Rear main seal for 283 that will last

[stroker al]

Bought 57 Chevy with numbers matching 283 eng. and overhauled it but have had to replace rear seal twice. Crank end was polished so I know it's not cutting seal. Does anyone know of a seal that will last longer than 2,500 miles?

[anotheridiot]

Bought 57 Chevy with numbers matching 283 eng. and overhauled it but have had to replace rear seal twice. Crank end was polished so I know it's not cutting seal. Does anyone know of a seal that will last longer than 2,500 miles?

I just use the fel pro 2900, offset it in the cap and seal the edges, but never had one fully seal. Last thing I have seen is actually using the RTC along the edge of the bearing cap as well.

[dave.g.in.gansevoort]

Look at the brighter side: the leak will help keep some of the underside from rusting...

[stroker al]

Look at the brighter side: the leak will help keep some of the underside from rusting...

Thanks I never thought about that but doesn’t make my driveway look good. Appreciate your humor though.

[dave.g.in.gansevoort]

Thanks I never thought about that but doesn’t make my driveway look good. Appreciate your humor though.

I know, right? It's just that I look at the world sideways sometimes...

[Deaf Bob]

Been 50 years or less since I played with 283/327 using those seals. First I thought there were 2 thicknesses. Seems there are 2 lengths Whichever way it goes. Seems if I remember correctly you warm the seal and start in the middle and push it Sort of making it fatter. BUT not too fat it is too short. Again. It’s been a long time... Maybe it was a 235 or something seal..

[DanStokes]

I'm not a SBC guy but it seems like I've heard that there's a 1 piece rear seal conversion for these. If not, a trick I used on the Mercedes in Mutt the Race Truck, also a "rope" seal. Misalign the ends such that the seal is sort of rotated in the cap. That way you're not trying to seal the rope where it aligns with the block. I'll take a look and see if I have a pic of that task.

EDIT: Sorry - I have pics but none are clear. Basically, I tapped the seal into the seal bore using a big socket on it's side to simulate the curve, but left about 1/4" sticking out one side. Then I did the same on the other side, oiled up the areas where the seal needed to slide in, then carefully fed the two pieces into each other. It's working great.

[stroker al]

I'm not a SBC guy but it seems like I've heard that there's a 1 piece rear seal conversion for these. If not, a trick I used on the Mercedes in Mutt the Race Truck, also a "rope" seal. Misalign the ends such that the seal is sort of rotated in the cap. That way you're not trying to seal the rope where it aligns with the block. I'll take a look and see if I have a pic of that task.

EDIT: Sorry - I have pics but none are clear. Basically, I tapped the seal into the seal bore using a big socket on it's side to simulate the curve, but left about 1/4" sticking out one side. Then I did the same on the other side, oiled up the areas where the seal needed to slide in, then carefully fed the two pieces into each other. It's working great.

Thanks for info will look into one piece conversion,then will try your rope trick!

[Captain]

I haven't done a Rope Seal since "Way Before The Turn of the Century". And I will again shortly on my 1952 F5 farm truck.
Like Dan said, off set the rope in the block, and the cap.
I pounded it in using a piece of 1 1/2" pipe.
Test run the cap to the torque specs.
Look at the meeting of cap and block. Check with a feeler gauge for ANY openings. If it's like my Ford, the Rear Bearing is in the cap also. You DON'T Want to Spin a Bearing either.
You may have to trim the Rope Seal with a SHARP Razor blade to get it right.
Then RTV Sealant the matching faces......
AND PRAY 🙏

[anotheridiot]

I always look at a seal and wonder if it makes more sense going in the other way.

[stroker al]

I always look at a seal and wonder if it makes more sense going in the other way.

I always look at them and wonder if they are pieces of shit out of China, need to get back in USA !!!

[cstmwgn]

I always look at them and wonder if they are pieces of shit out of China, need to get back in USA !!!

I don't want to start a fire storm but we are doing a pretty good job of making junk here as well.

[stroker al]

Noted!!

[anotheridiot]

Going to change intakes again on the camaro, still trying to fix the oil leak, went with https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...&pt=5604&jsn=3 VICTOR REINZ 191011601 this time, says its a double lip seal.

Funny thing though, turned the engine to a quarter turn on the stand because I wanted to get different pan bolts (again) that wont loosen, and I get a stream of oil coming out of the top lower front bolt hole where the ground wire was bolted to. The pan was drained so there was not even much oil in there and it still had a good flow. Those are the two someone would bolt a front motor mount to on a rail setup.

So now back to the debate, now there are two lips, they should point in, right? so oil stays on the inside of the seal?

[dave.g.in.gansevoort]

Going to change intakes again on the camaro, still trying to fix the oil leak, went with https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...&pt=5604&jsn=3 VICTOR REINZ 191011601 this time, says its a double lip seal.

Funny thing though, turned the engine to a quarter turn on the stand because I wanted to get different pan bolts (again) that wont loosen, and I get a stream of oil coming out of the top lower front bolt hole where the ground wire was bolted to. The pan was drained so there was not even much oil in there and it still had a good flow. Those are the two someone would bolt a front motor mount to on a rail setup.

So now back to the debate, now there are two lips, they should point in, right? so oil stays on the inside of the seal?

Yes, unless you have added a pcv system. Then it goes the other way so stuff doesn't get pulled in under vacuum.