Since everyone was so helpful with the transfer case rebuild I though I'd ask about the steering box .
The box works OK, but I'm tired of it leaking. From posts I've read it looks like new bushings and seals would be the minimum required to get the leaks taken care of.
I've looked over the procedure in the TM and see 2 potential snags:
1) Removing a steering wheel that's been on there longer than I've been around.
2) Sizing the oilite bushings for the pitman arm shaft to within .0005".
If you've done it what did you use for tooling?
If anyone has suggestions and photos that would be great!
Thanks,
Andy
Last edited by T. Highway on Sun Jan 15, 2017 11:32 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason:Correct topic spelling
Pin hone on the bushing. And careful measurements.
As to the wheel, make a puller similar to the one pictured in the manual and expect to break or crack the petrified rubber.
You can restore the wheel while it is off.
I also trued up the bottom end of the steering worm shaft, so that it runs true in the seal, and applied a Redi-Sleeve to prevent leaks (the lower steering box cover in the photo is an old one that I knocked the seal out of to use for this purpose, as the cover is necessary to set up the bearing crush on that worm shaft):
I also installed a Redi-Sleeve on the shaft above the worm gear, since the plain cork seal had trapped moisture and caused the shaft to corrode in that area. Here's the Red-Sleeve almost to the corroded area:
And here's the Redi-Sleeve installed, with the installation flange removed (normally, I'd leave the flange on, but there's no way to assemble the shaft into the box with the flange in place):
“When a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, IT IS THEIR RIGHT, IT IS THEIR DUTY, TO THROW OFF SUCH GOVERNMENT...” -Declaration of Independence, 1776
"As to the wheel, make a puller similar to the one pictured in the manual and expect to break or crack the petrified rubber."
I had a feeling that I may end up with a damaged steering wheel at the end of this . I'll have to take a look around the Shop and see if I can devise something that won't kill the wheel. I may actually have an ancient Snap On puller that will work, it is buried somewhere and resembles some of the "military" steering wheel pullers on Ebay.
Elwood,
Thanks for the photos and suggestions, super helpful! Can't beat them for seeing what we'll be dealing with. What kind of where did your box have? Just the bushings?
Andy, the box internals were worn but not damaged or broken. The worm was in surprisingly good condition, although discolored from someone using the wrong lube. The Pitman arm gear teeth weren't too bad, but the shaft was measurably worn, so I replaced it with an NOS one from Midwest Military. The seals were all bad, which wasn't a mystery since someone had replaced the vent with a pipe plug. The lower worm shaft tapered roller bearing wasn't too bad, but the upper one had some rust, so I replaced both. And of course, the lower cover/seal was worn out, and so I replaced the entire cover assembly with an NOS one.
The worst of it was trying to true up the bottom end of the worm shaft. There's no spec in the TM manual for runout (only for OD), but I did find a maximum out-of-round spec for seal tolerance in one of the manufacturer's catalogs (the Timken/National Seal one, IIRC), and this one was way out. Since I don't have a lathe that could accommodate this worm shaft assembly, I had to do it the old way: some very careful application of emery cloth, with frequent reassembly into the gearbox to check the runout. It came out slightly undersized versus the repair standards, but the Redi-Sleeve brought it back to within spec, both for OD and runout.
While I had it apart, I bead blasted the casting, baked it to check for porosity, and then painted the inside with red Glyptal (baked after painting).
Since I installed a Redi-Sleeve on the upper worm shaft seal (which is nothing more than a square profile cork ring pressed around the shaft by a conical washer), I tried to find a manufactured seal that would fit on the shaft, with an OD to fit at the upper end of the casting, but never did find anything. I'm back to a new cork seal, but at least with the stainless Redi-Sleeve it won't corrode the shaft again.
When I do my next one, I'll set up the clearance on the Pitman shaft bushings just a tad tighter than this one. It's in spec for new parts, but I'd like it to be just a bit closer.
Last edited by Elwood on Tue Jan 17, 2017 3:15 am, edited 2 times in total.
“When a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, IT IS THEIR RIGHT, IT IS THEIR DUTY, TO THROW OFF SUCH GOVERNMENT...” -Declaration of Independence, 1776
ashyers wrote:
I had a feeling that I may end up with a damaged steering wheel at the end of this . I'll have to take a look around the Shop and see if I can devise something that won't kill the wheel. I may actually have an ancient Snap On puller that will work, it is buried somewhere and resembles some of the "military" steering wheel pullers on Ebay.
Andy, I've got some PDF documents that I've collected showing various steering wheel pullers. If want them, just send me an email address that can accept larger attachments.
“When a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, IT IS THEIR RIGHT, IT IS THEIR DUTY, TO THROW OFF SUCH GOVERNMENT...” -Declaration of Independence, 1776
Elwood,
Thanks for the offer on the .pdf documents, I'd love 'em. My email is ashyers@slusd.us.
I'm thinking we may pull the steering box while we have the transmission apart, hopefully in the next week or so. We still need to swap the shocks and do a road test .
Sure thing Andy!
Make sure you use the steering wheel nut flush with the center shaft for extra support in order to avoid damage-too much pressure on the center shaft by itself can flare the end and ruin it.
Gary
Cal_Gary
1954 M37 W/W
MVPA Correspondent #28500
G741.org Forum member since 2004
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. I'll have to take a look around the Shop and see if I can devise something that won't kill the wheel. I may actually have an ancient Snap On puller that will work, it is buried somewhere and resembles some of the "military" steering wheel pullers on Ebay.
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