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Old Red Maintenance Thread

Discussion in 'Builds and Fabricators Forum' started by Fireball, Jul 4, 2020.

  1. Oct 9, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2018
    Messages:
    5,627
    Was gone all last week on vacation visiting the in-laws so didn't do much Jeep related. However, a part was in the mail from Wheelie when I got home.

    The original tall footman loop was missing when I got the Jeep. Probably got removed when all the damage happened to the hood. I put a reproduction loop on the hood, but never liked it because it's the wrong height, looks too fresh, and has metric threads with 10mm nuts:
    [​IMG]

    Wheelie had an original complete with nuts/backing plate and the perfect "patina" to match the rest of the Jeep:
    [​IMG]

    Much better.
     
  2. Nov 30, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2018
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    5,627
    I've finally stopped procrastinating and am starting to pull the Ross box for a rebuild. I had to swing by the hardware store to pick up a 1-1/4" socket to get the steering wheel off. The only one I had was in a 3/4" drive set and it was too thick to fit into the horn cup.

    After reading other posts on the forum, I decided to use a bearing splitter to pull the steering wheel:
    [​IMG]

    In retrospect, I should have used the jack/strap method because this happened. Boy did my heart sink:
    [​IMG]

    No use crying over spilt milk I guess. Got out the good old JB Weld and pieced it back together. With a little cleanup you won't be able to tell:
    [​IMG]

    Got all the inside parts removed. I *think* I'll be able to get it out without pulling up any more floorboards. We'll see:
    [​IMG]

    I got the exhaust about half undone before calling it a night.
     
    Jw60, Danefraz, Rich M. and 6 others like this.
  3. Dec 1, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2018
    Messages:
    5,627
    More steering progress tonight.

    Exhaust dropped:
    [​IMG]

    I unhooked the drag link and unbolted the box. Should drop right out. Right? Nope. It wedges itself between the engine and the brake distribution block and doesn't want to drop any further. Here it is very wedged in place:
    [​IMG]

    After more wiggling, attempting to pry things, plenty of cursing and finally violent shaking it slipped out:
    [​IMG]

    Not sure how I'll go about getting it back in. Might undo the motor mount bolt and jack the left side of the engine up a bit.

    The resulting pile of tools and dirt:
    [​IMG]

    The first inspection item is the Pitman arm. I knew this was bad from doing the drag link a couple years ago. I have another original arm in great condition to replace this:
    [​IMG]

    Time for some mechanical dirt removal:
    [​IMG]

    About 45 minutes later this was the pile:
    [​IMG]

    Clean enough for disassembly:
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Another use for the 24 inch Crescent wrench:
    [​IMG]

    I don't think this has been apart before but it looks like the Pitman are was installed one tooth off:
    [​IMG]

    I didn't have any pullers that fit between the housing and the Pitman arm so I decided to pull the worm first. This allows the sector could pull out further out of the box.

    Cover off. The oil looked good and there were no signs of water intrusion:
    [​IMG]

    The worm bearings and races look good and thankfully the worm itself looks good. It's the one part I don't have a good replacement for:
    [​IMG]

    With that out of the way I could use the steering arm puller to get the Pitman arm off. As expected, the pins are very worn, Someone had tightend the adjuster on the box to take out the slop but it would transition between easy, hard, and back easy to turn the as it rotated through the flat spots. I have an NOS replacement for this:
    [​IMG]

    Luckily the sector shaft bushings have have no play at all so I don't need to futz with them.

    All apart and ready for more in-depth cleaning:
    [​IMG]
     
  4. Dec 1, 2021
    Rubicloak

    Rubicloak Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Nevada
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    Jul 19, 2018
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    305
    Nice to see that under all of its dirt... still has the original Glyptal red paint (y)
     
    Fireball likes this.
  5. Dec 1, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
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    Yeah, I was pleasantly surprised to see that.
     
  6. Dec 1, 2021
    Jw60

    Jw60 Sitting up n buckled down. 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Sedalia MO.
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    Apr 8, 2008
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    I have the same feelings for the Ross steering as carburetors.

    Like the heart of tefiti to that demigod in Moana.
    "That is a curse"
     
  7. Dec 1, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2018
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    I agree the design is lacking. But I'm trying to keep this Jeep somewhat original. I've got Saginaw on the '71 and it will get fuel injection eventually.
     
    Jw60 likes this.
  8. Dec 2, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2018
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    All parts cleaned as good as they get (I forgot to put the worm shaft in the photo):
    [​IMG]

    Steering column bearing cleaned and freshly packed with grease:
    [​IMG]

    After about 16 times taking the cap off and playing with Shims, a stack of .062 does the trick for no looseness and very little drag on the worm. I wiped a thing coat of silicon on each shim when putting it together:
    [​IMG]

    New sector installed and adjusted:
    [​IMG]

    I tightened the Pitman arm and realized may assessment of the bushings was bad. While it had very little play wiggling the pin end of the sector by hand, you could move the ball end of the Pitman arm back and forth a good 1/8". So back apart :banghead::
    [​IMG]

    Old bushings and seal tapped out with and appropriately sized socket:
    [​IMG]

    New bushings inserted using the press:
    [​IMG]

    I don't have a 15/16" reamer and don't want to wait two weeks to get one, so I spent a good hour with a brake cylinder hone to get a nice fit with no looseness. Will reassemble the box tonight. At least the shim pack is already figured out:
    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Dec 2, 2021
    Ol Fogie, Jw60, AKjeff and 4 others like this.
  9. Dec 2, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
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    I should note I don't like the new bushings not having oil grooves so I cut some shallow grooves with a hacksaw.
     
