Swapping a Borgeson steering box in a 1970 Charger

[Kern Dog]

Fairly simple....You pull the coupler away from the column. The shoes are held in with a steel pin. The pin can be pressed out or just reused if it is okay.

 

[JR_Charger]

Does the pin need to be popped out from the outside, like the one on the steering box end? I didn't see a second one.

 

[Kern Dog]

I'm a little fuzzy on it but I think that there is a tiny roll pin that has to be punched out to get the coupler off of the shaft.

 

[Wietse]

Bergman steering coupler

Do you mean the OEM style coupler Bergman offers, or the universal joint type?
Actually, there should be next to no "free play" in even a used OEM coupler.

 

[Kern Dog]

This is the hybrid coupler that Peter Bergman sells.

The splined end matches the Borgeson box, the far end fits on the stock steering column and uses stock coupler internals.

 

[JR_Charger]

I'm a little fuzzy on it but I think that there is a tiny roll pin that has to be punched out to get the coupler off of the shaft.

Will look for it again - but it would be great if someone had a pic of where it is.

 

[JR_Charger]

This looks like a pin up at the top of the factory coupler, but -

-the pin is only on one side? How is the pin removed?

 

[ckessel]

The pin to the left is the one you need to knock out to pull the coupler off of the steering box. The little one on the right may be for something inside the coupler.

 

[JR_Charger]

Looking at the FSM, it appears the coupler is removed from the steering shaft by bending up the tabs on the end plate, pulling the plate and the seal under it back, and then pulling the coupler off the shaft. The little dowel pin is then knocked out and discarded.

Will give it a try shortly!

 

[1 Wild R/T]

If your careful you can pry the cap off without unbending the tabs... Then you'll have access to the small pin, I typically use a pair of channellocks, one jaw inside the coupler presses on the end of the pin... The second jaw outside the coupler rests on the edge of the coupler body not over the pin... A light squeeze will push the small roll pin out.. Then the shoes & spring slide out....

When putting it back together I generally reuse the original metal cover with the tabs still bent, carefully pry them back into position & they'll hold fine... Using the new cover getting the tabs to grab causes allot of folks major grief...

 

[JR_Charger]

Too late, I unbent the tabs - about half of them, then the cover came off.

Is this rubber boot necessary? My 72 did not have one -

 

[1 Wild R/T]

Necessary? No... A good thing to keep? Yes...

 

[JR_Charger]

O.K. It doesn't seem like it would do much. It must fit tighter than it looks like in the picture.

 

[1 Wild R/T]

What your gonna find is getting the new metal retainer to attach securely isn't as easy as one would think... So having that boot on the coupler will help keep the retainer in place and keep grease in & dirt out..

 

[Kern Dog]

That boot replaces the metal retainer and rubber cover. It slides down over the coupler to keep grease in and contaminants out.
Steer and Gear sells them.

 

[Mackman]

The older or original cover tabs seem to be a little longer than the new replacement ones. I have had better luck re-using the old covers. Not abusing them during removal is key.

 

[JR_Charger]

The rubber boot is out of stock at Bergman. Is there another source for it?

 

[JR_Charger]

I tried the Bergman coupler on the Borgeson input shaft - it slid on real easy, and has a touch of play in it.

The factory coupler didn't want to go on at all. Maybe I could hammer it on, but all I wanted to do tonight was center the steering box; so I didn't spend a lot of time fiddling with the factory coupler.

 

[Kern Dog]

The rubber boot is out of stock at Bergman. Is there another source for it?

The neoprene boot that I have came from "Steer and Gear", not BAC.

 

[JR_Charger]

Thanks, any thoughts on the Bergman coupler being a touch loose?