed so I cleaned the oil off with paint thinner and acetone and put on a few coats of Seal All in that area. To keep dirt from wearing it down I decided to spread some Seal All on a piece of mat fiberglass and applied it. So far there's no leak but, I said that a couple of years ago with the first repair!
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