    Ol Fogie and AKjeff like this.
  10. Dec 3, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2018
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    Here's the slot I cut so the lube can get into the bushing:
    [​IMG]

    Doing final adjustments:
    [​IMG]

    I didn't like this horn wire splice with painted on electrical tape:
    [​IMG]

    So it got some heat shrink for better insulation:
    [​IMG]

    The box is back in the Jeep! I hammered the oil pan rail over a tiny bit, left the column outer tube off and it slipped right in. I figured it would be and even bigger struggle than getting it out, so whoohoo! Pulled the horn wire through and hooked up the drag link:
    [​IMG]

    Tightened the column to the dash and then the bolts to the frame. Installed the steering wheel:
    [​IMG]

    Hooke up the horn and it works again:
    [​IMG]

    Next is filling the steering box with oil, a bit of sanding where I glued the back of the steering wheel together, attaching the turn signal box and hooking the exhaust back up.

    Then it's a quick test drive and time to put the hard top on for winter.
     
    Rich M., dozerjim, Ol Fogie and 6 others like this.
  11. Dec 3, 2021
    jeepstar

    jeepstar Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Sheboygan
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    how about the wheel? will it be easier to get off again now that you popped it off? are you going to paint it?
     
    Ol Fogie likes this.
  12. Dec 3, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
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    No, not easy to get off again. It's getting sanded/polishing in place. You can't really see where the breaks were but I want a smooth surface for the turn signal wheel to run on.
     
  13. Dec 3, 2021
    jeepstar

    jeepstar Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Sheboygan
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    any reason you didn't do that before you reinstalled it?
     
  14. Dec 3, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
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    Bad planning. That would have been the right thing to do.

    I wanted to test the steering last night after getting it hooked up and I couldn't get the steering wheel to engage without pulling it down with the nut. After that, I don't want to pull it off again and the work needed is minimal so it gets done in place.
     
    Ol Fogie, jeepstar and Rubicloak like this.
  15. Dec 5, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
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    Got it back together today.

    Started with the steering wheel. 240 grit 1st:
    [​IMG]

    Then 600 grit:
    [​IMG]

    Then 1000 grit and it's about as shiny as the rest of the steering wheel:
    [​IMG]

    Then a Sharpie over the grey JB Weld lines and it's good enough for this Jeep's "patina":
    [​IMG]

    Turn signal switch installed:
    [​IMG]

    Then I filled the steering gear with 85/140W. That sucked. I tried to do it with a hose, but the shop was 40 degree and you need a small hose to fit in the fill hole. The 140W did NOT want to flow through a small hose. After squeezing the bottle so much my hands hurt, I switched to pouring it in. It's under the exhaust manifold and the hole is at a 45 degree angle so I had to drizzle a tiny stream into a very small target. That took anouther 15 minutes at least.

    Exhaust back together:
    [​IMG]

    My wife helped me put the hard top on for the winter:
    [​IMG]

    Then I spent another hour and a half figting electrical issues with the turn signals. The problem ended up being a weak contact spring in the Spartan turn signal switch combined with disturbed connections to the rear lights down by the steering box.

    No test drive today because it's rainy, cold, muddy and miserable outside. Looks like it's supposed to be a decent day tomorrow. We'll see if it drives down the hightway any better with the rebuilt steering box.
     
    Rubicloak, jeepstar, Ol Fogie and 9 others like this.
  16. Dec 5, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2018
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    Went out for a nice long test drive with the rebuilt Ross box:
    [​IMG]

    Covered gravel roads, paved roads, and 60mph on the highway.

    It's much improved! No binding through turns anymore and it just goes where you point it with no wandering. I like it. Not as good as Saginaw power steering but not bad at all.

    Even 60mph is very comfortable.
     
  17. Dec 12, 2021
    Puddle Jumper

    Puddle Jumper Rattle Can Master Painter

    Camas, WA
    Joined:
    Sep 22, 2020
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    137
    Awesome job.
     
    Fireball likes this.
  18. Dec 22, 2021
    Fireball

    Fireball Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Pullman, WA
    Joined:
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    With the mechanical and electrical stuff is done for a while, it's time for some aesthetics.

    I've never liked white wagon wheels and I don't like the ones that came with this Jeep. I do like the 31x10.50x15 tire size so I ordered 5 of these 15x8 but generally stock looking wheels. They'll be getting a coat of ivory paint to match the top before I swap the tires:
    [​IMG]

    This should give the Jeep a nice vintage stock-ish look.
     
  19. Dec 22, 2021
    shadetreetim

    shadetreetim Member 2022 Sponsor

    Riverside, Ca -...
    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2019
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    199
    I agree. Those steel wheels will look a lot better.
     
    Fireball likes this.
  20. Dec 22, 2021
    neohic

    neohic Gentleman Jeepist

    Woodland Park, CO
    Joined:
    Mar 29, 2018
    Messages:
    500
    Got a source link for these? Beautiful!
     
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