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Help! I think I broke my steering gear

nutt7

nutt7

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Hi, I pulled my gear box to replace the input seals and the sector shaft seals. At first I didn't install the O ring on the worm gear shaft since I was afraid to open up the front. Well, after install it leaked around the collar while I bled it so I yanked it again. I had no problem (should have done it first) pulling out the worm gear and replacing the flat, cracked O ring. I was careful to put the cap back together right.

So I installed it (again) and proceeded to bleed it (again) and while spinning the wheel, the gear seemed to snag or bind. I figured it was due to the fluid getting back in there so I continued to turn the wheel (slowly and gently) and I heard a clunk and the wheel spun freely. I rotated the wheel the other way and it did the same thing. Now my steering wheel just spins freely. I can grab my tire and turn them ok from there.

Something must have happened when I reinstalled the worm gear. Any ideas?
If it helps, when I originally reinstalled the sector shaft, the teeth in the gear box had rotated down and were unable to align with the teeth on the shaft, so I spun it back up so the shaft would go back in, then it worked fine. Could this have happened again somehow when I pulled out the worm gear?
 
4x4high scott has done a lot of boxes . hope he will post up.

but sounds like a good used or reman box is now in order. :doah:
 
Sounds like you got it out of "time", and the gear ran off the worm. You didn't lose any of the balls in the recirculating ball gear did you?

I actually did not think there was room for the gear to run off once its closed back up, but there must be.
Check to make sure you do not see any spacers or washers laying around that might have gotten left out.
 
I had the same thing happen and it would appear that the piston can in fact run far enough off the worm that the balls will fall out if it's not set correctly.

Mine acted just like that when bleeding...felt a small snag and a pop, then no more steering. It also blew out the o-ring between the worm gear and the valve body.:confused:

The rebuild kit is cheap enough that I wanted to get another one and try again but I needed it running so I caved and bought a reman. I've heard horror stories of the Cardone brand remans but I've been running it for over a year and no issues so far.

nutt7 said:
If it helps, when I originally reinstalled the sector shaft, the teeth in the gear box had rotated down and were unable to align with the teeth on the shaft, so I spun it back up so the shaft would go back in, then it worked fine. Could this have happened again somehow when I pulled out the worm gear?
Click to expand...

If I understand what you're getting at..no, once the teeth on the piston are meshed with the teeth on the sector shaft it can't rotate or be turned far enough for them to become unmeshed.

My bet would be that the worm gear spit the balls out, that's the only way the steering wheel could be disconnected from the rest of the system when everything is assembled...assuming nothing is broken or sheared off.
 
cdoggwsu said:
I had the same thing happen and it would appear that the piston can in fact run far enough off the worm that the balls will fall out if it's not set correctly.
Click to expand...

^^This

They aren't tough to rebuild. There's some pretty good stuff on the internets, a thread on Pirate comes to mind...You could probably just pull out the sector shaft and if you're lucky you can fish all the ball bearings out (24? IIRC), and re-set everything from there. But really, worst case scenario, re-assembling the whole thing is pretty damn easy.
 
If you pulled the rack piston out and changed the O-ring on it then you have dropped some or all of the 24 steel recirculating balls and that is THE ONLY reason your steering wheel will spin freely.
 
If I remember correctly, Are the ball bearings two different sizes? I seem to think that the order they go in has a lot to do with the correct functioning of it... You have to alternate them when putting them? I've never rebuilt one but I've seen discussions about it.... Any ideas on that?
 
mrwilliamsburg33 said:
If I remember correctly, Are the ball bearings two different sizes? I seem to think that the order they go in has a lot to do with the correct functioning of it... You have to alternate them when putting them? I've never rebuilt one but I've seen discussions about it.... Any ideas on that?
Click to expand...

2 diffrent sizes. but thay are so close . its best to get a reman kit with new balls so thay are colored to tell them apart.
 
sweetk30 said:
2 diffrent sizes. but thay are so close . its best to get a reman kit with new balls so thay are colored to tell them apart.
Click to expand...

