I would find it very odd if the seal had worn a groove in the crank after only a year... But as you said it was only dirt and oil build up. Still it's funny how a rubber seal can eat it's way into a steel crank...

When I used to do my apprenticeship as a automotive machinist, I turned quite few sleeves where we had to grind/lathe down the rear end of a crank, and replace the metal with a sleeve, as the seal wore a groove so deep that polishing/grinding it out would take it beyond the reach of the new seal.

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And the problem is...

Bah!!!
Why must I always read the tricks too late.
When we replaced my clutch kit, the idiots never put grease on the crank seal when installing it. They just tapped it in place lightly with a hammer and a flat punch.
I heard that sometimes the crank can wear grooves here where the seal is installed and "eat" the seal up in no time.Then the crank needs to be removed and the grooves need to be polished out on the crank.Just curious, does this happen often?

Cool, and still didn't break the bank... Plybond/Genkem is the solution to escaping seals...


Mmmmm, and you had some Wellington to make things go smooth while installing it...