how to rebuild power steering gear box saginaw part 2 

Thanks Chris, I have reviewed several videos for this project but you are the only one that took the time to show and explain the pain in the ass ball bearings. Its awesome that 5 years after posting and so many people have been helped. thanks again.

I agree with Chris Craft. I was taught to use trans-gel or vaseline, as it melts and blends with P/S fluid. Just like ATF. Plus, like automatic transmissions, they also used hard Teflon seals, the white ones. Carefully install these and do not roll. You can cut a large soda bottle, lube it and slide the seals in place, preferably the bottom seals first. Now, these need re-sized to fit inside the bore. It is tapered to facilitate the installation of this spool valve with the worm gear attached to the input shaft. This gives a delayed twisting action and provides a feed-back or road feel. (Note; this part is different from truck / van to car. Even sedan to station wagon in this era) Once the Teflon seals are installed, overlap these with the cut soda bottle and place large hose clamps and tighten down. Leave on for an hour or two, but only remove just before installing the valve assembly with the worm gear on, into the housing. The input shaft needs a preload to rotate freely but with no play. Marking this before disassembly is a normal practice, but after cleaning, new parts and seals, it maybe to loose or too tight. Use good judgement if you don’t have the correct tool to be used with a beam type torque wrench. Before installing the cross shaft of pitman shaft housing, loosen the preload screw & lock nut on top. I go 1/2 turn because it’s easy to remember. If too tight due to the rebuilding procedure, the aluminum top cover will crack. Also, when installing the housing end cap, use 1 or 2 large (Deep) wood clamp(s) on cover to input housing end. This safely holds the aluminum cap on the O-ring, compressing it enough to ease the installation of the steel “Cir-Clip” into its groove. The housing fills quickly once the engine is started so watch the pumps fluid level and turn the wheel left to right or lock to lock, while the wheels are off the ground, as this will help purge air from the steering gear and lines. (Note) The less number of ball bearing grooves total on the worm gear, makes the steering gear ratio quicker. This is found on certain vehicles during s the 70’s & 80’s like the Corvette. Good luck finding one of these in the bone yard. Today, that part is in a CAD drawing and made by CNC machines, they are on contract for limited companies and not sold out-right. So, find a machinists and make a new friend. Retired ASE Master Tech

When messing with Teflon seals, I learned this trick using some plastic from a two liter bottle or similar and a hose clamp. Cut a strip of plastic from the bottle. Install the seal, then wrap with the plastic. Use the clamp to apply pressure to the seal to get it to seat and get used to the idea of being cramped into the groove.

Brilliant Chris. I am in the final throws of doing this job right now. I have been constantly referring back to these vids to make sure I hadn't missed any thing. You have saved me loads of money due to the huge cost of importing a heavy steering gear box here into the UK. Thanks so much.

Thanks for taking the time to film and publish these two videos. They do really help folks understand what they are getting into. Take care, Clay

Thank you so much Chris I have a 71 El Camino and I'm trying to fix all the leaks and restore it. I have a Saginaw as well. Very helpful. Dad was super big into cars but has passed and now I'm trying to finish the project we both started sometime ago. Thank you for all that you do.

Hi, Chris. Thanks for the honest advice and explanations. Your two videos convinced me that I better not tackle it, myself. " A man's gotta' know his limitations." BTW, love that spline ratchet tool.

Thanks for the videos on rebuilding this box. Great info, and it really helped me understand what the ball bearings do.

This is awesome mate, thanks so much for your time and expertise, just ordered a kit for my 1984 Jeep here in Aus, gotta wait now for shipping from the good ol US of A !!

also, I recommend not using wheel bearing grease, as it does not readily dissolve in the fluid. Power steering oil works fine. For the ball return guide, I used an engine assembly paste to hold the last balls in place. Great video, it helped me through it! and your musical taste is excellent.

Excellent video footage of ball bearings being inserted. Thanks for clarity.

Thanks Chris! Love your videos...Learned quite a bit on Power Steering Box rebuild...Nicely Done...

Hello nice tutorial great job. I like everything about mechanics and thought about going through the box on my 89 K5 Blazer which is leaking. I might just order a rebuilt for now and keep original for rebuilding

Great video! I have been looking all over you tube to find a video on putting balls in a worm gear! I can’t find any on putting those balls in. I am rebuilding a Ford 5000 tractor power steering assembly! It has 28 balls to put in a long worm drive. I got them in and I think it is right, but I have to put it back on the tractor to check. For a long time, I didn’t know I was supposed to take that tube for the balls of and I was trying to put them in at the top of the worm drive. I could get about one half of them in and no more. I tried 4 or 5 times. This video really helped! Thank you!

Well I just finished the disassembly part, new parts will be here Friday and I will be ready to assemble a clean box and parts using your video. Actually you inspired me to do this, thanks.

