Farmall 706 steering leaks

I'm getting back to work on a very leaky Farmall 706.

I have a VERY serious leak in one of the tubes to the steering mechanism, at the union just behind the radiator. Tightening doesn't help, so I guess I'll have to replace that tube. The front end of the tube is under the radiator, at the bolster. In addition, even in warmer weather, the steering squeals and has to be primed by turning right. Added to that, I found small pieces of rubber? in one of the auxiliary hydraulic quick connects. My guess is that pieces came off of the ram seals on the front loader bucket and got in the system.

So, I'm thinking that I should inspect various pieces, and replace any o-rings, etc.
Here are the questions for now:

1. I have to remove the radiator to get at the front of the steering lines on top of the bolster. Can I remove the bolster without blocking up the front of the tractor? I have the manuals, but they seem to be for a narrow front wheel variation instead of the wide wheel type that I have. (It seems scary that one bolt in the front axle holds this whole thing up!!!)

2. When I get to the hydraulic pump and the MCV, do I have to drain the 15 or so gallons of hytran first?

The top photo is the steering bolster from the right side. The second picture is the steering bolster from the left; the steering hydraulic lines are at the top right, and the engine pulley is at the top left.


Thanks for any advice,
Jim

If it was me I'd block the front up just to be sure, since once you remove the bolster there is nothing else there to hold it up(can't rely on the stay bar yoke, being held by a ball under the frame).
That pivot pin(held in place with a bolt that don't have weight on) in the middle of the axel is heavier then most drawbar pins (that one pulls more(and shifting) weight with), so I trust it. By the way the axel walks side to side when you loose the pin, don't fall that far(thanks to the stay bar)(a BTDT thing).

To pull either(yes there are two) hydraulic pump you have to drain the oil. They sit near the bottom of the trans. case and are almost if not completely submerged in oil. The front pump(for steering, breaks, TA) you pull off with the MCV then remove it from there.

Hope this helps, if I am wrong someone will correct me.

Thanks for the info.

After I asked the question, I found a photo of that bolster on a different website (redpowermagazine). Holy smokes! That bolster is a big boy! The manual had a dotted line outline, but I didn't get anything more than that, and had no good feeling for its size. Looking from underneath, I can't hardly tell. From that photo, it appears that the whole front end of the tractor rests on that bolster and there is no way a guy can get it off without supporting the tractor elsewise, and with more equipment than a home garage tinkerer like me will ever have.

I've almost got the radiator off, and I hope (fingers crossed) that I'll be able to see the hydraulic lines and easily remove the offender. After that, I'll consider what to do about the possibility of rubber crap in the steering cylinder in the bolster, and how to clean it without getting myself into a place I can't get back out of.

To do the line replace i have never had to drop the ft. bolster out of the tractor and never removed the rad. , blocked up a bit but never taken all the way out . Now to replace the seal then ya have to remove the axle pivot bolster to drop the shaft out and this can be done by placing a hyd jack of say eight ton rating under the bell housing and raise it up just enough to drop the shaft having some blocking to keep the tractor from dropping if the jack fails is wise . The four 3/4 bolts that hold the ft axle to the bolster are TIGHT and you will need a really good long half inch drive breaker bar or a 3/4 drive set and a 1 1/8th socket .

Thanks Tractor Vet;
I had to study the parts list as I read your advice (I'm completely new at this) and I finally understand what you were telling me. I'm a bit concerned (terrified, actually) at dropping the front axle. 8 ton jacks are hard to come by; I have a Subaru...

I'm hoping I wouldn't have to disassemble the power steering piston stuff. Right now it doesn't leak. Does anyone know of a way to "flush" the piston cylinders without disassembling them, to ensure that there are no rubber particles in there? Unless I can get a heavy duty jack, I may just have to hope and pray that there's nothing in there.

Here's a thought: I've already drained and removed the radiator. Will it be OK to run the engine for about 10 or 15 seconds? If I run the engine without touching the steering, will the steering lines (which are the leaky thing right now) be pressurized? If the engine is OK and the lines aren't pressurized, I can use the front bucket (which I can't remove because I can't run the engine that long) to raise the front of the tractor and put logs underneath to allow the pinion to drop.

Thinking like that can get me hurt...

Just checking on your progress. I'm getting lots of fluid dripping from the bolster on a 706 I just purchased. I'm getting ready to tear into mine and just looking for any lessons learned or part numbers you used. Thanks!

After reading the responses and advice, I have a plan.
No, I'm not going to pull the bolster!!!
I removed the radiator, which was OK because it was rather full of crud and needed a good flushing. That task took several hours. In my case the muffler was welded to the exhaust riser, and all the sheet metal had to be removed anyway. Once I got the radiator out, I hosed out all the accumulated crud underneath it (on top of the bolster) and could see the hydraulic connections. I thought it might be easier to work on them if I removed the radiator screen (two bolts). Yeah, right there, so easy to get to, was the connection I needed.
At this point, I am only repairing the hydraulic line. I don't think the bolster is leaking, so I won't touch it. I have lots of other things to work on instead!!
Hope that helps a bit. Let us know what you do.
Jim

I thought I'd come back and let folks know how things came out.

The hydraulic line leak was fixed more easily than I thought. I eventually found the break right near the flare, so I cut it and reflared and all is well. The line has been brazed several times but is good for now.

I replaced the hydraulic filter as a matter of course, since I was doing the engine filter anyway. I had no hope that it would fix the steering squeal and sometimes failure, since everything else worked and I had understood that the MCV would keep steering pressure until last. WRONG! JOYFULLY WRONG!!!
After filter replacement, the steering is just fine.

Thanks to everyone for suggestions and advice. Especially for data I found about bleeding the MCV, which I would not have had a clue about.

Now, on to the leaking auxiliary valves...