5600 Power Steering leak.

Low Flyer · May 25, 2015

Folks,

I replaced the fuel tank in my diesel 5600. Part of that job required removing the two bolts that attach the throttle lever to the bottom of the steering column.

After completing the job I took the tractor back to the farm and starting bushhogging. After about an hour I noticed a power steering leak from the column. I topped off the reservoir and after about 30 minutes it started spraying hot fluid on my right leg.

The leak is coming from the the gasket on the right side of the column. It's coming from under the gasket right under the upper bolt of the throttle mount. I hope I'm making sense. I didnt' start the engine until the bolts were reinstalled, and I tightened them pretty tight too. I don't understand why it's leaking.

Should I have put some RTV on the bolt? Or do I need to replace the gasket? And is it as straight forward as it appears, or am I going to open up a can of worms when I remove that side plate from the column to repace the gasket?

I just find it very odd that simply removing 2 bolts of 9 or 10 and reinstalling them would cause the gasket to start leaking.

Thanks for all the help.

Gil

Harry in Ky · May 26, 2015

It may indeed seem strange, but in my view it's not. I've replaced a few of those gaskets. Many were probably original. They were all
hard, brittle, and cracked in multiple places by the time the cover was removed, and many of said cracks didn't look all that fresh.
The area behind the cover is under steering system pressure while turning in one direction, so the gasket is holding more than just
case/return pressure. By removing two bolts side by side you could have easily given the old gasket an opportunity to develop a
problem. It's not a big deal to replace the gasket, just be advised that NH wants more for one of the four banjo washers than for the
gasket, so if the seal washers are still serviceable, I'd reuse them.

Low Flyer · May 26, 2015

Thanks for the advice Harry. I guess I'll try to get that gasket replaced one day this week.

Gil

Low Flyer · May 26, 2015

I decided to fix it today, so I went to my local Ford/NH dealer, got the gasket, and in 10-15 minutes it was in. It wasn't a bad job at all. I bushhogged for a couple of hours and all seems fine.

Thanks again Harry,
Gil

Dave In Chattaroy · Jul 1, 2015

(quoted from post at 17:51:23 05/26/15)
I decided to fix it today, so I went to my local Ford/NH dealer, got the gasket, and in 10-15 minutes it was in. It wasn't a bad job at all. I bushhogged for a couple of hours and all seems fine.

Thanks again Harry,
Gil

Just as a side note, I was loosing those same gaskets for a while (2 or 3) and it was related to using the ford recommended hydraulic fluid.....someone on here suggested switching to regular power steering fluid which is less viscous and that took care of the issue.....I haven't replaced one since......for what it's worth.
DR

5600 Power Steering leak.

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Harry in Ky

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Dave In Chattaroy

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