Ford axle questions

I am in the process of changing the axle seal on my 53 Customline. I noticed that there is a “5th” hole in the brake shoe backing plate. This lines up with a cavity in the axle flange cover. (see pics)
Does anyone know why this exists? It seems odd to me that the bearing would be open to the outside world like this. Can I simply plug the hole?
Also – Since the seal is towards the inside of the bearing… how does the bearing get lubricated?

 

As I recall, it's there to allow any oil that seeps past the seal to drain away.

 

I think so.

 

Ok thanks, I will not plug the hole then.

*** Not sure how I ended up with 2 threads... thought the first one didn't work. Maybe a moderator can combine them?

 

Enough oil gets past the seal to lube the bearing... the excess drains from that hole... not much though. If you have a ton seeping out you have a leaky seal.

 

I believe those bearings are prelubed with grease and not intended to be lubed from axle housing. And the 5th hole, as mentioned is to drain away any leakage to prevent brake lining contamination.

There are some axle designs that utilize the gear oil to lube the outer bearings. Later Ford with the so-called Torino Style (tapered bearings) are one of those types.

Ray