47 Steering suddenly stiff

[Old Henry]

The steering on my 47 just suddenly got stiff and noticeably harder to turn. It won't even spin back straight after a turn. I have to force it back straight. Just greased everything and didn't help. Box has always been full of oil and still is.

Any other ideas other than rebuild or replace the steering gear?

[charles in east texas]

Try dropping the tie rod and moving each wheel independently. Then turn the steering wheel. This will narrow down the problem. Good luck, Charles

[deuce5wndw]

I would make sure one of the kingpins hasn't frozen first. Make sure they are both taking grease. Then it would narrow it down to the steering box as Charles said.

[Mart]

Jack it up and turn the steering, check each spindle for free play. You should be able to determine what has gone tight. It's important that it does get investigated because continuing to drive it may lead to a proper failure.

Mart.

[B-O-B]

Not trying to be a smartazz but have you checked the tire pressure?

[ford38v8]

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Henry, forget all that other high falootin' advice. You have a flat tire.

[Lawson Cox]

When you find out what made "it" stiff. Let me know. LOL

[peewee2you]

Henry, what's going on, been trustworthy for quite sometime and after the accident, then engine trouble, hasn't sounded good... I'm hopin you get things in order, I look forward to your trips and outings. I believe one of your recent woe's was the brakes, perhaps something done there is causing your steering troubles? or just coincidence that the steering itself is a seperate issue now. Anyway, will be thinking positive for you moving into the New Year.

[Steves46]

Craig, I don't have anything to offer that hasn't already been recommended but only to offer my best wishes that it will be something relatively painless and simple to repair. I too look forward to reading and seeing the many great photographs from your road trips. Steve

[Marv]

Henry does a 47 Ford have a steering colum bearing like a 39 Ford?

[don-wi]

Run over something while driving down the road that is stuck in the tie rods? A piece of cardboard or something stuck could bind things up....

[Kube]

My .02¢? I think the most likely culprit is a spindle pin that is beginning to seize as has been suggested previously.
Steering gears usually don't freeze up unless they have been run dry. Normally they become too loose.
I'd suggest you place the car up on jack stands and drop the tie rod. Check each wheel. You'll know quick enough.
Just a tip: it is crucial to grease the spindle bushings with the weight of the car OFF of them.

[Jay in Mass]

Originally Posted by Kube

My .02¢? h.
Just a tip: it is crucial to grease the spindle bushings with the weight of the car OFF of them.

Thanks Mike
That's some good advice.

[Old Henry]

Problem solved. Nothing that a quick 500 mile road trip couldn't cure.

Since the steering was getting stiff I took the car into Jiffy Lube yesterday to get it lubed and made sure they lubed the 4 king pin fittings. I thought that might fix it as that seemed the most logical. It didn't so I started this thread to get ideas. Others thought the king pins were likely dry as well.

Right after my first post we took off for Moab, Utah to drive the Pot Ash Road to Shafer Trail up to Dead Horse Point. 200 miles to Moab. Thought maybe the grease would work into the king pins by then but no better. Did the 60 mile round trip to the bottom of Shafer Trail (it was closed for winter so couldn't go up it). Still stiff. Returned to Moab for lunch before heading home. When pulled into McDonald's parking lot to park the steering was as loose and smooth as before. So, took 260 miles to work that grease into whichever king pin was stuck. Now all is well.

I was a bit at fault for having skipped the last 1,000 mile maintenance when the king pins should have been lubed and possibly the previous couple of lubes at Jiffy Lube didn't get those fittings as well as they should. I know now how important greasing those king pins are. We're going to lift the front wheels off the ground and pump some more grease in while turning the wheels back and forth to really get it in there.

It was probably the right pin that was sticking as the left one has a bit of play in it (worn but not enough to be out of alignment).

[Lawson Cox]

Maybe some of the grease from the McDonald's product somehow got into the kingpins when you pulled into their territory. Maybe I'll give it a try with
Apatchy when the weather breaks. LOL

[Steves46]

I'm glad to hear you were able to resolve the problem.

[Kahuna]

While on the subject of lubrication, how often should all the grease fittings be done? Every 1000 miles?
Also, I think Kube is right about the weight being off the front end for service of the King pins. I never thought about that. Great tip!

[fordy_nine]

[We're going to lift the front wheels off the ground and pump some more grease in while turning the wheels back and forth to really get it in there.]

There's almost NO "room in there", just a small clearance - when the grease is hammered out from driving, water "wicks" its way into that small clearance and begins the corrosion process. This time of year, you might even get some dissolved road salt which helps the water to seep more easily into the bearing surfaces. The moral of this story is that, when grease leaves, something else will replace it. It's worse as the clearance increases with wear. Remember, these are machines from your grandfather's era and cannot be ignored when it comes to preventative maintenance. I like to grease them myself and do a "sloppy " job - that is, pump lots of grease thru the king pins to flush out old grease and other bad stuff. Also grease them before you put the car into winter storage. Remember grease is cheap and kingpins are a PITA to redo..........Bob L

[Old Henry]

Originally Posted by Kahuna

While on the subject of lubrication, how often should all the grease fittings be done? Every 1000 miles?
Also, I think Kube is right about the weight being off the front end for service of the King pins. I never thought about that. Great tip!

Here is a maintenance schedule I prepared for my '47 from all sources available, mostly the operators manual, that gives the frequency of all preventative maintenance. I have been religious about it for years until recently. I've just recommitted.

[ford38v8]

Old Henry, in the real world, half of that stuff on the 1000 mile list never gets done, the other half gets done at 2500 miles, where half of the 5000, mile stuff should be.
The rest is as needed, like your king pin problem!

For me, it's a matter of doing all of it once a year, the oil & filter definitely closer to 1000 than 5000, and I take my own grease gun with me when going cross country. All that stuff gets done halfway through every trip, and nobody touches my car but me.