What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

Steering column lower bearing fix

Irish1941

Irish1941

1/2 ton status
Joined
Jan 20, 2011
Posts
432
Reaction score
16
Location
los angeles
As per ever Chevy I ever had, the lower column bearing falls out. Not if but when kinda thing. The retainer cracks and column wobbles around until bearing flops out. Sucks

The retainer has been discontinued from GM for years.
Seems LMC has the retainer, and just the retainer, but's $10 before shipping.
So I pull out my books and start digging. Then I find what I'm after.
Saginaw built GM columns but they also built Jeep columns.
Best part: Jeep uses same lower bearing and retainer and thanks to demand from the Jeep crowd, the retainer is available and only $2.99.
Be careful as some places want over $25 just for the retainer. Got mine here:
http://www.jeeptopdepot.com/productdetails.aspx?jeep-sid=453&plID=0&partID=6712

You can also buy the entire kit which includes the retainer, bearing, cup and the wire clip for about $25 if you shop around.
Listed as fitting CJ, YJ and full size Wagoneer.
Retainer part # OAI18019.02 or factory Jeep # J4487696
250181_zps020f296f.jpg


Full kit #OAI18019.03
Columnkit_zps1abf1da4.jpg


Takes about 30 minutes to change out and if your doing the rag joint or XJ steering shaft, it would be a good time to do it.

These will fit 2WD or 4WD columns. In fact it'll fit any GM column as back as '69 and as new as '91 square body Blazer.
That's as far as I ever used them on. Anything beyond those years is up to you to figure out.

Seems Jeeps are good for something after all!:D
 
Irish1941 said:
As per ever Chevy I ever had, the lower column bearing falls out. Not if but when kinda thing. The retainer cracks and column wobbles around until bearing flops out. Sucks

The retainer has been discontinued from GM for years.
Seems LMC has the retainer, and just the retainer, but's $10 before shipping.
So I pull out my books and start digging. Then I find what I'm after.
Saginaw built GM columns but they also built Jeep columns.
Best part: Jeep uses same lower bearing and retainer and thanks to demand from the Jeep crowd, the retainer is available and only $2.99.
Be careful as some places want over $25 just for the retainer. Got mine here:
http://www.jeeptopdepot.com/productdetails.aspx?jeep-sid=453&plID=0&partID=6712

You can also buy the entire kit which includes the retainer, bearing, cup and the wire clip for about $25 if you shop around.
Listed as fitting CJ, YJ and full size Wagoneer.
Retainer part # OAI18019.02 or factory Jeep # J4487696
250181_zps020f296f.jpg


Full kit #OAI18019.03
Columnkit_zps1abf1da4.jpg


Takes about 30 minutes to change out and if your doing the rag joint or XJ steering shaft, it would be a good time to do it.

These will fit 2WD or 4WD columns. In fact it'll fit any GM column as back as '69 and as new as '91 square body Blazer.
That's as far as I ever used them on. Anything beyond those years is up to you to figure out.

Seems Jeeps are good for something after all!:D
Click to expand...

Yep, Jeeps were good for using Chrysler, GM, and AMC parts to build their rigs.
 
Thanks for relaying that info!--my '82 K2500 has a lower colum bearing that sounds rough and lumpy and is probably going to fail soon,every truck I have used to plow my driveway eventually wipes out the colum and rag joints at both ends from having to make 1000 lock to lock turns repeatedly every storm...might be a good time to upgrade to the jeep steering shaft with u-joints while I'm at it too,seeing both rag joints are about ready to fail on it any day now.....I did keep a spare colum from my last plow truck,but it isn't fun swapping them,it'll need the ignition switch swapped over,etc...

It is good to know the same parts from other vehicles interchange,we used to find out by accident at the junkyard a lot of things from a vehicle nothing like yours is either the same,or close enough to work!...I used a steering shaft from a 70's dodge power wagon on one of my GM 4x4s,it was a bolt in fit,to my surprise,and the steering felt 100% better than it did with the "hunk of tire" rag joint and other sloppy connection at the colum did...
 
Glad to help. A little fix can go a long way to making your truck a little more enjoyable.
Keep in mind these are aftermarket parts so the quality isn't as great as GM but they work just fine. Pack the bearing good before installing and I use a vise to put equal pressure on both the bearing & retainer as it pops together. Use a light oil on the retainer and it snaps right in. Most times you can get away with just getting the retainer.
 
Updating an old thread:

Been meaning to do this for awhile so dug this up to check the part numbers. Checked Advance Auto Parts and they list the retainer for $4.99 or a complete Omix-Ada bearing kit for $68.99 (ouch).

Did a search and found the Crown Automotive complete kit p/n CRO4487696K for $23.99 from several places. My final bill was under $25 shipped to my house from 4 Wheel Drive Hardware (4wd.com). I will try to remember to update this thread once it arrives and I have a chance to install it. It said 3-5 days for shipping but the place is only 4 hours away and usually gets orders out fast.
 
6.2Blazer, any update on the part you ordered from 4wd.com ?

