Hot Rods Official 1959 Chevy Apache Build Thread

I'm only replacing the bushings and seal in the one I'm rebuilding right now. Classic sells the seal separately, 313842 National, and the bushings used to be available from GM, not sure if they still are...the same part number was used for a few decades. 266316

 

Squirrel, my column only had the one seal where the sector shaft exits the cast housing. I was wondering, was there ever a seal above the top bearing to keep crud from falling down through the tube onto that bearing?...seems like there should be. The bushings on the one I just rebuilt didn't show much wear and there was no play between them and either end of the sector shaft/gear so I didn't bother worrying about replacing those.

What I would really like are new top and bottom bearings. Those tapered roller "balls" are an odd shape and size...I can't imagine you could find them seperately if you wanted to rebuild the bearings yourself.

 

They're called barrel bearings. Since the inner race is the worm gear, it's kind of hard to fix a screwed up worm bearing by just replacing the rollers...the races usually have damage too. I'd rather start with a box that's in better condition.

A little bit of play in the bushings causes problems...the gear teeth are slightly tapered, and the adjusting screw forces the mesh to be tighter as you tighten it. If the bushings are worn, then the pitman shaft moves to the side and so you have to adjust the screw tighter. And if you watch the pitman arm on a box with loose bushings, as you move the steering wheel back and forth, you see the pitman shaft move side to side instead of turning, even if you adjust all the end play out of the pitman shaft. This lost motion makes the steering loose, and that's why you should always replace the bushings in one of these things.

 

Well I worked on the truck last night and got the gear box removed so I can replace it. So far so good, I will reinstall all of my stuff on it tomorrow then look into replacing some hardware to the correct lengths to make sure everything is safe on the front end. I am still waiting on the lower shock mounts to fix a couple other issues I am having. I guess we will see if that fixes my problem. Also, it looks like I will be needing a different kind of p/s pulley because of my alignment issue. I kind of passed out because of lack of sleep tonight on the couch so I will pick it up where I left off tomorrow night. Here are some pics

 

That pulley misalignment looks fairly significant. Can you shim the crank and water pump pulleys?...it might be the cheapest and easiest way to fix the problem. I'd used solid round plates made from flat stock (I'm guessing around 1/8 thick), not just a washer behind each bolt, but as long as the plates are uniform thickness I can't see them creating any wobble in either of the pulleys.

 

originally this setup is for a 74 chevy truck and it had an ac pulley on it (double groove) I am wondering if it will make a difference.

 

Looks like you have the wrong pulley on the steering pump, it was originally a double groove wasn't it?

 

it was a double pulley, but I found out off of the HAMB that there are two types of single groove power steering pulleys; one being flush (the one I have installed) and the other has a 3/8" offset towards the pump (which is what I need to align everything)

 

So I got a few things done tonight... I removed the lower shock mounts in preparation for the new lower shock mounts that I have ordered and that are on there way to the house. I installed the power steering gear box, slapped off the extra piece of metal on the end (the post) and installed my double u-joint. I will have to remove the brake calipers, the discs, and then go through all of the steering hardware to make sure it is minimum grade 8 and in good shape and the right length. More to come soon

 

Is the turning radius wider on left hand turns?

 

well I have been busy this weekend. I got my lower shock mounts in and they suck the shocks in quite a bit and give me an extra room for the full swing on the steering. I tried to go shopping for some new grade 8 hardware for the steering components and had a lot of trouble finding what I needed (just going to go to fastenal in the morning). I also took the spare column apart and found it was in surprisingly great shape compared to the one I had in there (the one I had in there has a lot of cancer internally). So I am going to mix and match parts and use the best of both, mostly from the other column. I am still looking for the lower column bearing and dust cover, but am also having problems with the auto parts stores finding it, even though I have part numbers. I am going to shorten the shift tube, outer tube by 4 inches and the center output shaft by 6 inches. Anyway, here are some pictures:

 

Not to my knowledge, seems to be normal.

 

looks good.

The steering would be reduced up on right hand turns.

 

hey squirrel, is the GM part number for the lower bearing 7805700 for the 78 chevy van?

 

I dont know, I can't find a listing for the truck/van columns, I don't really have the right book. but that number does show up for early-mid 70s cars

 

Nice truck

 

thanks!

 

Well I'll try to find out tomorrow.I can't imagine them to be different

 

Probably correct, it just looked to me like the steering box would be hit by the leading edge of the drivers wheel/tire on left turns.

 

Right turns. The steering box is in front of the axle, on the left side of the truck.

 

Oh SHIT! I'm a friggin moron...and probably even MORE of an idiot for admitting this, but I was actually imagining "right" and typing "left". Damn, oldtimers has finally taken it's toll...

 

You're not the first

 

Well yesterday was supposed to be a big day for me getting work done on the truck, but had to leave work early because of heart problems. So yesterday and today was a day for me to get some rest. Hopefully I feel better today and am allowed to get some stuff done

 

God bless you bro...take care of yourself, those types of issues are nothing to ignore.

 

Well I have been taking it really easy. I replaced all hardware for the front suspension, short of the U bolts that hold the stock axle in place. I got the passenger side all finished and pretty much everything reinstalled onto that part of the axle. The drivers however has always been a pain in the ass. That bearing does not want to come out on its own, especially with the grease seal just like last time. I had the hardest time getting that thing apart last time and finally thought I was done with it too. More on that to come soon. I also found out why the power steering fork that connects to the drivers side king pin area was so hard to remove.... one of the holes have been stripped, which is probably why the guy that I traded the truck for just called it quits. I will get a 7/16-20 tap and fix the threads on it and then reinstall it to fix my problem. I also got my lower bearing set/dust cover for the steering column too. The guys at work in the machine shop caught wind that I was having some trouble and decided to kick it into overtime with the steering column and should have it done for tomorrow. Here are some pictures of how far I got so far this week

 

Thanks buzznut. I agree with you completely... but the muscle relaxers that I have for a back problem kind of melt my worries away for some decent sleep as well as reduced stress

 

You might want to see about replacing the steering arm with the stripped hole.....to be safe.

 

You need to seriously consider going to cross steer on your truck, as I was not happy with the drag link system on my dad's truck at all. I did a post on it last night. The cross steer drives like a dream.

 

Here is where you can find bearing same as 72 truck tilt

Lower Bearing, # 34-0847, (LMC) $19.95
Lower Bearing Retainer #34-040851 (LMC), $12.95
NEW CHEVY GMC VAN TURN (Ebay) $24.00
SIGNAL SWITCH DELCO,
Part Number: D6217

 

Why wouldnt a helicoil work?