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steering box leak
- Thread starter delta5
- Start date
RootesRich
Donation Time
Seems to work for most that have tried it, myself included.
65beam
Donation Time
leak
grease is defined as " a mixture of a fluid lubricant and a thickener dispersed in the oil". because greases do not flow readily they are used where extended lubrication is required and where oil would not be retained. the thickener retains the oil. the semi fluid greases are just that. they contain very little thickener in the oil and are intended mostly for industrial uses. some construction companies use a semi fluid grease in cold temps for their automatic greasing systems on their equipment. this is usually an EP 00. I use EP 2 grease in my gear boxes and since they don't rotate like an engine does the gears are lubricated. think about how little movement there is of the steering gears when the car is on a normal road trip. it doesn't move much unless you're making a lot of tight turns. use a good quality brand of EP 2 lithium grease and you'll be fine.
grease is defined as " a mixture of a fluid lubricant and a thickener dispersed in the oil". because greases do not flow readily they are used where extended lubrication is required and where oil would not be retained. the thickener retains the oil. the semi fluid greases are just that. they contain very little thickener in the oil and are intended mostly for industrial uses. some construction companies use a semi fluid grease in cold temps for their automatic greasing systems on their equipment. this is usually an EP 00. I use EP 2 grease in my gear boxes and since they don't rotate like an engine does the gears are lubricated. think about how little movement there is of the steering gears when the car is on a normal road trip. it doesn't move much unless you're making a lot of tight turns. use a good quality brand of EP 2 lithium grease and you'll be fine.
RootesRooter
Donation Time
The Pitman arm must be removed to disassemble the steering box and replace the seal. The less-than-ideal access makes it very difficult to get a puller securely mounted.
What does "extended lubrication" mean?
High pressure contact points such as on steering gears in freezing weather, before the grease has had time to get warm, strikes me as less than ideal lubrication.
I am not saying that you are wrong and I don't have any specifications for lithium grease but an oiled bearing, or oiled gears, always outlast a greased one in my experience.
It may be a pain to replace the seal and possibly repair the seal surface, but I think it is worth doing rather than ignore the fault,
Cheers Charlie
If you were to ask most old time Sunbeamers, you´d find that the lithium grease is the way to go. If you replace the seal and fill it with oil, it won´t be long before it has allleaked out again. You can change out the seal, with all the attending work that will cause, only to have to repeat the same process again. or you can pack the steering box with the lithium grease and forget about it forever. Your choice.
Jose
Jose
65beam
Donation Time
leak
the key to this conversation is that the oil needs to be retained. how hard would it be to keep oil in a ball joint or tie rod end if you injected oil into the joint? it would run out and there would be no lubrication due to the fact there is no oil. that results in metal to metal contact which causes wear and failure. to prevent this we use GREASE. grease is oil with what is referred to as a thickener added to it. the thickener is what we refer to as a soap and in the case of grease it is a metallic soap. this thickener also has moly ,lithium or other products added depending on the application. the thickener retains the oil and the oil does not leak out. the thickener does not do the lubrication. the oil is doing the lubrication. pumping grease into the steering box gives you the oil needed for lubrication and greatly lowers the possibility of the oil leaking out. if you want a grease that will never let loose of it's oil then fill the box with wire rope grease.
the key to this conversation is that the oil needs to be retained. how hard would it be to keep oil in a ball joint or tie rod end if you injected oil into the joint? it would run out and there would be no lubrication due to the fact there is no oil. that results in metal to metal contact which causes wear and failure. to prevent this we use GREASE. grease is oil with what is referred to as a thickener added to it. the thickener is what we refer to as a soap and in the case of grease it is a metallic soap. this thickener also has moly ,lithium or other products added depending on the application. the thickener retains the oil and the oil does not leak out. the thickener does not do the lubrication. the oil is doing the lubrication. pumping grease into the steering box gives you the oil needed for lubrication and greatly lowers the possibility of the oil leaking out. if you want a grease that will never let loose of it's oil then fill the box with wire rope grease.
I take your point about about oil leakage, but I disagree that it is "key to this conversation". In the days of cork and wool-felt seals I would agree completely with you, and on my '51 Land-Rover I have used semi-fluid grease, for this very reason; however; doesn't the Alpine use rubber seals?
If I am wrong, I apologise for harping on about oil, but the fact remains that apart from semi-fluid greases, most other greases do not lubricate as well as oil, because until they get hot, the thickener prevents the lubricant from getting between components with high-pressure contact, such as a ball and race; or gear teeth.
Metal to metal contact does occur in greased assemblies, regardless of whether it leaks out or not,
Cheers Charlie
Charlie, I have to take issue with you about the lubricating qualities of grease. Front wheel drive powertrains seem to last nearly forever and depend on grease for lubrication. Common U-joints and wheel bearings have always been lubed by the stuff. In addition, I do not understand the concern about grease getting between components. The contact areas are not in anyway sealed and I see no reason that grease cannot be carried into them through normal component movement.
The fact the seal is of "modern" construction does not mean it is worth a damn.
Bottom line, greased steering boxes last a long time.
Bill
The fact the seal is of "modern" construction does not mean it is worth a damn.
Bottom line, greased steering boxes last a long time.
Bill
65beam
Donation Time
leak
bill,
the normal operating range of an EP 2 grease is - 40F to +350F so temp doesn't really come into play and since the thickener holds the oil in suspension there is lubrication. I've had to deal with much tougher lube situations over the years especially when we didn't have some of the synthetics we now have. I sell to several mills that have screw type compressors that run at 450 F 24 hours a day and that's with oil coolers with fans. that's tough on oils.
bill,
the normal operating range of an EP 2 grease is - 40F to +350F so temp doesn't really come into play and since the thickener holds the oil in suspension there is lubrication. I've had to deal with much tougher lube situations over the years especially when we didn't have some of the synthetics we now have. I sell to several mills that have screw type compressors that run at 450 F 24 hours a day and that's with oil coolers with fans. that's tough on oils.
A comment about lubing the gearbox.
I have now "filled" the box three times with grease. The first time I simply held the grease gun nozzle over the filler hole and pumped until grease oozed out. Improved things, so I was satisfied. A couple of years later, I thought the car was steering hard, so I regreased. This time I fashioned a tube that went down into the bottom of the box. Greased until grease oozed out. Things improved. This spring, the car was steering hard. AGAIN
By this time, the gun was out of grease, so I bought new. The old grease was red in color and very stiff and heat resistant. At one time I tried to melt the stuff with a heat gun. No way. Oil would run out, but the structure remained.
The new stuff is black and almost runny by comparison. I used a length of vinyl hose and filled the box from the rear. The change in steering was dramatic. The car not only steers easier, but seems to have better road manners. Cannot see any logical reason for that to be true. Also have no idea why the third fill made such a difference. Is it because the box is now truly filled? Because the grease is better suited for the job?
I cannot answer any of those questions, just relating the facts as I understand them.
Bill
I have now "filled" the box three times with grease. The first time I simply held the grease gun nozzle over the filler hole and pumped until grease oozed out. Improved things, so I was satisfied. A couple of years later, I thought the car was steering hard, so I regreased. This time I fashioned a tube that went down into the bottom of the box. Greased until grease oozed out. Things improved. This spring, the car was steering hard. AGAIN
By this time, the gun was out of grease, so I bought new. The old grease was red in color and very stiff and heat resistant. At one time I tried to melt the stuff with a heat gun. No way. Oil would run out, but the structure remained.
The new stuff is black and almost runny by comparison. I used a length of vinyl hose and filled the box from the rear. The change in steering was dramatic. The car not only steers easier, but seems to have better road manners. Cannot see any logical reason for that to be true. Also have no idea why the third fill made such a difference. Is it because the box is now truly filled? Because the grease is better suited for the job?
I cannot answer any of those questions, just relating the facts as I understand them.
Bill
Have no idea. I just picked up one of the higher priced tube, as they all claim to be the best. I did try to break into the gun and remove the cartridge, but I am not able to retract the plunger.
I should modify my description. The grease is not really black, that would imply graphite, more of a dark brown. It is not runny, but very soft. If you were to make a Dairy Queen curleycue with it, it would soon disappear into a blob.
Maybe someone can give you an educated guess as to what it is.
Bill
I should modify my description. The grease is not really black, that would imply graphite, more of a dark brown. It is not runny, but very soft. If you were to make a Dairy Queen curleycue with it, it would soon disappear into a blob.
Maybe someone can give you an educated guess as to what it is.
Bill
RootesRacer
Donation Time
Bill, are you loosing grease or just keep packing it in the box?
No evidence that I am loosing it. The stuff that was used in the first two fills is so stiff, a worn out British seal is more than enough to keep it in place. More like I fill the area near the fill hole and it migrates to the rear and for some reason, looses contact with the mechanism. I'm hoping the latest strategy completely filled the bugger.
Bill
On a whim today I popped the little filler plug on my steering box and shined a flashlight (torch) into the hole. Nothing!
Couldn't remember if I'd ever checked the fluid level on this steering box, and I've been driving it since 1985....
So, I reached for the grease gun and filled it up with #2 multi-purpose lithium grease, put the plug back in, and drove the car for about 30 minutes. Honestly couldn't tell the difference but at least I know the box now has grease.
Check your steering boxes!
Couldn't remember if I'd ever checked the fluid level on this steering box, and I've been driving it since 1985....
So, I reached for the grease gun and filled it up with #2 multi-purpose lithium grease, put the plug back in, and drove the car for about 30 minutes. Honestly couldn't tell the difference but at least I know the box now has grease.
Check your steering boxes!