44C Rebuild

[ol'George]

If both seals are installed the way you have them, they will work OK.
That said, normally a gear box should have seals with the lips to the inside to keep lubricant inside and they are vented.
In these unvented spindle situations when one greases them with a grease gun, excessive grease needs to get out without pushing the seal out.
Ideally, the bottom seal is lip down allowing that, and not allowing debris to push up into the bearings.
The top seal should have the lip facing inside to keep the lubricant inside.
In the real world, both lips facing outward as you have installed, will work ok.
Ideally, if no grease leaks past the seals no additional lubrication is needed.
But we don't live in a ideal world, as clippings/debris gets wrapped around the bottom shaft one way or another compromising them so additional grease is needed occasionally.
Spindles generally fall into 2 situations:

The operator don't have a grease gun and ignores them till they are screaming and flopping around like a fish out of water.
OR over greases them.
if the top seal lip is lip up and he greases them, he will have a no rust deck, but less belt life.
if the top lip is downward the deck will have longer ungreased belt life but will rust because it is not slobbered with grease.

TIP: I put 2 flat washers on my deck cover retaining studs, then install the cover then nuts.
This allows me to blow the shit that accumulates out from under the belt cover with compressed air every other mowing or after mulching.
that procedure makes for longer belt, pulleys, and idler mechanism life.
If one washes the deck out with water/pressure washer it will not dry and just speed rust to both sides of the deck.

I usually put 100 hours a year on the deck mowing/mulching leaves.

[zilla24]

Originally Posted by ol'George

If both seals are installed the way you have them, they will work OK.
That said, normally a gear box should have seals with the lips to the inside to keep lubricant inside and they are vented.
In these unvented spindle situations when one greases them with a grease gun, excessive grease needs to get out without pushing the seal out.
Ideally, the bottom seal is lip down allowing that, and not allowing debris to push up into the bearings.
The top seal should have the lip facing inside to keep the lubricant inside.
In the real world, both lips facing outward as you have installed, will work ok.
Ideally, if no grease leaks past the seals no additional lubrication is needed.
But we don't live in a ideal world, as clippings/debris gets wrapped around the bottom shaft one way or another compromising them so additional grease is needed occasionally.
Spindles generally fall into 2 situations:

The operator don't have a grease gun and ignores them till they are screaming and flopping around like a fish out of water.
OR over greases them.
if the top seal lip is lip up and he greases them, he will have a no rust deck, but less belt life.
if the top lip is downward the deck will have longer ungreased belt life but will rust because it is not slobbered with grease.

TIP: I put 2 flat washers on my deck cover retaining studs, then install the cover then nuts.
This allows me to blow the shit that accumulates out from under the belt cover with compressed air every other mowing or after mulching.
that procedure makes for longer belt, pulleys, and idler mechanism life.
If one washes the deck out with water/pressure washer it will not dry and just speed rust to both sides of the deck.

I usually put 100 hours a year on the deck mowing/mulching leaves.

Great insight, appreciate you taking the time to respond in detail! I have both seals installed as you see in the picture. When I have some shop time over our Christmas break I will flip the top seal before installing on the deck. I painted the underside of the deck and still have the top to do yet.

Now to find a tractor to put it on... lol Does anyone know of an application manual or literature for what tractors these decks would be used on? Looking to see what tractor models the 44C would fit vs. a 44A, I recognize the center pulleys are different for belt sizes.

[Cubcadet782desiel]

The 44c I believe you could put it on most 82 series tractors I have a 44c for my 782d works great. That is a great excuse to put the 782d back together!!

[finsruskw]

I run a 50C on my 882 and a 44A on the 1450