Sabbath and Metallica rebuild music is the ONLY way I do rebuilds. Good pair of videos man... thank you very much.

Mine on my 74 GMC P3500 stepvan (Saginaw 708 series gearbox) only had 22 balls in the ball screw as well). The chrome plated balls that looked silver were.001” larger than the darker bearings so I had to stagger them in. I also fought that Teflon seal in the main ball screw piston and had to use a piston ring compressor sleeve to get it in. Thanks for sharing!

Hey Chris, the easiest way to handle those Teflon seals in the Saginaw steering box is to wrap a lubricated zip-lock tie around the fitted o'ring and pull it up like you do with a ring compressor. Fit the piston into the bore and the zip-lock just slides off. You will fit all the teflons and piston in no time at all. Keep up the good work and videos.

Great job great video gave me the confidence to tackle my 1966 Malibu That leaks out the front Thank you very much Chris

After watching part 1 as well as this video, I was able to replace the leaky input shaft seal gasket and dust cover on my steering box. Much appreciated!

Chris, thank you for the attention to how to insert the ball bears correctly. I spent 4 hours trying to get mine in on a 2000 TJ. I think this video cleared up my problem.

As always great job. My steering box is leaking in the same spot but now I feel comfortable enough to rebuild. 👽

I love how down to earth you are no bullshit just showing us what to do thanks for the video

Chris Thanks for your video. I bet I have watched it 10 times! It has really helped in my box rebuild (68 Camaro). I thought about buying a new one but I liked the challenge and watching this gave me a lot more confidence. Interestingly, My bearings (recirculating), were in the opposite direction- They were in the position of where your bolts where and my bolts were in the position of where your inlet/outlets were. I made a few mistakes but was easy enough to go back and fix. The ball bearings took me 7 tries until I found out what was really going on. I had 24 bearings and realized that if I put 6 bearings in the crossover with grease, it solve one of the problems. The other problem was that after installing the bearings, I let the unit travel to far and a few of the bearings were able to pass to the front. That jammed the other end and I had to remove and try it again. You have over a 1/4 mill. views so I know you helped a bunch of people! Again, Thanks for the video!

Hey Chris. Wanted to saw thanks! Just rebuilt the steering box on my 77 K20, thanks to this video. Really helpful and cracked me up. No frills , just real! Oh and I found it easier to get the piston , with the pain in the ... Teflon seal in if I put it in the toaster oven at 180 degrees for about 1/2 hour. Gotta buy my wife a new toaster oven now though.🤣 Thanks again!

Hi ! nice video ! rebuilding power steerings for trucks is my job since 2005 ! you did a good job on that one ! I have a tip on how to fit teflon rings (the 3 little ones and even the big one on the piston) and how to get them back in normal shape ! I use a small cord (string) , then you just carefully put them in place by pulling them with the string after that you just pull the string out and then to make the teflon ring back to its size you can use electrical tape (3m,scotch,nitto) just a couple off rounds around the piston and you let it rest for an hour or so , It really works good ( because you don't always have the right tools) . ( I'm from Belgium so normally I speak dutch , hopefully you understand what I tried to explane ) . grtz Laurens , have a nice day !

Hi Chris, trank you very much for the video! It took me several times with the balls. I own a Dodge Ramcharger 1985 4x4, there you has to turn clockwise to install the balls, the piston is built a litten different. Michael from Germany

Great video. Thank you for sharing the details and the techniques

Thanks man. I am now much more confident about trying this rebuild for my '77 Checker Marathon gearbox. Great shop music by the way. Stay gold!

Thank you Chris, very nice video, this really helps.

Thank you for doing this video Just rebuilding my C10 Steering box it saved my ass its 2022 so thank you Hope you are well Cheers

Hell yeah man!!! You replied!!! Thanks for that man...that plus your vidoes made my mind up...i am gonna dig in bro and enjoy this...thanks again man.

thank you for the video i did the first part and took a break tomorrow will continue to finish it taking it apart and cleaning it. thanks man

I didn’t find your video until after I started to rebuild mine. I would not have attempted it if I heard your advice. I had to try maybe four times to get the balls in right. Kept losing one or two down the wrong way. I may yet end up buying a rebuilt one since I haven’t put it back on the truck yet to try it. You made it seem easy compared to all the problems I had.

i know this is an old video, but with that teflon seal you can do what is common for home builds with transmissions. place it on the piston, then tightly wrap around the outside with electrical tape and let it sit for a while. that will squeeze it with out risk of cutting or damaging and help 'shrink' it down so that it will fit in the case much easier. teflon seals on auto's do this, such as those used on 4L60E's etc.

the worse part was getting the pitman arm off. Make a long story short , I ended up using a acetylene tanks to heat it up and still had to use a breaker bar with extended pipe and quench it in oil. I really do appreciate the time you took in showing us this. Every glad you emphasized on each things. I almost didn't bother marking the end. Glad I did to get manufacturing torque. Them elongated bearings are roller bearings. That's okay, just want to say thank you.

