Testing a steering box
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Happystamps
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I do it this way:
get yourself a length of wood the same length as the radius of the steering wheel. About 9" from memory.
Clamp the steering box in a vice , and clamp the length of wood to the input shaft flange- so the movement at the end of the wood is representative of the movement on the steering wheel rim. This arc should be horizontal.
Now, you'll need a DTI and holder. You can get a cheap one for about £20, and it's good enough to measure end float too.
Pop your output shaft on the steering box, nut it up so it doesn't wobble. pop your DTI on the output shaft, in line with the hole for the drag link (so it's representative of the movement the drag link will see)
Centre your steering box. turn the input shaft all the way left, then counting the turns, all the way right. Divide that by two to find the centre- I think it's something like 2.75 rotations from either end but don't quote me.
Pile up some books or what have you underneath your piece of wood at the end and pop a piece of paper on it... stick it down so it doesn't move.
Now, let's take stock of what we've got.the steering box is held securely, and you can measure the movement of the steering wheel using your piece of paper and a pen. Oh, get a pen.
You can also see how the output shaft moves by looking at the needle on your DTI.
So, wiggle your stick. move it in one direction until your DTI needle moves. As soon as it does, stop and mark the location of the stick on the piece of paper.
Then from that position, move it in the other direction, until the DTI moves again (it'll go in the other direction). Stop, mark it on a piece of paper.
Measure the distance between those two points, that's your play. Bear in mind that on vehicles with a steering box, you're allowed 70mm of total play at the wheel (13mm on cars with a steering rack). Best to keep it under 50 to account for an argument with your tester, since it's difficult to measure on the vehicle. And, of course, there may be play elsewhere in your steering linkages- though there shouldn't be.
You can adjust the box via the nut and grub screw on the top. Be very, very gentle and keep moving the steering back and forth over the middle point (tightest spot). If you feel any tightness, STOP! and back it off a bit.
get yourself a length of wood the same length as the radius of the steering wheel. About 9" from memory.
Clamp the steering box in a vice , and clamp the length of wood to the input shaft flange- so the movement at the end of the wood is representative of the movement on the steering wheel rim. This arc should be horizontal.
Now, you'll need a DTI and holder. You can get a cheap one for about £20, and it's good enough to measure end float too.
Pop your output shaft on the steering box, nut it up so it doesn't wobble. pop your DTI on the output shaft, in line with the hole for the drag link (so it's representative of the movement the drag link will see)
Centre your steering box. turn the input shaft all the way left, then counting the turns, all the way right. Divide that by two to find the centre- I think it's something like 2.75 rotations from either end but don't quote me.
Pile up some books or what have you underneath your piece of wood at the end and pop a piece of paper on it... stick it down so it doesn't move.
Now, let's take stock of what we've got.the steering box is held securely, and you can measure the movement of the steering wheel using your piece of paper and a pen. Oh, get a pen.
You can also see how the output shaft moves by looking at the needle on your DTI.
So, wiggle your stick. move it in one direction until your DTI needle moves. As soon as it does, stop and mark the location of the stick on the piece of paper.
Then from that position, move it in the other direction, until the DTI moves again (it'll go in the other direction). Stop, mark it on a piece of paper.
Measure the distance between those two points, that's your play. Bear in mind that on vehicles with a steering box, you're allowed 70mm of total play at the wheel (13mm on cars with a steering rack). Best to keep it under 50 to account for an argument with your tester, since it's difficult to measure on the vehicle. And, of course, there may be play elsewhere in your steering linkages- though there shouldn't be.
You can adjust the box via the nut and grub screw on the top. Be very, very gentle and keep moving the steering back and forth over the middle point (tightest spot). If you feel any tightness, STOP! and back it off a bit.
