Steering box rebuild

[David H.]

I have been reading in the archives that CORVETTE STEERING SERVICE is a good source for having the steering box rebuilt in my '62.
The postings that I was reading were a long time ago.
Is this business still a good place to send it to?

Thanks

[Joe L.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

I have been reading in the archives that CORVETTE STEERING SERVICE is a good source for having the steering box rebuilt in my '62.
The postings that I was reading were a long time ago.
Is this business still a good place to send it to?

Thanks

David-----


They were an EXCELLENT place for Corvette steering component rebuild although I'm not sure they did C1 stuff. In any event, the owner passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. Their web-site (www.corvettesteering.com) no longer worked the last time I checked it.

[Henry S.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

David, check with NCRS member Gary Ramdei (14833). If you do a search for rebuilt steering boxes his name will pop up. He did my 67 steering box a few years back and I couldn't have been happier. He sent me pictures as he was doing it. Great guy!!

[Gary R.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

David, check with NCRS member Gary Ramdei (14833). If you do a search for rebuilt steering boxes his name will pop up. He did my 67 steering box a few years back and I couldn't have been happier. He sent me pictures as he was doing it. Great guy!!

Hi shooter,
Good to hear from you again and that 67 box is performing to your expectations. If I recall you went with a bare iron box that was only oil treated. Did it surface rust like the originals?

David,
You were correct about Corvette Steering in Anderson SC. Tom Riena was the owner and a friend of mine, sadly he passed away last January. He didn't have employees so the business closed. I have his gear stock now but those are for the 63-82's. One of the last conversations I had with him was on the C1 box/columns, I believe he used his last set of c1 gears and was just going to stay with C2 & C3 boxes, parts, and steering columns. I believe Tony's in MD purchased the column parts. I do not work on the C1 boxes, parts are very expensive probably double of the C2 & C3's. Sorry I can't help you, unless you have a 63-82!

[Donald H.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

David, I rebuilt the steering box on my 1960. I had never done it before, but the box is pretty simple. I have an excellent set of instruction that Tom Parson's wrote and a link to a youtube series of a guy doing a C1 steering box rebuild. Gear sets and parts are available from a number of sources.

Don

[Gary R.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

Yes Tom Parson's would be the guy I would contact. I have never met or spoke with him but his threads are very good and he knows his stuff, on planes too I see!

[David H.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

I contacted Werner Meier about 6 months ago. He told me that the parts he was getting to do this
did not pass his quality expectations and did not want to do it until the parts got better.
Is there a way to bench test the column to see if it actually needs rebuilding?
I have seen the youtube video and Tom's instructions. Not sure I am up to it myself.
Does Tom rebuild them for a price?
Thanks for all the feedback.

[Donald H.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

It would be worth contacting Tom to see if he will do the rebuild for you.

[Larry C.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

David,

My original steering was loose and someone suggested (maybe Tom Parsons that I spoke to) said that it may be that only the adjusting bolt on the outboard side of the steering box may need adjusting. Refer to the Corvette Service manual for procedures. I tried it on mine, and it certainly improved the feel of the steering wheel.

Larry

[David H.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

Thanks Larry. I was wondering if there is a bench test that I can do to the steering to help me decide if it even
needs to be rebuilt or just adjusted. No sure how to do it out of the car.

[Duke W.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

The procedure to overhaul the steering gear is in the '63 Corvette Shop Manual and later chassis overhaul manuals.

Out of the car you can check total preload, but if it's not in spec DO NOT attempt to adjust it with the sector screw/locknut. If it's out of spec the gear should be disassembled, cleaned, any worn parts replaced, and carefully assembled using specified preloads - first the worn bearing preload and then the total.

You need a 50 or preferrably a 25 in-lb torque wrench, which are a fairly tough find.

My SWC steering gear at 115K miles had no significant wear, so I just installed new seals and bought a shim kit since the sector shaft end play was slighly out of spec and needed the next thicker shim.

I used the 10 oz. tube of Corvette-specific steering gear lubricant, but it's no longer available. In its place I recommend a full synthetic NGLI #2 grease.

Overhauling the steering gear if you don't have to replace the sector bushings or wormshaft bearings is not a difficult task, but it requires the right tool - that little torque wrench - attention to detail and patience.

Duke

[Mike E.]

Re: Steering box rebuild

Your 62 is a totally different animal than what's included in the 63 shop manual. The st-12 manual spells out all you need to know. If the bearings are good (and the almost always are, unless they've gotten metal in them from galling of the worm and sector) and if there is no galling (usually easily detectable by a clunk or a spot where it seems to bid), just adjusting it per the st-12 isn't all that hard, and improves the steering feel greatly.