7 Tooth Steering Box leak

[TJMack]

Has anyone figured out how to stop a 7 Tooth steering box leak? I rebuilt my box and can't stop the oil leak. It comes out quickly. One thing I found is that mine does not have the part called "steering box oil seal retainer" as shown in the attached picture as number 26. Did that part come is all 7 tooth boxes and mine is just missing, or is that an aftermarket part that someone figured out? I don't see it in Les Andrews' book or anyplace other than in the Mac's catalog.

[1928 Sport Coupe]

Snyders has the part.
OIL SEAL RETAINER WITH TUBE
Part # A-3527-T for $15.50.
Same as A-3527-BR except this has a tube welded to it to keep oil from leaking out the bottom of the steering box. these will not fit in all steering columns. Measure the ID of your steering shaft where this fits before you purchase it. The tube on this part measures .437/.438." The ID of your steering shaft has to be larger than this or it will not work. U.S.A.
I put one on my steering gear and I have not seen any leaks.

It replaces
OIL SEAL RETAINER
Part # A-3527-BR

[alexiskai]

This is very well-trodden ground, but overall the approach that seems to work, beyond installing the tube retainer, is to use a 00 grease and to create a good seal at the bottom of the steering box.

This is difficult because you have to shim it to correct end play. This means you have to somehow seal all the mating surfaces between those shims as well as the surfaces of the end plate and steering box. And then the sealant you use, be it RTV or whatever, is going to act as a shim itself and change the geometry. Took me several tries to get it right.

[burner31]

I once complained to my brother about an oil leak...He said "stop putting oil in it and it will stop leaking"

[wrndln]

This aftermarket tube will help with the leaks. However, I still had a very slow leak from some of the 4 bolts securing the end plug with the tube part installed. I tried a couple times to apply Permatex sealer to the threads of the four bolts, but it still had a very slow leak. I had an idea to buy some black cross stitch thread (aka embroidery thread) at a craft store and wrap 10 or 12 wraps around and just under the bolt heads and I still put Permatex on the bolt threads and some on the cross stitch thread. Since I did this, NO leaks in years. There is a product called "corn head grease" made by John Deere that is a thick oil/grease that clings to the sector and worm gear. It is thick enough it wont leak. There are some threads on Fordbarn that discuss corn head grease if you want to search for them - one is from me.

Rusty Nelson

[Randall]

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[6-pack]

I know now! Let me go....

[TJMack]

Thanks to all (except 6-pack) that responded. Some good input here. I'll look into the fit of the tube.

[TJMack]

A follow up; I think I have found and easy and EFFECTIVE fix for the leak problem. My steering box assembly won't take the tube style nut discussed above so I had to get creative. All I did was put two "O" rings and a flat washer in the box up from the original nut.

The washer has to be as thin as possible and just the right diameter to fit all the way up into the hole that the nut threads into. The one I found was a perfect outside diameter but I had to drill it out to 3/8" inside diameter. The "O"rings want to fit snugly onto the horn rod which is 3/8" diameter. I used two rings to accommodate the concave end of the nut. I want them to be slightly compressed when the nut is tightened in place.

The hardest part of the job was getting that damn "C" clip (#5 in the picture above) back onto the horn rod when the spring is installed. I found that if I attached my smallest pair of Vise-Grip pliers to one of the ears on the light switch spider (#6 in the picture above) I could hold the spring back far enough to get the "C" clip in place.

So far so good. No leak. We'll see how it goes after some miles.

I've attached a couple pictures.

[Gene F]

And the sector shaft bushings should not be water pump bushings. There is a difference.

[Gene F]

You can get your 7-tooth down to almost zero leak over the course of the season. I did.

[TJMack]

Originally Posted by Gene F

And the sector shaft bushings should not be water pump bushings. There is a difference.

I used the ones that were listed as "sector shaft bushings". Here's a valuable tip; the oil grooves in the bushings aren't cut all the way to one end, but they do go all the way to the other end. If the bushing is installed with end having the oil cut out to the end toward the outside, it will leak. The groove ends for a reason. Be sure to inspect the bushings before pressing in place. I was lucky. The fellow helping me press in the bushings noticed it before we started pressing.

It appears that the "O" rings are working, but now the bolts for the end plate are leaking. I'll have to try the thread trick suggested by WRNDLN.

[TJMack]

Here's an addendum to the leak problem. To verify that it was in fact the bolts leaking, which I found hard to believe due to the amount leaking, I did a little more investigating. I thoroughly cleaned the bottom of the steering box with parts cleaner fluid and let the car set overnight. Upon inspection with a bright light and mirror I could see that most of the leak was coming from the joint between the plate with the 4 bolts in it and the cylinder that sticks through it. See the picture with the arrow pointing to the joint.

When I had this apart I noticed that the plate was loose to the cylinder and thought that was odd. I don't know if it was originally welded or what? but it sure leaked.

I spread some silicone sealant (Right Stuff brand) around the joint by hand to see if it would seal up; it did. When I get more ambitious I'll take the whole lower bearing and flange assembly (#29 in the first photo posted earlier) out and either soft solder, if I can get it clean enough, which is doubtful, or braze the flange to the cylinder.

So far the leak is just about stopped. I still think a minute amount is coming around the bolts.

[TJMack]

Well, I finally won this round. I took the bearing and flange assembly (#29) out and disassembled the flange from the rest of it; quite easily I might add since it was so loose. I cleaned it well and then brazed it together. So far, so good. No leak at all.

It's interesting that this was made as only a press fit. The sleeve was knurled and the plate pressed in place. Over time the forces of steering being transmitted from the sector shaft to the worm gear and then steering shaft apparently caused enough of that force to move the sleeve where it joined the flange and loosen the joint.