I have been putting this off way too long. There is a fair amount of play in the steering. But, the real eye opener is you when round a corner and go to staighten out the steering wheel the truck wants to drift over into the next lane. Makes you sit a little taller in the seat if ya know what I mean.

So, I feel the steering gear box is need of replacement. I want to do a "Redhead " steering gearbox replacement. That seems to be what most folks here rave about. I have never done this type of project but, I am willing to make a go of it.

Does anybody have any tips or "posts" or information on how to take the steering gearbox off and the how to put new one on from start to finish?

Thank you for any help.

 

Get a pitman arm puller or I just put a pry bar in there and tap the pitman arm myself to get it to dislodge. Everything else is self explanatory. You will love the redhead

 

BFH IS NEEDED!!!!!!!!!!!

It's straight forward bud

 

The pitman arm nut is big... 1.25 inches. I bought a Craftsman 3/4-inch drive socket and a 1/2" to 3/4" adapter so I can just use my 1/2-inch breaker bar.

1. Park on a relatively level surface with the wheels straight. Note the steering wheel position. Set the parking brake and put the trans in gear (manual) or park (auto).

2. If you have a helper, have him or her hold the steering wheel and crack the pitman arm nut. Now get under the hood and loosen the bolt holding the rag joint to the steering gear input shaft (12-point, 7/16th IIRC). Alternatively, loosen and remove the two 1/2-inch nuts holding the steering shaft to the rag joint. I prefer to remove the rag joint from the input shaft because it is not indexed like the studs on the rag joint.

3. Remove the big nut and its big lock washer from the output shaft.

4. Using a pitman arm puller, remove the pitman arm from the output shaft of the steering box. Wire it (still connected to the drag link) out of the way. If it doesn't budge, spray with some penetrant and then rap the pitman arm with a hammer at the fat end.

5. Now that the drag link is out of the way, get a drip pan and place under the PS hoses. Note which side is pressure and which side is the return. If I recall correctly, the rear-most port is the return. Crack them loose and disconnect. Yes, you will lose fluid so be prepared with rags, paper towels, speedy dry, etc. I tied them up vertically to minimize fluid loss. Fluid will also leak out of the steering gear and onto the frame... yes it can get messy.

6. Individually crack the bolts securing the steering gear to the frame. And then remove the bolts. The steering gear weighs about 42 pounds so be ready to bear its weight.

7. And there you go. Pop an adult beverage and take a break.

Installing the gear takes some attention. First center the steering gear. Look at the output shaft and note that the shaft has two areas that are 90° apart with no splines (think of a woodruff key). The "flat spots" correspond to mating splines of the pitman arm.

When installing, have your helper hold the steering wheel level while you slip the rag joint on the input shaft of the steering gear while resting the steering gear on the frame. Otherwise, you'll have to re-index your steering wheel to be "centered" when everything is reconnected.

According to my Clymer manual, the '79 pitman arm nut requires 200 to 250 ft.lbs. of torque. Yes, use a torque wrench. I go the extra mile and apply some red thread locker. Then i paint a white line (modeling paint) across the pitman arm and the pitman arm nut so I can quickly see if the nut has backed off. Do it.

Remember to bleed the system in strict adherence to Red-Head's instructions.

If you get stuck, post back and we'll help you out.

................On my '73 with '79 integral steering & linkages:

 

Thanks gentlemen, especially HIO. You always seem to have a lot of excellent insight. And lets not forget the valuable pictures also !!!

As far as the "straight forward "......... ....that's why I am putting the steering gear box in. The dang truck has issues going "straight forward" ....

Well its time to order that "Redhead steering gear box" and get this project under way.

Thanks again everyone