The only major mechanical problem I have found on my new M1097A1 is that the power steering was not working. I filled it up with fluid and it started working but was very noisy. I think the noise was mostly air in the system, as the steering was working rather well for a about a mile. After a short drive though, it stopped working again, so I did an inspection and see that the Steering Gear Box is leaking very badly. Is there an aftermarket replacement or a rebuild kit for this box? I've found some very expensive options but was hoping maybe there was a cheaper alternative. I wouldn't mind rebuilding it if it is not that difficult. I've rebuilt much larger gear drives in the past on my crane, so this one seems like it should not be too difficult? I've done some searches, but it's exhausting and nothing is very clear that I've found so far. Thanks in advance for any help.
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M1097A1 Steering Gear Box
- Thread starter mccullek
- Start date
rcamacho
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It’s basically a Saginaw box. Easy rebuild IMO if you have prior experience or are comfortable learning. Kits should be available through the usual distributors. Make sure the kit comes with seals and bearings.
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Is there a particular saginaw model, or do they all use the same rebuild kit?
I started on removing my steering gear box today. I have everything unbolted, but for the life of me, I can not get the shaft from the gear box to disengage from the pitman arm.
I’ve heated it, tried a bearing puller, banged on it, etc. There has to bea better way than what I have come up with. I had everything unbolted in an hour, but am 5 hours in on this last piece of the puzzle.
Can anyone suggest or point me in the right direction on how to get the Shaft out of the pitman arrm?
I’ve heated it, tried a bearing puller, banged on it, etc. There has to bea better way than what I have come up with. I had everything unbolted in an hour, but am 5 hours in on this last piece of the puzzle.
Can anyone suggest or point me in the right direction on how to get the Shaft out of the pitman arrm?
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Have you used a pitman arm puller ? Not a bearing puller. Pitman arm jaws are fixed.
Autozone and oreilly have them in their loaner tools.
Soak the splines with pb blaster.
Lisle and Otc make hd ones also.
Autozone and oreilly have them in their loaner tools.
Soak the splines with pb blaster.
Lisle and Otc make hd ones also.
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I am installing a PSC steering gear and pitman arm on my H2 and I used a rental from autozone and it worked great. I was charged 16.00 dollars for the tool and I watched her remove it from the plastic. I will keep it for future and I have 1/2 that much in gas going to get it. Maybe put some heat on it once you have some tension on it. Spray it with some pb blaster like others have suggested and leave it overnight. Put some antiseize on the new one
They have a pitman arm tool at HB for $16. I will pick one up in the morning and give it a try. It looks like it would do the trick. The bearing puller would just a slip off, so the fixed arms might be the ticket.
I didn’t realize they had a specific tool for this, so thanks for the suggestion.
I didn’t realize they had a specific tool for this, so thanks for the suggestion.
GopherHill
Well-known member
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For the price, give it a try. You may have to get an OTC puller if the cheaper one fails
Man, having the right tools for the job can make all of the difference. A 6-hour failure was a 30 second success with the Pitman Tool. lol I wasted a lot of time on that thing and only needed a $15 tool to make it a breeze. I buggered up the end of the shaft too, so I'm sure I will need to do some thread repair before reinstalling.
Another question, when it comes time to reinstall this thing, is it as hard to get the shaft back into the Pitman Arm? Is there any special trick to install it, or will it just pull down into the shaft by tightening the nut?
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Put anti seize on it. Next time it will be easier to get off. I used impact to tighten it up before I put it on my H2 and then torque it to spec once it’s in place
Thats what I was thinking but wanted to verify in order to save myself some time and headaches.
Thanks for the tips!
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Call me old school, but I prefer to run a pitman arm nut by hand via wrench or socket as I am paranoid the impact hits can cause seal problems over time. I have no scientific or real world failure to back that up but just my feeling and seeing how little that rubber lip is can cause problems when not happy....
Easily slips on and the nut plus taper will bring it to the correct position. Install is a breeze and painless
YMMV
Easily slips on and the nut plus taper will bring it to the correct position. Install is a breeze and painless
YMMV
Ran into another issue with my rebuild. The stub shaft seal, dust cover and retaining ring that came with my kit is too small? The seal that came out appears to be 3.5cm wide, while the one that came with my kit is 3.2cm wide, so about .3cm too small, and dust cover is the same.
Has anyone run into this issue? I guess I can google and try and cross reference the correct seal and dust cover, but hoping someone can help point me to a place I can get the correct seal and dust cover quickly. The part number is Saginaw 5686526, but when I google it it says obsolete?
Has anyone run into this issue? I guess I can google and try and cross reference the correct seal and dust cover, but hoping someone can help point me to a place I can get the correct seal and dust cover quickly. The part number is Saginaw 5686526, but when I google it it says obsolete?
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This took some digging, but just in case anyone else runs into the same issue, I found a power steering box input shaft seal kit at Napa that matches the 5686526 seal. It includes the seal, dust cover, snap ring and the larger inner O ring seal as well for $11. Napa Part # NPS 7367. Evidently the steering gear box comes with two different size input shafts and my Saginaw box has the larger input shaft.
It seems that this same Saginaw box was also installed on the 1976 chevy malibu with the 350V8. Just so happens, I drove that same car in high school. If you find you have this same Saginaw box and need parts, use the 76 malibu with the V8 and you can likely find your parts. I paid $90 to one of the sites that sell the kits, and I could have picked up a kit locally for a fraction of that cost had I known this information sooner.
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