CHRISP

Had the vette out around town today and noticed that when turning right to go around a corner the steeering wheel seemed to break free at the 1 o'clock position and then catch again at the two o'clock postion. However, at highway speeds (on and off ramps) I did'nt even notice it. Anyone have any suggestions what to look at first. Also, when braking in a stright line there seems to be a lot of "play" in the steering wheel. Just happened all at once.

Denney

I would guess that the play is either in the steering box or in the rag joint (which just about covers it all, huh?) You can obviously check the rag joint by examining it under the hood. It should not exhibit and significant play when turning the wheel back and forth. If that is fine, then it is likely in the steering box itself (you can check it by rotating the steering wheel to the one o'clock position, where you saw the problem) and check for pitman arm movement in direct relation to steering input. If no rotation/translation in that area of turning, then it's in the box.

Hmmm, I just noticed it's a 62 thus you have the old steering linkage. You may want to also check the couplings between the steering arm and the linkages.


[Modified by Denney, 1:13 AM 6/8/2002]

Curtis

I am going to explain how the steering should be first. All these tests can be done while the car is sitting still. First straighten the wheels and the steering wheel should be at 12:00. In this position there should be no play in the wheel. When you turn the wheel ...say... to 2:00 or 3:00 there should be some play. The more you turn the wheel the more the play. This will check your steering box and to see if it needs adjusted. If you are experiencing a break free, that may be more serious. You will want to look at you pitman arm and the connection to the box and make sure nothing is loose. This could be very dangerous. You should have two people to check this. One in the car and one turning the wheel. If it slips, you should take the arm off and take a look at the condition of the small teeth (for a lack of a better word). If you see nothing there, then move to underneath the car to see all the linkage. You should be able to trace the problem. If you can't find anything there, then you may need to take the s. box apart. Geez, I hope you don't need to do all that. It can get pretty involved. It is very rare that you would have to replace the worm gear. They are pretty stout.

Hope I made some of this clear. Hard to explain.
Curt

CHRISP

Thanks for the replies. I did'nt know if there was something common to look for or not. I'll get on it first thing in the morning. I hope it's something simple. Always something :rolleyes:

CHRISP

Ok, got underneath and had the wife turn the steering wheel. Sitting still it "jerks" in the 5 o'clock to 6 o'clock position but the wheels still move with it. I'm assuming it must be in the steering box which means I have to take it out and give it look see. Sound about right??? How hard is this to do and can I expect any difficulties. Any advice would be great.

Curtis

Hmmm, if you are sure you feel it is in the box then you may have to rebuild. Geez, you should check everything twice before you go for this rebuild. It isn't cheap and is a bit involved. They don't go bad that often, but I will proceed with some tips on this job.

The box and steering column are connected. :eek: That means the whole unit needs to come out as well as your steering wheel needs to come off. I just checked where you live and you are not close at all. Anyway, you will need to take off all the brackets inside your car that hold the steering column in place. Don't worry, I did this twice. :rolleyes: You will need to take the turn signal unit off the column so all you have left is a column with nothing on it. Now there are I believe (going from memory) four nuts holding the box on. Not too bad really. You can take this out without removing the hood of your car, but if you have nice paint and so on you may want to remove the hood for an easier time. If I was going to do it I would take the hood off. Mark it and remove it. It is only 4 bolts. You will be taking the steering unit out from the engine compartment. You could rebuild it yourself. I see Corvette Central has a kit for $409. :eek: Ouch. Or you can send them out to be done.

Let us know if there is a problem. I would double check everything again to make sure you are not doing this for nothing. I never tried this, but maybe you could put a hammer end or something on the steering box and have someone turn it and see if you can feel it shift or break free. It is possible that something broke inside, but I never heard of it.

Oh, one more thing, there is a screw on the side of the steering box. It is located towards the finder well. It may even be hitting the fiberglass a bit. It is very close. Is there play in the wheel when you are going straight? If there is a lot, maybe you need to tighten the screw a bit. A little at a time and the steering should only be tight when you are going straight. That is the way they are designed.

Double check and let us know if you need more help.
Curt


[Modified by Curtis, 2:01 PM 6/8/2002]

WB6HRO

Typically the steering box on a C1 gets adjusted incorrectly. People notice the play or backlash and adjust the preload adjuster on the side of the box, which tightens it up in the center but then you feel it get tight in spots as you rotate the steering wheel.

The correct method is to start with the steering box in the center of travel with the hash mark on the steering wheel end of the shaft at 12 O'clock. This is when you adjust the back lash. The gears are designed to be the tightest at this point and loose in other spots when there is a load on the tire when turning.

Once this is adjusted the drag link to the third arm and tie rods need to be adjusted to make the car go straight ahead.

Hope this helps, I leaned this the hard way.

K2

What you are feeling is most likely pitting in the worm gear and pitman roller inside the steering box. This is very common with the C-1s as most have seen a lot of use and it was an antiquated design with a tendency to wear and pit over time. The only solution is to pull the box like Curtis said and replace the gears as a set. Don't just replace the pitman rollerbut both the roller and worm together. Replace the bearings and seal while you are at it. It looks like a formidable job but is really not that bad. Read up on the procedure and get familiar with the adjustment procedures prior to starting. Take your time and do it accurately and you will have a great steering car again. After you are done do a good alignment job. Good luck. :smash: :cheers:


[Modified by K2, 10:23 PM 6/8/2002]


[Modified by K2, 10:24 PM 6/8/2002]

CHRISP

Do any of you know of any manuals that might help me through this procedure as far as adjusting and rebuilding?

JohnZ

The process is covered in detail in the "ST-12" Manual (1953-62 Corvette Servicing Guide - the only Shop Manual ever printed for C1's); there was also a great step-by-step article on this process in the April issue of Corvette Fever magazine.

Pay particular attention to the section in the Manual on "Steering Wheel High-Point Centering", and use plain old chassis grease for the lube in the box, not the old "special steering box lubricant". Do NOT use the tie-rod adjustments to get the wheels straight ahead with the index mark on the steering shaft at 12:00 - this MUST be done at the drag link adjustment. The tie-rod adjustments are strictly for toe-in setting.

Be glad you have a '58-or-later car; removing the steering box/column in a '56-'57 is damn near impossible with the body on the frame.

CHRISP

Thanks guys. I have the st12 and I'll try to get the corvette fever mag. Looks like I'm going to have some fun next weekend huh? I'll chalk it up to another great learning experience. :cheers: