Series 3 FWH's don't engage, can I use 4wd to at least lubricate the front end?

As far as I know:

Old type:


New type:

For most stuff like this you can either get an o ring from a bearing place or make your own gaskets. Mine has ancient Warn hubs and I make the gaskets.

Cereal packets work well.

The AVM hub seal I had the problem with was a square section O-Ring with a lip moulded around the outside. This was around the outer edge of the selector plate where the oil was leaking through. It had perished and split with age.

I couldn't find anywhere that supplied anything like it.

Old type paper cartridge oil filters/fuel filters [ common on old tractors like Ferguson, Fordson. ] come with a selection of square section seals. May not be the right length but can be cut to size and ends superglued together.

Its likely to be a seal from something else, unlikely its a special as they cost too much. Try searching for hydraulic cylinder seals as these can be lipped and come in a range of sizes. Can you make it up out of an o ring plus a gasket?

Here's an example, but you have to plow through 300 plus pages!
https://www.skf.com/binary/120-300492/0901d1968032d086-Hydraulic-seals---12393_2-EN.pdf

Finally managed to pry the FWH off and found that the pin that stops the plate from rotating had snapped off on the left FWH. A bit of superglue and reassembly and now have a working set. 2 thoughts firstly they are such a simple mechanism, little should go wrong and manufacturing cost should put them at half the price being charged. I am surprised the Chinese haven't banged out a set. Secondly if one wheel did not engage 4X4 then for some reason the diff did not turn the prop shaft and I have no idea why. When both hubs engaged all works as it should.
A last comment, the Haynes manual mentions that the later 1881 onwards series 3 had some variants fitted with FWH at the factory. Because of the new drive shaft arrangement it was not necessary to engage 4X4 to lubricant but on older models engage them the advice was run once a month for I think about 100 miles.

I shouldn't think many series do 100 miles a month anymore, mine does less than 50. I run my FWH in 4x4 every other tank of petrol.

Col

I really need to get my 2a into low and high 4x4. Loosen it all up a bit. Haven't had a chance.

Trench Rat said:

I really need to get my 2a into low and high 4x4. Loosen it all up a bit. Haven't had a chance.

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Me too.

Col

Colthebrummie said:

Me too.

Col

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I've never done it except when stuck in a field and hubs may have not been turned. No damage though. Somehow.

I'll get it jacked up and on stands some point next week to play with it.

Trench Rat said:

I've never done it except when stuck in a field and hubs may have not been turned. No damage though. Somehow.

I'll get it jacked up and on stands some point next week to play with it.

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I've thought about doing that but I'm worried it might shake itself off the stands.

Col

When I got mine I put it on 4 axle stands and let it idle in drive, that's how I found the FWH were stuck.
Looking at those pics of the early and late AVM hubs, the early ones look identical to my Warn hubs, wonder if they are the same.

I've not driven my 2A for too long, but I'd find a quiet, straight road, engage low box and drive through the gears.
So long as you're not going round corners or spinning the tyres then it'll be fine. I've never had a problem.
So long as you engage the hubs every now and then, that keeps things moving so you don't have to go far in low box.
At least that's my view and it's never seized up or broken