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OK, I am progressing on my '68 coupe that is getting a BB/4spd. My next job to prep is the steering gearbox (p/s). Again, this is a part Dad bought used at a swap meet 25 years ago. Here are some pics of it in it's current condition. Before I sandblast it is there anything I need to be aware of? It turns from the ragjoint (I know it needs replaced) through the pitman arm. What are the signs that it needs rebuilt? Any insight or info would be greatly appreciated. Andy
Figuring I should remove the pitman arm and sandblast separately. Are there any parts that would be damaged if I heated treated the paint (200degrees/20 min) on the gearbox? how rebuilder friendly are they if it is needed? Also, it did not come and I do not have the carriage bolts or nuts for mounting it. TIA for your help and keeping me going the right way!
You can 'purty up' the outside. But being 25 years old (looks more like 40) and having no idea what the inner workings look like would be a crap-shoot on whether it will give you problems or not. I would have to guess that it WOULD have operating problems.
If you don't know how to check out and/or repair a steering box, the LAST thing you want to do is dig into it. You have two choices:
1) clean it up, put it on and hope for the best;
2) take it to someone skilled in rebuilding steering boxes and AT LEAST pay them to check it out for you. They could give you a reasonable assessment of functionality for not much money, if no rebuild is done.
I don't think either of the above options is very good. But, #2 is better than #1, IMO.
Last edited by 7T1vette; Feb 28, 2016 at 05:49 AM.
Hi,
I agree that cleaning it up cosmetically is pretty easy to do.
Rebuilding it isn't that difficult either and all the parts needed are readily available.
Bairs Corvette in western Pa does the rebuild for $150 including new parts and labor…. so it's not too big a job.
Various vendors offer the parts needed as a rebuild kit for about $70 so you could consider doing it yourself.
Regards,
Alan
2025 c3 ('74-'82) of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2019 C3 of Year Finalist (appearance mods)
Does this help?
You will need a special puller to get the pitman arm off.
Confirm that you have the correct pitman arm, one is for manual and one for power steering.
Once you have all the parts removed you can cook it in your oven.
Here's a step by step how to:
Steering gearbox questions
