The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop Steering Mast Bearing Questions -49AD w/ rack & pinion

I just replaced this with a new aftermarket one to get rid of the play, which was in the bearing. It's a simple enough job & it fit the steering column well.

However, I immediately noticed that when shaking the wheel side to side to simulate going over bumps, I had almost the same, noisy (clicking) amount of play in the bearing. I took the steering wheel off & I could see the movement when gently wiggling the shaft from side to side. This is an open needle bearing - is it usual to have this much play?

I took it down the road & the clicking/rattling noise when I hit bumps has decreased some- but is this as good as it gets?

Have you addressed any of the other parts of your steering? Maybe the trouble is also there -- steering box (has adjustments), tie rod ends, pitman arm,etc -- all have parts that wear and add play to the steering. Maybe someone else will have a specific answer, but I found in my '49 rebuild that I couldn't just do one thing in the steering, I pretty much had to do it all. And then the difference was amazing.

Good luck!
John

Are you sure that you put all of the parts back in? The spring under the steering wheel is what dictates the top mast bearing preload. Without it, you will have excess play.
Carl

It's all there & assembled correctly... it's actually what remains of my steering column after cutting it down to 35" to attach it to a rack & pinion/IFS. Part of the problem is that it's not anchored anymore to the huge steering box attached to the frame. The other problem is the quality of the needle bearings in the new mast bearings - it's an off shore item and there is about .010 side to side play in it. The steering/handling is really nice now, but I am challenged to keep the stock column and wheel. I won't go into detail, but suffice to say the truck has been modernized in many ways but looks more or less stock.

After talking to builders & owners in my area, I've decided to go with a 54 steering wheel and a new, plain column. This will look like a 54 floor shift column, have the same style integral turn signal and have better bearings than the original. Most important, the new column will also be anchored with a collar to the firewall/floor.

Do you have a bearing pressed or otherwise secured to the cut off end of the mast (column)? That would be important in tightening up the top bearing. The spring under the steering wheel needs something secure at the opposite end of the mast to pull against.

52carl - Sorry, didn't see your answer to this thread...and you've made some good observations. I did have an inner sleeve made for the cut end that the shaft also goes through. A grease zerk was added to keep that surface turning smoothly. Beyond the end, the shaft attaches to a universal, which goes to a shaft and then to a heim joint. The Column is anchored firmly at that point, so that the spring is properly compressed when the steering wheel is attached (see older progress pic below. Also machined a couple washer/spacers to go under the spring at the mast bearing to see if that would help (didn't).

[IMG]http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e22/riverwork/Public%20stuff/Truck%20Parts/IMG_2756.jpg[/IMG]

This past weekend, I added a collar made by Ididit to anchor the column to the firewall. Nice for the feel, but the knocking noise in the column is still there. With the steering wheel off so I can see about 1/32" of play in the mast bearing - I think that's the noise source. From the pics below, you can see the truck looks pretty stock. I've been trying to keep that look, even with the modifications. I don't want a tilt column with an aftermarket wheel - as is usually done (just my thing). I think my best bet for a vintage look may be an Ididit plain column with a 1954-55 steering wheel. It looks just like a 54-55 column, only built to tighter specs.

[IMG]http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e22/riverwork/Public%20stuff/Truck%20Parts/Fintrk4a.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e22/riverwork/Public%20stuff/Truck%20Parts/Fintrk8.jpg[/IMG]