I also have Amazon Prime. I was stating that local businesses would profit because I will be buy-in more form them, as will other people as well, because I was previously buying from Amazon because I got 8% off everything, but now that I have to pay taxes the only advantage is not having to go somewhere to get it. But I also have to wait 2 days for convenience without the discount.

 

Removed the pitman arm. I know why people say they dread it now and mine has even been soaking in steering fluid for years. Removing the c clip took several hours because it was installed in just a way nothing could get to it because of the front diff. I then tried to start it to build up pressure to blow out the seal and the battery was dead. So I pushed the truck to get it jumped and the wheels splayed. I got it running and removed the old seal (it was in 2 pieces. It may have supposed to been, but I was expecting 1. I will compare it to my replacement soon.

I assume to put the pitman arm back on I will need to jack the truck up to straighten the wheels.

How tight do I get the but during reassembly?

 

Yes, there are two seals. One is the oil seal which goes in first, the other is a dirt seal that goes in on top of it. Sometimes there will be a washer between the dirt seal and the snap ring but I can't remember if there is on these or not. Make sure you install them in the correct order and orientation. I'm not sure what the torque spec is for the nut.

 

Thanks.

-Hampton

 

I have the two seals and they match the originals. The problem is that I do not know how to insert them. The bottom seal is supposed to be rubber down, but the upper seal has a spring and I am not sure if it points up or down?

Also, I wanted to make sure the steering wheel was straight and I could not remember how I left it yesterday. Before the seals were removed the steering wheel could only turn twice, but today it turned 3 times. How can I get it re-centered again?

 

From what I have found the spring points upwards and the second seal has the rubber lip pointing downwards. I also saw that many have spacers and washers between them. Mine did not have this in the kit nor did it have it when I removed it yesterday. Do I need this?

Also, can I spray brake cleaner in it to make sure it is clean and free of dirt or will that hurt it?

 

yes on getting the dirt out just make sure it is dry and oil the seal & shaft before installing seals .

also most seals I have seen with a spring the spring goes to what you are trying to keep in.
I would say that would be the first, spring to inside then the other seal also facing in.
but that's me.
Dave - - - -

 

I was wrong about the steering wheel turning to much. I got that centered again.

I am still not sure about the spacers though.

The reason I think the lip points downwards on the second seal is on the one I took out the lip is torn up from me trying to remove it. That does not mean it was installed correctly in the first place though. Any more input is appreciated.

 

That is correct. The side with the spring is always the oil side of the seal so that goes in first, and the dust seal should go on top of it with the lip facing out. Its been a long time since I put seals in a Ford gear but I don't remember ever seeing any spacers between the two seals. If there weren't any in there before I wouldn't worry about it.

 

Thanks. I will install it that way then. It is starting to rain so it may be a while before I can get to it.

 

Any tips on how to knock the seals up that far?

 

A big socket? Seal installation tool? Piece of PVC plastic pipe?

 

I actually found that a 1 1/2" pvc pipe works well. I haven't finished yet because it began to rain, but will try to finish if the rain breaks tomorrow.

 

I usually brush a little anti-seize on the splines before putting the pitman arm back on too. Makes it much easier to remove again in the future.

 

Will do. I hope it is not to hard to get the wheels un-flared.