just pulled the plug this morning, and there's very little lube in there. thanks for bringing it to my attention! i probably wouldn't have even looked for quite some time. anyway, it looks like grease in there. can i just squirt plain-old grease in the hole, or how does that work? and does it need to be filled all the way to the top? thanks!! jon
ok, found this in the archives- It is _critical_ to use an _OIL_ in there , NOT a paste lube nor grease ! . it is a recirculating ball typ of box and so needs something that will flow . If it leaks , you can use 600 W oil or STP etc. , fill it slowly up to the bottom of the filler hole and always wipe away the accumulated road grime before removing the filler plug ! . Regular EP 90 W gear oil is great . The sector shaft seal as the same as the manual box seal on all 1/2 ton GM pickups up to the 1970 year model and the GM seal seems to be the very best in quality , better at sealing the leaks in old tired boxes . I'm sorry I don't have the GM part # handy but it's only $9.00 or so.. -Nate __________________ My steering box has grease packed into it. Should I try to remove the grease and refill with 90w oil? How do I remove the grease? Thanks Ken You _don't_ ~ just fill it with some synthetic 85W hypoid gear oil and that'll thin it out in time . You'll prolly find they added grease to it because the sector shaft seal is bad and it drips a lot . you can remove the Piman arm and replace the seal or you can simply top it up every month or so with STP , Bardhal or other super thick _oil_ . -Nate sure looks and feels like grease to me. i guess mine was leaking too. so what's the best deal here? thick oil on top of the grease that's already in there?? jon
'At's What -I- Do ! No good can possibly come of flushing the steering gearbox so just pour in some new oil and it'll be fine ~ you'll notice the differance almost immediatly . Don't be too upset if it all dribbles back out in a few weeks , mine does that too , one of these years I really will take the brandy new GM seal out and install it . No , I prolly won't as I'm not flexible like I usta be , I just fill it every couple months and always right before a long road trip . BTW Jon ; good job on the copy & paste ! .
Ive heard of a grease called John Deere Cornhead grease to put in leaky steering boxes anyone tried it? Ken
As long as it flows it'll be O.K. ~ grease per se is too stiff to use but if the container says " for steering boxes " on it , you should be O.K. Putting grease in will stop the dripping yes but , the grease will get mooshed out of the critical gears & balls leaving them unlubricated whilst you're happy at no more oil dripping off the frame rail... Old machinerery leaks , this is a simple fact . Use STP or Bardahl if you want , they're extremely thick but still flow a bit .
You might find out what I did on mine. I didn't think it was leaking at the sector shaft but it was because there wasn't enough in there to leak. When I filled it with 90w I spent the next month or so wiping it off the floor of my garage until I finally rebuilt the steering box. What I would suggest, if it pours badly when you fill it, is to get a good two-prong wheel puller, pull the pitman arm (leave the nut on loose at the end of the threads in case the pitman decides to jump off and pop you in the nose) and dig the old seal out and put in a new one. You will need a pipe or something to press or drive the seal into the groove around the sector shaft. I replaced the bushings and gaskets in addition to the seal but I think they probably would have been fine. All you really have to do to stop the flow is the sector seal. Nate told me this when I first mentioned that my steering box was leaking. I find there are 3 rules. 1. Nate is always right. 2. Sometimes you question if Nate is right. 3. See rule number 1. Gater
Ya'all might think I'm nutz, but if I ever run into a bunch of extra cash, I'm building an AD Hall of Fame. Nate's Bronze will be out front. Unlike Budda, you'll need to rub Nate's back for luck! Rub the forehead of Ken's bust and you'll be able to find any web site you could ever imagine. The rest is a work in progress, but wouldn't you admit you'd go there? Great tunes and a beer fountain are just a few extras this place would have. If you'd like to contibute to this fund, just call BR5-49!