Thanks for this video. keep up the good work!! Tommy from Norway

Good video. The Teflon rings are definitely the hardest part. I messed the new one up and had to put the old one back on ha.

I have a leak on my 59 Pontiac on the input shaft. Same design on my gear so now I am quite sure I can manage the job without taking the gear out. Just loose the steering column and pull it a bit into the car then I can take the plug assembly out. Thanks for a good movie!Marcus, Sweden.

Damn good job chris, Bravo!.

Thank you! Great video. I read the unit repair manual for a 1979 Camaro and it said there are silver and black bearings and to alternate them. As for the difficult first seal to get in I used a piston ring compressor and it dropped right in. Cheers

Thanks brother... very well done I'm subscribed for sure

Nice video, looks like the same steering box as the Humvee :)

Awesome video man this was one of the best rebuild videos on anything I’ve ever seen. Like you said no magic trick to show you something already put together. More times then none those are the crucial moments where you find your self questioning how somethin goes and the video has skipped over that. Great stuff here man. Like and subscribe

I really liked the video my bearded friend. Following you!!

Very good tutorial, looks very doable.Thx.

I never knew what was meant by "recirculating ball bearing" mechanism....now I know. Thanks for this.

Just wanted to thank you and tell you you have a great taste in music! Heard SigurRós, Tool and was it American Football? Anywhoo! Many thanks from a garage in Iceland 🙂

This is a great video. I was planning on doing one on my corvette steering gear but this video explains a lot . If you can't follow this video and be successful in your rebuild then you need to send it out to someone who can . Great job on this video.

For the Teflon seal to get it so it fits in the case use some electrical tape enough on there so you won't damage the seal when you use a hose clamp over it so you can tighten it up snuggly to shrink the seal down a bit and when your ready to install the part with the seal take the clamp and tape off and put it in the hole. It'll expand back to shape before you start to use it. We do this for transmissions so you don't rip the seals. That's the reason why most people can't get transmissions to work probably using solid teflon seals and why they use cross cut seals instead because they don't have the knowledge

Once again thank you for sharing your knowledge.

well this gear box is also leaking on my g20, but i think i will just take it to the shop. Looks like alot of work to rebuild it, but thx for the video.

Very helpful, thanks Chris. But you should dismantle the valve body and replace the O ring inside.

Big OZZY Blacksabbath fan Great video Dec2019

You can heat the teflon ring in near boiling water for about 5 minutes. Next, get it on over the o-ring. Then while its still warm, slide the piston slowly in, even spinning it a little. The teflon ring will resize(shrink) as it cools in the cylinder. You can always reheat the tef ring on the piston in hot water as well and squeeze it with your hand to resize it too, but that will take a few minutes.

Strange what stays in a person's mind. I haven't touched one of these since 1972 in car school when I was 19 and this was still familiar. The recirculating balls are genius. I just bought a 454 suburban that is in great shape but wanders. I've got a spare box that I'll rebuild and swap out. Let you know if its tightens things out. Thanks for the video.

This video is made infinitely better by The Sword. Well done

Right on man!!! Best video hands down with my kind of music man. I'm fixing to tackle this project myself and have watched both these videos probly 20 times man...mine has a BAD input shaft leak and gonna do the whole seal kit like you did...wish me luck man...have been around the block so ta speak on cars trucks and big trucks...but this is a get your shit together bigtime before you start type job know whata mean LOOOLOLOLOL... Again i thank you for taking your time to show us how it's done man.

The thrust bearing has a bearing Inch Pound preload specification for it, you adjust with an inch pound torque wrench on the end of the shaft while adjusting it with the proper spanner wrench.

old video i known but this was a help, lastly i found on my case, there was a ridge that was sharp that made mine hard to install with the big teflon seal. Ruined one and had to buy another. I used a flap disc on a dremel and beveled the edge. the seal won't make it that far back once assembled so it don't matter that is isn't perfectly "round" right there. Then i rewashed the case in the parts washer

thanks for that man, good video!

Very thorough man. Thanks

Thanks man, this helped a ton!

Nice one Chris! Thanks

oh so cool. thanks for sharing sir!

I thought that very thing. Buy a new box and rebuild the old one. Thanks for the video..

U are one of the BEST TEACHER ON THE WEB.. THANK YOU VERy VerY much .. sincerely D.T.M...but your audio cut out twice..

Estimado Chris: sabe la identificacion de esta caja, me parece que es exactamente igual a la que tengo en una pick up c 10, cuando desarme y arregle le aviso. saludos muy buena la explicacion de lo que pude entender

The problem with that teflon seal in the beginning of the video was that it needs to shrink down so it will fit in the case bore. You could take a large zip tie, pull it tight around the teflon seal, and let it sit for about an hour. This would achieve the same goal of getting the teflon to shrink down without risking damge by sliding it into the case.