I need to order a replacement bearing assembly.
 
greyhoundjc said:
6.2Blazer, any update on the part you ordered from 4wd.com ?

I need to order a replacement bearing assembly.
Click to expand...

I have the part but it's sitting on the work bench. Been working late during the week and kids keeping me busy on the weekend.
 
No worries, I know exactly how that goes. I'm just now resurrecting the K5 after a 6 year break due to kids, commitments and other toys occupying my time.

I ordered the kit you listed from Four Wheel Parts so hopefully it will work. They are local to me, so I can probably return if it doesn't.

Will update the thread once it's installed.
 
6.2Blazer said:
Updating an old thread:

Been meaning to do this for awhile so dug this up to check the part numbers. Checked Advance Auto Parts and they list the retainer for $4.99 or a complete Omix-Ada bearing kit for $68.99 (ouch).

Did a search and found the Crown Automotive complete kit p/n CRO4487696K for $23.99 from several places. My final bill was under $25 shipped to my house from 4 Wheel Drive Hardware (4wd.com). I will try to remember to update this thread once it arrives and I have a chance to install it. It said 3-5 days for shipping but the place is only 4 hours away and usually gets orders out fast.
Click to expand...

Holy crap, just realized it's going on 2 months now. Finally got around to installing the parts tonight. The kit mentioned above is identical to the factory parts.

It is a pretty straight forward install but it did fight me in several ways. First my XJ steering shaft was rusted together at the slide joint and took me some time to get it collapsed enough, even after having sprayed PB Blaster on it several times over the last few days. Tried using a puller that wasn't quite right to remove the bearing and wound up slightly mushrooming the end of the shaft. I had to get a rent-a-tool puller from Autozone and clean up the end of the column shaft a little (completely my mistake for being impatient and trying to make something work). It took a little bit of work to get the new bearing started and on, and same thing for the retainer. The biggest issue is not much room to hold it and smack it with a hammer. And of course to top it off it took awhile to find the bolt that goes on the upper steering shaft coupler as it fell down in the engine compartment:rolleyes:
 
Is it safe to drive with the column slopping around with a busted lower bearing? I just ordered the kit from Amazon but don’t want a steering failure on my way around town...
 
82OilBurnr said:
Is it safe to drive with the column slopping around with a busted lower bearing? I just ordered the kit from Amazon but don’t want a steering failure on my way around town...
Click to expand...
Have you ever gone around a corner at speed and lost control of steering before? It is not fun...
 
I had that happen on my first truck when I was 16, the lower bearing failed causing the center shaft to rise up out of the column and lock halfway into a turn with me aimed at a parked car. Luckily, I was able to turn the wrong direction to unlock it, shove it back down, and turn hard into the corner to avoid a crash.
 
82OilBurnr said:
Is it safe to drive with the column slopping around with a busted lower bearing? I just ordered the kit from Amazon but don’t want a steering failure on my way around town...
Click to expand...
Fix it before you run over a bus full of nuns. Lol. It could pop out of place in s bad moment. As soon as I knew mine was toast it flopped around like a fish. Got it fixed ASAP.
 
"No Steering" has to be one of the scariest things to have happen while driving..ranks right up there with a stuck gas pedal and having a rear tire blow out and come off the rim at 65 mph..:yikes:


I had the hunk of tire "steering coupling" decide to come apart on my 77 GMC K2500 one day--right after I had hauled a huge straight six Detroit Diesel from an Alis-Chalmers bulldozer to a scrapyard..!
It weighed over 2 tons..:eek:..the scrapyard was only a few miles away,figured I'd make it no problem..

I was on my way back to where I hauled the engine away from,and had to make a 180 degree U turn to get on the street ,as soon as I got about halfway around ,the steering wheel suddenly spun free,it was no longer connected to the steering box!...good thing I was going about 10 mph,I had been going 50 mph just a minute earlier..

I think the big crane with a electromagnet at the scrapyard they used to hoist the engine off my flatbed lifted the cab up enough also,to rip the old rubber coupling apart..

I ended up on someones front lawn,luckily I knew the guy who owned the house,he let me ditch the truck there till I could get parts to fix it and drive it home the next day..

I had to walk to three junkyards that are all located within a mile of each other,and take three steering colums apart before I found one that had large splines like mine on the colum end,and small splines on the steering box..it snowed the next day too,I had to bum a ride home that night from a friend and take a taxi back to where the truck was and it took me a few hours to put it all back together..

My 82 K2500 had a tie rod fail last year when I was going about 35 mph..weird this was ,it didn't swerve off the road ,it kept going straight ahead,I heard a bang,then something dragging on the road under the truck...
I managed to pound it back on and used a chain and a bolt & nut and a hose clamp to hold it together so I could limp 20+ miles home on back roads going REAL slow!..:doah:..
The tie rod was not loose either,I greased the front end a few months previous and had checked them all,they felt tight--but rust ate away enough of where the socket is crimped around the ball to let it pop off !..PICT0081.JPG
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom