The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk leaky steering box

I have a '54 1/2 ton. The 80 weight in the steering leaves a puddle on the floor after a week sitting. I have to refill every month or so. Steering is fine, doesn't feel worn or loose. I THINK it is coming from where the pitman arm comes out. I've looked in the manual and I believe I need to repack the packing....
Is there any easy way to do this, without pulling the steering wheel, column? I have the fenders off now for some body work and I thought I would try to get it fixed...

80 weight oil is far too thin and will leak out. I recall someone posting that Penrite Steering Box Lube is equivalent to about a 1200 weight oil (a self-leveling grease). The correct weight GM/GMC steering lube can sometimes be found at a dealer but you have to be lucky.

Tim

The steering column is easy to remove with the inner fender off. You will find a lot of postings on here about this subject. Usually the bushing around that shaft is worn. If it is worn, a new seal won't do the trick. If you rock the steering wheel back and forth and you see the Pitman arm clunking sideways then you know the bushing is worn. Some folks have suggested different types of grease/fluid to help with this problem.

I had the bushing professionally replaced and 80 weight gear oil does not leak out of it now.

Thanks. I think the bushing is OK, steering's fine. I reread the manual and it DOES call for grease. I hope that fixes the "leak"....

There've also been postings that John Deer cornhead grease works well in that application.

Tiny are you pulling our leg? Do you promise the guys at the parts store wont laugh if I ask for 'cornhead grease'?

>CLICK<

dschmidt:

Tiny is not pulling your leg. I just bought several tubes of cornhead grease at the local John Deere dealer. I have not had the opportunity to put in the steering gearbox so I can't speak for how it works, but I do know that you can buy it.

If you can't locate some at your local John Deere dealer, let me know and I can send you some.

Kent Butler
'56 Chevy 3100
Houston, TX

I had a John Deere combine with bad seals in the gear boxes on the corn head. I could put 140 wt. gear lub. in them and have them run dry in a matter of hours. I now put the old stand by STP motor treatment or the like in these gear boxes. This stuff is like honey and It takes for ever for the stuff to leak past the old seals. I also used it on a sreering box on a HI-lo which caused spots on the factory floor. problem resolved and an inexpensive fix to what could be a big repair job.

Cornhead grease? Sounds like something you'd cook grits in!

Man this reads like a copy word for word of the discussions we've had on JD Corn Head grease in the past. I've got a dealer a mile west of me and he had it on the shelf, just a couple of bucks as I remember.
I'm still a believer that if your pitman arm seal is worn so badly that it won't hold lubricant, then no matter what you put in it will keep it from leaking. It's simply time to replace it!
Oh, and Tim, how in the world are you gonna remove the inner skirt without removing the fender first??? Or mayby that's what you meant to do before removing the skirt??
Again I thought I had heard from neumorous mamber that said the steering gear would come out through the bottom with the truck up on jack stands??
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

The stock lube is a thin grease or very thick oil depending on your point of view. GM discontinued their manual steering lube several years ago and it is not available unless sitting on a shelf somewhere. I have heard of only the Penrite and Cornhead grease as a good substitute. I went with the Cornhead grease, cheap and realitively easy to find. You should not use a straight grease as it will "cavity". Which means it will get pushed away from parts as the steering box parts move and will not flow back into the ball nut area.

Alemite #2 grease works well for steering boxes (and U-joints) too.

Rustednuts, if you go to the local FLAPS and ask for cornhead grease if you are lucky they will laugh. If it is one of the many females that now work there you could be looking at arrest and jail time for conduct unbecomming.LOL You have to go to John Deere to get the grease. When I called the local JD commercial outlet they had it in tubes, 5 gallon pails, and 16 gallon kegs. He quoted me 1.79 a tube. And if anybody needs a 16 gallom keg, I will bring it to you for the cost of gas to see all them old trucks!!!

I have to partially disagree with you Denny Graham. The repair manual and owner's manual both call for steering lube not 80W motor oil. Even with a well sealed steering box, the 80W can leak out IMO and it definitely is not what would have been originally used.

I haven't tried cornhead grease, but since it is not available at any of the JD dealers around here, I did pick up a couple of tubes when I was in Western Idaho/Eastern Oregon last year. I have heard of some other alternatives, including the Penrite steering lube, which I believe is made for classic MGs. The cornhead grease does seem to be a good alternative as it is a semi-liquid, so it hopefully will maintain a layer of grease around the screw mechanism and balls in the steering box, and it is much cheaper than the Penrite stuff. Plain old lube grease is a big no-no. As mentioned, a cavity can form around the moving parts eliminating the lubricant between them.