Upper steering column bearings?

[DanR]

Have not seen or read of a good replacement for the original bearings that are in the upper steering column on our Alpines.

Any ideas?

While working on my Electric Power Steering (EPS) project I found a sealed bearing that may be an answer. However, the column needs to be removed and the upper end turned down .003 to fit properly.

Hate to go to that extensive amount of work but, if the bearings are bad and there are no other choices, it may be an answer.

 

[SoCal'beaming]

Hi Dan .... I remember seeing new bearings for the Alpines that someone/a co. made ... I believe they were roller type instead of the stock ball bearing type?. ... ebay or ebay uk? ... just can't remember exactly where I saw them.. I'll look though my bookmarks and see if I didn't flag it and post if I find the person or manufacturer.

..... David

 

[DanR]

Thanks, David, That would be great!

 

[alpine_64]

I think Tim morin in Texas was making them and had them in his eBay shop

 

[SoCal'beaming]

I think Tim morin in Texas was making them and had them in his eBay shop

Dan .... Still haven't found the link I'm looking for ... my luck I probably forgot to book mark it(as I'll need these as well quite soon) Michael King is correct .. Tims are the ball bearing style and not the ones I was refering to .. here's the link I found For Tim Moran(texastigert) http://www.ebay.com/itm/370474969702 I don't have a contact tele no.# ..... I'll keep looking and post here if I find the link for the roller type I saw. Have you tried Dales Restorations in CA.? .... What is the I.D. and O.D. of the bearing cage? ..this may help me narrow down the search.
......
............. David

 

[Bill Blue]

My cars (Series V) have simple ball bearings. They come apart, exposing individual balls that can be purchased in the local hardware store. Look in the area where they have small parts in cardboard trays. Cost a couple of bucks to replace them.

Bill

 

[DanR]

Bill, the races are what I have discovered to be most often defective. Both the inner and outer race are a thin piece of metal that traps dust and moisture which causes them to rust as well as the ball bearings. Thanks for the info!

DAVID, I'll get the dimensions for the sealed bearing I bought for my EPS project and the Alpine Column I.D.


DanR

 

[husky drvr]

While working on my Electric Power Steering (EPS) project I found a sealed bearing that may be an answer. However, the column needs to be removed and the upper end turned down .003 to fit properly.

Think it would be a lot simpler to find a way to increase the ID of the bearing. Maybe a sanding flap wheel on a Dremel? It's not a high speed application and you should be able to keep run out minimal with such a small dimension change.

Just a thought.

 

[DanR]

Let me clarify.....

Thanks for your idea, husky drvr! It just may be one of the things for me to do next time.

Clarification on my project.....EPS.... The Steering box is removed and disassembled. The outer column is cut at two positions. The inner shaft is done likewise. So there is no problem fitting the seal bearing to the upper portion of the inner shaft (Shown in the PIC above) because it must be cut and welded to a piece of the inner shaft from the donor steering section (Saturn). So before welding the two pieces together it is a simple matter of machining in the lathe.

Replacing the stock ball bearings with the sealed bearing would require turning the inner shaft...... that is until and if your suggestion will work. Hope so because the bearing I bought was less than $12.00 and the replacement on E-bay was $125.00 if I am correct. It (E-bay) has machined races which has labor and machine work involved and perhaps justify s the asking price. Where as the Rootes race(s) is machine pressed and very thin gauge metal.

 

[snamelc]

My Series II just had a felt ring for a bearing. I guess that should tell you how long they expected us to drive these cars! Anyhow, I had a sheet of polyethylene lying around (Teflon may have been better) so I made a bearing out of that, dimensioned such that it pressed into the column and cleared the shaft by about a mil. After 6 or 7 years of use, I still cannot detect any slop in the wheel.

Bill

 

[DanR]

Felt ring....

Here is a PIC of the Original bearing assy that has a "felt ring" I believe it was for holding a bit of oil for lubrication purposes.

 

[SoCal'beaming]

Sorry Dan .... for the life of me I can't seem to find any link or bookmark for those tapered roller bearings I was talking about .... I'll keep looking and asking around .... someone else had to have seen them as well .... they weren't as expensive as Tim's are, but his are quality and will probably out last most of us if ya' got a small $ tree in your backyard ... Good luck

..... David