Projects 59 F100 steering box

My new to my 59 F100 had a clunk in the steering box. When making a tight right turn it would lock in position and I had to arm strong it back past this spot. Tore the column out and this is what I found. Luckily for me I've only put a mile or two on it since I acquired it. Let the rebuild begin.

 

Yikes!

 

I’ve heard the worm is a bear to press off .
There keyed or hot pressed on , I do know you can’t put to much heat as It could soften the steel . I myself will be dealing with something like this soon .

 

The worm is an easy press and no heat is require. I use a 7/16"-1/4" drive, deep socket to press them off the shaft. They have a shallow, tapered key that engages a slot cut into the steering shaft. Only thing to watch out for is when pressing the worm onto the shaft. The shaft needs to be supported throughout it's length, or it will bend. There are a few ways to do this. I like to use a stack of 2x4's with a hole drilled through each one. Stack them up and secure them, then slide the shaft down into them and press on the worm. The boards will support the shaft from flexing. Another way is to slip a heavy washer or nut onto the shaft close to the worm, weld it on and use it as a support. The washer or nut can be left on the shaft as it won't interfere with anything.
Good luck!

 

No real problems for me. The only real booger was getting the race out for the upper bearing on the steering shaft. Everything else pressed/cut off easily. Feels a lot better all rebuilt and full of grease.

 

^ Nice! Easy peasy. Bet it feels like new now.
I forgot to mention the upper race. They can sometimes be near impossible to access with a drift. I fire up the welder and lay a bead on the tapered face, then they just fall out.
Glad you got it all fixed up.

 

I've never seen a worm gear that bad. Gotta wonder how they did that!

 

Dang I wish I would have thought about laying a bead. I've done that to other parts before. In this case I used my dremel to get up inside and cut a groove into the race and then smacked it with a punch.

 

I just pulled my f100 box apart and same thing . