Last season I replaced the power steering lines, the power steering control valve and the power steering cylinder. All was well. The first drive in the spring the power steering cylinder began to leak profusely. I replaced it with a remanufactured oem one. It only worked a few minutes on the test ride. Now it looks to be leaking from the from the fitting on the power steering control valve. It leaks a large puddle just sitting in the garage turned off. Any ideas?

 

Did you try loosening the fitting and tightening using a flared nut wrench?

 

Yup. Stop throwing money at that system. Convert to manual steering, or to Borgeson power steering.

 

I haven't tried loosening the fitting.

 

Are you using a flared nut wrench to tighten it?

 

To tighten the lines I did, yes. It appears to be leaking from what looks like a grease fitting. Regardless, it still isn't functioning at all.

 

that's the power steering control valve leaking. Any warranty on it?

 

For the life of me I can't find where I purchased it from. If I knew that's the problem, I would replace it. I'm not sure if it is the power steering pump. It's still original

 

I would clean and dry every part of the P/S system and then you should have a better idea where the fluid is coming from initially. If it was leaking at the pump, the fluid would run down the hoses from that. If they are dry, the leak is lower, possibly the PSCV. I assume you are using P/S fluid, not ATF, as the fluid in your photo is clear, not red?
If it is the control valve, rebuilding it is nothing like as hard as it's made out to be, it just needs care and patience.
And finally, just to incur the wrath of many on here 😄, for the pst 30 odd years, I have been putting a turn or two of PTFE tape on the threads of the flare nuts. It acts as as a lubricant for screwing them in and, it seals them without the need to tighten them to enormous torques. And it's clean, not a messy paste!

 

Yes, well it's the flair that seals. Not the threads.
To the OP. Check the fluid level in the pump resivor. Is it to low?
Top up as necessary. Disconnect the ram from the frame fitting. Push the ram all the way in and pull it all the way extended. Do you hear bubbles in the resivor? If yes keep doing this until bubbles stop.
Recheck the resivor level. Put the cap back on the resivor. Pop the cap off the control valve adjuster. With the shaft still disconnected from the frame. And ram roughly centered in it's stroke. Start the engine. Turn the adjuster nut inwards until the ram moves. Then counting the turns , turn the adjuster outwards untill the ram slams the other way. Put the adjuster right in the middle of that. Put the cap back on and reinstall the ram.
Now, take it for a drive.
If no amount of turning the adjuster makes the ram move. You have zero hydraulic pressure. Bad pump. Or a bad control valve.
To test for pressure, and you'll likely make a mess. Crack the high pressure line loose while the engine is running. It's the one threaded into the back of the pump. If you have pressure you'll know smart quick.

 

The orientation of the feed and return lines is important..... jack the car up in the front and turn the wheels lock to lock to ensure the lines aren't binding or dragging across the suspension.
I did the system on my '75 when I bought it. Rebuilt factory original unit from Lone Star in Texas. Leaked as soon as I started it up. Poorly assembled where the snap ring holds the piston in the cylinder. Lone star sent me another, paid for all the postage and it's been there ever since.
One note: DO NOT grease as you will blow the seals and the ram will leak.
Suggest you speak to Lone Star, get a quality OEM unit, and fix it right.

 

Manual steering? Parking and and associated low speed maneuvering takes a lot of muscle power. Even with the larger diameter steering wheel on a 68, it was difficult. My BIG problem was with manual, when I hit a parking curb, it would jerk the steering wheel in my hands and one of the spokes would hit the inside of my thumbs. Really painful. When parking it, I"d always take my thumbs off the steering wheel so they wouldn't get wacked. Really happy to switch to PS.

 

Parking curb? What's that? Sounds like something you'd find in a city.

What you drive is a choice as much as WHERE you drive. My 80 (manual steering) is exclusively for twisty mountain roads. My wife's 79 (Borgeson) did the fair-weather commute thing, but I'm quite certain she wasn't crashing into parking curbs. The overall point of my post was that both cars have had their stock power steering deleted, and both are much better for it. Throwing more money at the stock power steering system will just waste yet more money on poorly-made parts, and see more leaks in the future. There are better options.

Here's my 80 parked near the only curb it is likely to see anymore.