<VV> Weird Steering Update (aka We need more jackstands)

[Tim Verthein]

Well, if you read yesterdays post(s) I'm experiencing a weird steering
thing.  Unfortunatly today and tomorrow my favorite, and only trusted
mechanic, who understands old cars, is gone.  I took this as an omen
that meant "Get your own butt under the car like you used to do and
check it out." So..since Ryans car is up on all four of our jackstands
I stopped and picked up a couple more.  Got the front of the '64 up
safely, and my wife standing by as assistant and 'spotter".  First
thing I determined was that everything in the steering seemd good and
tight..no play, no wobbles, etc. I also noticed the front shocks are
near new, and there's some sort of newly installed heavy duty looking
sway bar..heck..the bolts aren't even dirty yet, so that was nice to
see. After moving the wheels back and forth, and yanking and pulling on
everything to convince myself all was well, I noticed that the
passenger front tire caught on the added on plastic front air dam!  I
thought....."whoohooo this is gonna be simple" thinking that the tire
catching on this, followed by it's releasing "boing" when it cleared
was gonna be the problem. Ronna (my wife and pit crew chief in my Son's
absence) took our 60 year old giant tin snips and trimmed the air dam
to clear.  Then, I had her go turn the steering wheel back and forth
several times while I listened to the steering gear box.  Uh oh. 
There's definitly a very unhappy sound in there. Click, crunch boink.
Something is awry in there.  OK..so.. a close examination showed globs
of grease around where the shaft goes in, and a bit of seepage where
the arm connects at the bottom. the whole box was coated in thick black
grease gook.  So, I'm thinking first lets see if there's any lube in
this sucker.  OK, so how the HELL do you figure out if there's anything
in there? I was hoping there was an access thru the trunk, but I didn't
see one, and as long as I was under there..I took out the plug, and got
a trickle of watery brown oily goo.  Just a trickle.  So..I'm thinking
that's not a good sign. At the very least I need to put some gear lube
in there, but alas none here..and I don't feel like driving to town to
get some.  So..the Screaming Yellow Zonker shall sit on the stands for
the night.  But..there are QUESTIONS......

How the heck do you get lube into that little hole? Tube on the spout
of a bottle I imagine. Messy but what the heck.  I'm sure this will not
solve the problem..but I want to fill 'er up with something that looks
like a lubricant and see what happens.  Then..assuming I need to tend
to the steering gear box what are the options? Easy way out I imagine
is a rebuilt from a vendor...I don't think I want to rebuild one
myself..when it comes to life threatening parts I prefer the experts to
have assembled them. Or..perhaps a good used one from one of you out
there in VV land?  Is it possible I just need a good dose of decent
lube in there?  I don't think so..as it seems to be "extra smooth" in
the straight ahead position and about a 1/4 turn either way of the
steering wheel..or is this normal (with the wheels off the ground).  Is
replacement as easy as it looks?  Three bolts to the frame, pull the
arm, and the shaft from the steering wheel slides out?  Or is this a
secret pain in the butt waiting for my secret frustration?  The shaft
itself from the wheel, and into the gear box looks perfect..no damage,
etc near as I can see. 

Someone want to "steer" me in the right direction? 

But it was nice to get under the car and bond with the machine a bit. I
checked out the replaced electric fuel pump Ryan put on the weekend we
got the car back in April.  Nice job, and everything that has been done
under the carby the PO's has been done well and very nicely.  So that
was nice to see.  The gas tank even looked new.  It's black, and looks
perfect, as opposed to the rusty grey one from Ryans car that I tripped
over in the garage. 

So..for the first time since I picked it up in April, the trusty Monza
will sit out tomorrows drive to work, as it's on the stands for the
night. 

Tim in Bovey

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You *can* repair a flip-flop with a capacitor!
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