Sector timing - reassembly of steering box

timsch

Member
I'm refurbishing a recently purchased late-model steering box for my 49 8N. I've pulled the steering arms and steering shaft/tube, but have not pulled the sectors.

I understand from reading related posts on this forum that sector timing is outlined in the FO-4 manual. I didn't see it in my manual, but mine is only 39 pages long, so I assume it is in the 150+ page version. I'm planning to order that version when I order replacement parts.

Am I safe in continuing the disassembly for cleaning/inspection, or should I do something before going further to mark sector orientation?

Thanks,
Tim
 
Go ahead and dissssemble it.
Take the caps off the sides and pull the
sector gears. Inspect everything and renew
your sector shaft bushings if needed and
install new seals.
Inspect and renew your upper bearing if
needed.
They are a Very simple mechanism and you
won't have a problem going through it.
The photo is from a manual for a much later
Ford (3000).
You may have more gear teeth on your sectors
than this one but the principle on timing
them is the same for all the smaller Fords -
late 8 Ns, NAAs, Hundreds, even the Thousand
Series till well into the 1980s.

.
a151169.jpg
 
The steering gearbox works by a shaft with a worm gear or screw to force ball bearings to move the block up and down . Since you have new bushings and seals , something equivalent to Valvolines Full synthetic gear oil in the ten dollar range would not easily leak out and reduce the stress to the mechanical parts and your arms as well . Grease that is not in liquid form is really a poor choice .
 
PS , your oil level early or late box needs to be above the top bearing . I don't know about the late boxes but the early boxes have a fill plug well below the top bearing . The 8ns have a small ball bearing collar at the very top of the shaft just below the steering wheel . There should be a felt dust seal that needs to be romove carefully and at least a few drops of oil given once a year or more . That is where I add my oil for the whole gear box , about halfway up the tube .
 
Thanks for the reply. I can see that overall the mechanism is pretty simple, so no problem there. It was just a question of getting the sector teeth aligned properly. IIRC, there have been some instances with people not getting the timing right and having to do some disassembly. I'd like to get it right the 1st time.

My FO-4 manual doesn't have anything on timing, but it is the short version. I'm going to get the expanded version when I order whatever parts I need, but I don't have it yet. Does that version give good instructions on getting the timing right, or should I make note of something at this point before fully disassembling it?

I was planning on using Cornhead grease in the box, as that seems to be a frequently recommended option on this forum.

Tim
 

You "time" all three sets of gear teeth so
they are in the middle of the mating part.
That's about all there is to it.
Your late 8N will look identical Inside to
the photo I posted.
Set the box on the tractor and hook up all
the linkage (loosely) when you get done.
You can easily see if it is steering farther
to one side than the other if you did it
wrong.
I bought a 641 once that the owner had broke
a sector shaft when he hit a stump.
He found a used shaft but didnt get it timed
right when he put it in.
The tractor took about 40 acres to turn
around. I bought the tractor cheap and fixed
it easily. Used it for a while then sold it
a few months later.
 
I was planning on using Cornhead grease in the box, as that seems to be a frequently recommended option on this forum.

Tim

Cornhead grease would work good and I don't know if anyone could tell any real difference between conventional vs synthetic vs cornhead . Cornhead grease may work better on the small bearing by the steering wheel just because it is a little thicker and would not drip down the tube as quickly .

I apply lots of antiseize on the steering wheel splines . One light tap with a small hammer and the steering wheel pops off . Once a year I change the motor oil and at that time I also remove the steering wheel and lube everything from the top ( and more antisieze ). I am getting too old to fight stuck parts .


My 3000 has the same type of steering shafts . If you over tighten the sectors it actually makes it harder to turn and could harm your upper and lower bearings . I installed the lead shaft and backed it off until I could feel slop between the teeth by moving the pitman arm . I tightened the adjuster screw slowly until I could no longer feel any free play then just a little more and locked it in place . Then installed the last sector and the same way of adjusting .
 
I've got the tube with steering shaft off of the base, but I've not been able to get the tube off of the shaft. It looks like it should slide over the top of the shaft. Mine won't budge. It turns freely, but hitting on the bottom side of the tube flange with a rubber mallet hasn't worked. I've got the spring out, but nothing below that. I sprayed it with PB Blaster, hoping that loosens things up. There is a bit of rust in the upper end - must have been open to the elements for a while before I got it....

Am I off track anywhere here?
 

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