Manual steering gear sludge

[flatiron44]

I'm a Newbie with a used and abused 69 Roadrunner we have owned for about 2 Months. After years of neglect I'm goin

g over things to make her healthy again. Long story short. I pulled the filler plug out of the steering box and this is what I found. It doesn't look right to me.
Any ideas how I can flush this box and replace with new fluid ?

 

[Nate S]

They tend to leak so people stuff the box with grease instead. Expect it'll leak if you clean it out and fill with gear oil. Oil is the proper lube but I believe people here will tell you the grease works ok for them.

 

[moes]

I found this on a website a while back when I was working on a friends Dart with manual steering.
Use a moly-based grease inside the steering box. It lubricates the mechanical actions of the box well, is thick enough to cling to parts without running off and settling to the bottom, and is soft enough to flow back and forth inside the box by the pumping action of the rack block and sector teeth. Heat from the exhaust manifold and engine will soften it on cold days and yet the grease stays thick enough not to liquify and seep out of the bottom seal. A good moly or lithium based chassis grease will work in this situation and is easy to find in tubes and install using a common cartridge-style grease gun..
Do not use a liquid lubricant (such as 90w axle fluid) in a steering box. Liquid lubricants will settle in the box and not lubricate the upper portions of the gears. It will also seep through the bearings and leak out the bottom seal. Do not use wheel bearing grease inside the box. Wheel bearing grease is too thick to coat and work properly. Wheel bearing grease is designed for the high heat environment of the brake system and does not soften with heat and will not flow through the box like a moly-based chassis lubricant will.

 

[dadsbee]

John Deere's "Corn head" grease is the closest thing to the original OE fill that they got... using oil is in the FSM for top up only after the fact.

That one looks pretty.. here's my OE that had never been touched in 48 years when I restored it..

 

[gkent]

The biggest problem with using grease is how to "fill" the box. I used a product called "Corn Head Grease" and its actually a "pourable" grease. The name, as it may imply, is derived from its use ... it is sold only by John Deere dealerships and is used in corn harvesters. Although it is "pourable", its does not separate as some greases do.using this stuff allows you to fully reassemble the steering box and then fill it through the filler hole.

edit ... I just read Dadsbee's post!

 

[dadsbee]

Copy cat... LOL

 

[retractable]

Use John Deere corn head grease. It won't leak and works excellent.

 

[dadsbee]

 

[Nate S]

I have the steering box apart on my Farmall Super A1, I’m liking the sound of the corn head grease for it. Thanks!