Just had to do it.
- Thread starter cjet69
- Start date
My original plan was to just get the oil seal replaced, but at this point with the whole front end off I figure it would be easier to do some extra paint work now and then I won't have to pull everything back apart to paint later. I started by scraping all of the greasy crud out of the inside of the steering housing. Plan to sandblast it to finish cleaning area's that I couldn't clean by hand. When I removed the front bolster and wheels , I found the tube to be half full of water. I need to see if there is a drain hole somewhere on it. Don't want that filling up, freezing, and breaking it.
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I'll get it cleaned up so I can see it better. Might be when I was pressure washing it that it drove water in.
I would go along with that thought a pressure washer has a lot of force and any small void could let the water in
Went out and hit the mating surfaces with a sanding block. Looks like this is not sealed between the spindle pedestal and the steering plate. The steering plate has a raised machined surface on each end. Guess I need to look for a drain hole in the pedestal tube.
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I've been hoping the weather would cooperate and allow me to sandblast the front casting so I can move this project along. Keeps raining so I'll just have to wait for a break in the weather. All of the extended forecast show rain for the next week. I have a few small parts and bolts to clean while I wait.
We finally got enough precip. now that we are officially out of the drought. The down side is our mountain snow pack has been running below 50% of normal. The storm system and weather pattern going now should help us out with a predicted 5 to 10 ft. falling on the Cascades.
Where are you located. Having grown up in Oregon I'm quite familiar with the Cascades.
Whatcom county.
Wow, CJet! I didn't realize you darnnear in Canada! How far from the border are you?
DAC
Just a guess at 3-4 miles. Close enough that if you don't have trees in your sight line you can see some of the low hills in Canada.
Or as the Canadians would say your about 5 to 7 klicks away
I noticed some oil weeping out of the steering gear housing so i decided to pull it apart and change the seals. Then I could put some sealer on the gaskets and bolts to try and stop the leaks. Pulled the gear assy apart and noticed a crack in the lower bearing seal cage plate. I'm stating to clean things up now to get a good look at it. Figure on seeing what a used one costs and then decide if I will weld/braze this one up.
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Found another small crack in the seal plate (first pic). Cleaned and inspected the both bearings, bearing cage plate, and the pedestal steering shaft. Just need to blast the housing, pedestal, and wheel centers to get this front assy ready for paint.
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Got the wheel centers and pedestal blasted and treated with Ospho. Since I have them pulled off of the engine I am going to clean up the water pump and fan assy. The nut holding the worm gear shaft in the steering housing is fighting me. I guess I need to warm it with the torch to loosen it up. Once that's out I can clean the housing. I ordered a couple seals that should be here by Monday.