You put that seal on like you do in transmissions. You use a feeler gauge spoon type. Then as you push. You slide the feeler gauge around it. And use transmission assembly lube on PS units.

thanks a lot, really, mine is dripping on the side that goes de wand, its a D-150 but it's the same box, I would like to make all the process but for now I'll only change that seal, too bad y did'nt mark before dissasemble it, but the rusty marks and the thingten wold help. Maybe on vacations i'll do it complete

Great video Chris thanks to you I could rebuild my father's steering gear box. I'd like to know if you know how to rebuild a Dodge Dart 1970 Steering gear box. I'm already reading the service manual about how to do it, but i'd like to know if there are some tricks I must know before tearing apart my steering box. Greeting from Venezuela.

Your right. The Teflon ring on the large piston was stubborn. Don't be tempted to hit it with a hammer. I used a heat gun to warm everything up.Grease/lube and I used a piston ring compressor to put it in. You may need to tap it lightly with a wood dowel/hammer handle. went right in.

thanks for the video, I got the pump all rebuilt and back on the vehicle. but the steering wheel is super tight, will not move left or right. when it was on the bench it works nice and smooth. I wonder if air can get trapped in the system, similar to brake systems.

I had an issue as well, with the teflon seals on both the rack piston, and the (3) on the valve body. My solution was to set them in their grooves, with the o-ring, then tightened a hose clamp over them. After sitting overnight like that, they installed without issue

thanksfor the video! but i have a question about the allen bolt on top of these boxes, technically on a reman 94 k1500 box, installed it an didnt notice from the store that the allen bolt was machined wrong, or pretty much usless to try an get a allen head down into, am i able to pull the top allen bolt without dumping the guts in my box? just need to cut a slot so its adjustable

Here is the trick we use with Teflon seals in transmissions. Simply find a hose clamp that fits the circumference and tighten it carefully around the seal compressing it. leave it sit for half hour or more before removing clamp and installing. Another trick is using mylar plastic wrapping plastic around seal acting as a cone guide and installing assembly into case then sliding mylar out. A picture would be better unfortunately don't have one.

Great videos on Saginaw power box. No gloves just like me.

Great video! just a thought, could a close ratio box have a different number of balls due to the pitch of the helix on the shaft? Maybe that explains the twenty verses the 24 count?

Thank you!!!!! You saved me!!!!😀

On my retaining plug it was not doing its job as if someone switch THE RETAINER to a smaller size. All that usually held into place could slip easily over the retainer. Thanks for the video

Great video

Hey guys can you use an arbor press to push in all those seals and shafts. HF has a 5.5" one for around $60 thought it might come in handy to have one don't know how much clearance I would need for this job however.

Nice to see that i dont need to try that. Ill buy one

I use a motorcycle piston ring compressor for the Teflon rings, tap it in w/ a hammer handle…works great!

Awesome video

I need to know how to replace the steering wheel shaft to the gearbox were it comes together it is leaking out of the box

if there is play in the steering wheel what do you think need to do? I have 98 gmc

AWESOME CHRIS

Is the horrible crunching noise a problem?

Where you get that kits from. I need to rebuilt mine too.

You can use a small piston ring compressor to size the ring

Interesting! I have a 99 ram 1500 with an annoying amount of play in the steering wheel. Do you think the gears are shot in it? Recommend just replacing the gear box?

Hi Chris, I have a problem with a steering box and seek your advice. The rubber steering box coupler with the steering wheel was damaged in my patrol and while changing it, I hit the input shaft with a 2kg hammer both in (during assembly) and out (during disassembly). Now and after testing the car, the steering wheel is a bit harder to turn especially while in center and the after turn, it does not return to center easily. Is there a hope with the steering box to be fixed or adjusted?

Is it possible to pull just the top cap, 4 bolts and the lock nut (possibly the threaded "screw" if necessary) for a copper gasket change without having to pull that whole shaft out too?

I've installed 2 reman boxes in my 88 chevy truck. both were junk. The play seems to be in the input side, would the input preload be the culprit? Thanks and Merry Christmas

You made putting that piston back in easy. I think the teflon seal is making it snug on the sides of the case and it doesn’t want to move.

Great video. Here's a question no one can seem to answer. Looking at the hose ports on my box the pressure side seems to have something in the bottom of the port. Maybe a screen? On the return side I can see straight into the box.

Thanks for the film Chris ! Who have the answer for me ? On the Rotary valve; are you shore thats its not nesserery that rubber O-rings be placed, under the new teflon O rings ? in the master repairkit 8524, are these 3 rubber O-rings included. The old teflon rings did not have O-rings under.