Ford 850 Steering Box Repair Help

JB93

Member
Steering turns right but wheel just spins and walks up the shaft when turning left. From all I have read, this is indicative of top bearing failure.

I've seen very detailed instructions on how to rebuild completely and also have the manual.

I would like to know if there is an easy way to just replace the top bearing and race without having to pull the whole unit from the tractor. Can I just remove the top assembly? If I have missing rollers in the top bearing then I guess it gets more complicated?

Thanks!
 
Those steering boxes are SO easy to rebuild
that you may as well pull it off the tractor
and do it right.
What happened is the upper thrust bearing
failed for lack of oil. Then the ball bearings
fall out and drop into the bottom of the box
and can cause more problems if they get caught
in the sector gears.
The hardest part about the job is getting the
tin off - which you have to do anyway. Parts
are not expensive. And if you remove it from
the tractor you can all the 60 year old crud
out of the bottom.
Take the nut that holds the steering wheel off
now and start soaking the hub that fits on the
steering shaft with oenetrating oil for a
couple/few days.
 
(quoted from post at 13:13:37 03/15/18) Those steering boxes are SO easy to rebuild
that you may as well pull it off the tractor
and do it right.
What happened is the upper thrust bearing
failed for lack of oil. Then the ball bearings
fall out and drop into the bottom of the box
and can cause more problems if they get caught
in the sector gears.
The hardest part about the job is getting the
tin off - which you have to do anyway. Parts
are not expensive. And if you remove it from
the tractor you can all the 60 year old crud
out of the bottom.
Take the nut that holds the steering wheel off
now and start soaking the hub that fits on the
steering shaft with oenetrating oil for a
couple/few days.

Thanks Dog. Tin is loose. Wheel is off. I was just hoping for easier. The whole setting timing on the sector gears reads confusing and if a top bearing puts me back in action then I'd hit the Easy Button and be done with it.
 
Thanks for the input guys. Found a new Ford box for $375 and decided to go that route for now. Lowest regular price I saw otherwise was $600, so this seems a pretty good deal. I will fix the old one when time allows and sell to recoup some of my cost. I'm guessing fixed and repainted it would sell at $250-300?
 

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