Centre crank oil seal removal - help!!!

[Simon.Gardiner]

The Arrow's getting new crankshaft seals. The strip-out's gone fairly well until the very last item - the centre oil seal.

The workshop manual says that after removing the bearing the centre oil seal can be easily removed with a drift and mallet....
Well, all I've succeeded in doing is knocking the centre out of the seal - it's an original-type double seal and there is no metal lip at the front or back.
I seem to be left with a steel-backed rubber cylinder that it's impossible to get any purchase on.

I can't be alone in having this problem - anyone got any advice? All I can think of so far is trying to burn it out, or maybe burn off the rubber, heat the steel backing to red-heat and jam something under it to collapse it.
Or possibly get the rubber off the steel and put a couple of weld blobs on it to use to knock it out.

Anyone got any better ideas - please!

SG

[Mick D]

Hi

A photo would help, how about a blind bearing remover? I have a similar set that's got me out of a pinch several times in the past:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Moendergo-Bear ... hdGY&psc=1

Regards Mick

[Ivor Collins]

The one-piece seals can be difficult to remove.
The last one I did required the use of a die grinder and a steady hand to cut 90% through the steel case before peeling it out like a sardine can lid

[Ivor Collins]

Center seal

[Roger Gwynn]

I seem to remember that I used a small screwdriver blade hammered in between the outer casing and the case that effectively reduced the diameter of the outer so that something bigger could be used to collapse it.

[Simon.Gardiner]

Just tried a blind puller set but it doesn't want to play...so far. I thought the seal might have shifted out enough to get something behind the steel outer but that doesn't seem to be the case.
Looks like any progress is going to be brutal!

SG

[Bernie Blundell]

You could try heating the case with a blowlamp/heatgun, ally will expand fast than steel.
Depending on what you have, I'd mig weld a piece of steel rod into the shell then use a slide hammer with a hook end to snatch it out.

[Simon.Gardiner]

Got the thing out!
After much messing about with bearing pullers, MAP torches and drifts (see below) I ended up grinding down a section of the steel wall with a dremel (using a narrow cutting disc, which I always find easier to manipulate for taking off metal) and collapsing the reduced section with a small screwdriver.
I did then put the puller back in but I could probably have hoicked it out by hand. Took about 20 mins in the end!

Note the notch in the back of the crankcase housing at about 2 o'clock. I thought at first this was someone's clever ruse to allow easier knocking out of a seal and tried to use a drift through it from the back, without success. This attempt wasn't helped by the corresponding notch in the seal backing that seemed very odd (see pic).
Cleaning out the crankcase I discovered that the crankcase notch is directly below the feed hole from the bottom of the inner drive-side transfer port that oils the centre bearing. I assume the notches are a modification to make sure the oil feed isn't obstructed by the oil seal - something I'll have to look at more carefully when I fit the seal.

Thanks to all for advice!

SG