Each box has 24 balls of 2 different sizes BUT there are MANY different sized balls used and you would need to measure the diameter of the balls in order to buy the correct ones for the box they are going into. If you try to install a ball that is larger than what came out you either wont be able to get them in or the box will bind up. If you installed smaller balls than came out then you will have slop in the steering box that you cannot get out. The balls are .0005" different in size and must be alternated when installing them.
 
If all 24 balls are still there, it's no big deal, I don't think I've ever seen any that actually exhibited wear.

If you are missing some, well maybe you should just use it as a core and act dumb as to why it doesn't work. Or, you could pull a rack and worm gear at the junkyard, but I don't see that being worth it.

Might as well put some caps on with hydro ports at this point!:D
 
I forgot that those damn things can fall out. At least I know they are all in there since I removed the worm gear while the box was sitting vertically. I just hope they didn't wreck anything while I was turning the gear. Could that happen? Do you think I can eyeball the difference in the sizes of the balls?
 
nutt7 said:
Do you think I can eyeball the difference in the sizes of the balls?
Click to expand...

Kind of a funny question for a "nutt" to be asking...

Haha, anyways, I've heard that you can tell the difference, but other guys seem to think its more trouble than its worth... If you had a micrometer you could definitely tell... but that goes without saying...
 
nutt7 said:
I forgot that those damn things can fall out. At least I know they are all in there since I removed the worm gear while the box was sitting vertically. I just hope they didn't wreck anything while I was turning the gear. Could that happen? Do you think I can eyeball the difference in the sizes of the balls?
Click to expand...

They are different colors, all you do is alternate colors. It's really not tough to overhaul these things. He'll, I just saw a cable show that went over it well enough for a first timer to learn from.

So long as you weren't wrenching te steering wheel with 2 hands tryin to break something, I'm sure it's fine. They are surprisingly durable boxes.
 
owenst7 said:
They are different colors, all you do is alternate colors. It's really not tough to overhaul these things. He'll, I just saw a cable show that went over it well enough for a first timer to learn from.

So long as you weren't wrenching te steering wheel with 2 hands tryin to break something, I'm sure it's fine. They are surprisingly durable boxes.
Click to expand...

They are "supposed" to be different colors and most of the time they are but i've ran into half a dozen or so that you couldn't tell without measuring them with a mic. I have a .0001" reading mic that I use when in question.
 
nutt7 said:
I forgot that those damn things can fall out. At least I know they are all in there since I removed the worm gear while the box was sitting vertically. I just hope they didn't wreck anything while I was turning the gear. Could that happen? Do you think I can eyeball the difference in the sizes of the balls?
Click to expand...

Yes, the crunch you heard is probably from one of the steel balls being crushed into little pieces. Also you can damage the rack piston on the inside where the balls recirculate.
 
mrwilliamsburg33 said:
Kind of a funny question for a "nutt" to be asking...
Click to expand...

Haha. I tried to proof-read since I would be mentioning balls and shafts and what not...guess I wasn't good enough :haha:

I hope nothing is broken! I will have to inspect it when I tear it apart for the third time. I would like to stay away from a reman if possible...heard too many bad stories around here, although there are probably lots of good ones too.

I will be sure to follow that pirate write-up this time
 
over the years i installed a lot of them work just fine.

and fyi there is dozens of parts stores. but only 2-3 major reman places. its all basicly the same stuff in the box thay want.

so 200 dollor part here might prob be the same as 129 dollor part over there.

shop for the best deal and be done.

what year and 2 or 4 wheel box ?

i might have one to sell cheep.
 
89 4wd. I asked about NAPA because their site says its a NAPA brand (not Cardone or ATSCO). It's $20 cheaper than the Cardone at O'Reilly's. I like these places because the part is in stock and they are close.
 
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