Charger steering box

[68Charger]

So im pretty sure my steering box needs a rebuild, the car is pretty hard to keep in a straight line, i can move the steering wheel quite a way before any movement of the wheels, i know there is an adjusting nut on the box, is there a knack to the adjustment, any advice would be handy thanks, or can anyone recommend, a specialist rebuilder, thanks< Steve

[Matt74]

Have a look at Morgan's engine thread. I think he had his rebuilt. May be some useful information there.

[Dave999]

you have a stud and locknut visible from the top of the box

undo lock nut
back out stud

lift front wheels

put steering in centre

do up stud till you feel resistance on a short spanner or allen key

wind steering end to end
do up stud a little until you feel an extra stiffness in the middle

start car
wait for power assist to come up
wind steering lock to lock check you can't feel any stiffness in the middle. you are looking for a fine balance of just stiff enough in the middle but not MOT FAIL stiffness in the middle

lock the lock nut.

ideally this would be done with the box out of the car but to be honest if it needs adjustment like this you will know if you have been successful

if it has been run for a long time badly adjusted no adjustment at this point will make any difference. the teeth on the sector will have been chattering away at the corresponding teeth on the ballnut/valve all the time you are driving straight ahead. and they ware out.

there is no steering damper on a mopar other than the rubber flex at the idler and the stiffness in the middle of the steering box
any shimmy of the wheels will chatter the life out of the mesh point of the sector and the ballnut valve

a rebuild will help but depending on damage to ballnut/valve teeth and the sector you may still have some slop.

options

rebuild. new sector and ballnut are not generally available so rebuild by a company that can select fit/blueprint from good used parts is best firmfeel/steer n gear /borgeson
new borgeson box and fitting kit from bergman auto comes with coupler and pipe adapters
new manual box (+adapter) ebay/mancini racing
rebuilt manual box (+adapter) you/me/steer n gear/firmfeel

[68Charger]

Cheers Dave what a comprehensive reply, thanks ill try the adjustment first and see how that goes.

[morgan]

I’m doing that today too !
Mine is now working, but squeaks ( shaft) and wont self centre. Too tight... let ya know !

[morgan]

OK sportsfans - todays update. (these steering threads are getting a bit confusing - there are about 3 on the go)

Backed off the adjuster, nipped it on again and box is light as a feather. Too light actually, will now nip it up 1/4.
But in the last few days I have learned about centering valve and now teeth/lash adjustment.

Bottom line is that mine is now (whilst not adjusted quite right yet) well on its way.

Once I have it spot on for me and have ascertained that the leaks are gone (my core motivator) I'll post the name of the company that rebuilt it. I didnt think it fair to do so when I hadnt assessed the work.

Top help as ever MMA.

[Dave999]

that stud has a polished mushroom shaped head on the end you can't see

you put a hardened washer under the head of the mushroom that is a "select" fit for the end of the sector shaft
you slot the mushroom and washer into the end of the sector shaft
you wind on the top of the box far enough to bolt it down while the stud thread winds its way up through the cover

the stud pressing down dictates the lash between the teeth of the two main parts the teeth are opposite trapezium shaped teeth
the harder you push down the harder the teeth are driven in to each other like sticking a door wedge under a door
you want just beyond no lash in the middle of the box
the hardened washer of selectable size just means that the sector shaft can not jiggle up and down on the mushroom head
you never want the sector to rise up and down in the box as you go from lock to lock
1) it will wear the teeth quickly
2) it will raise and lower one end of the steering cross link as you go from lock to lock changing steering geometry of the drivers side wheel as you turn

so you do really need to get it just right

ideally you take box off car
empty it
put one of the AF 8 point sockets that you never use on the spline of the input shaft (one of them fits)
use an inch lb torque wrench to set a specific level of resistance through the middle of the box. and you end up with stiff enough in the middle to give you sore fingers if you try to turn the box through the middle just using your hand i.e its stiff

stick a massive steering wheel or a foot-n-a-half long torque wrench in the mix and it isn't stiff at that turning distance

you are more of less fine if you can just feel it at the edge of the wheel. and you can't then feel it when powered up and wheels on the ground.

firm feel do it a different way

they set the turning torque without the sector in the case based on bearing preload for the input shaft i.e they wind the end of the box facing the steering shaft in or out to achieve preload on those bearings first. not so easy on a power box with a rubbery seal. i'd leave well alone

Then they put the sector in and set the mesh and expect to see the turning torque increased by X amount across the middle of the box, if its low they adjust the sector lash a bit more
if its massively high in the wrong places they take it all apart and start again.

There was a nice magazine article about it all full of their top tips

Dave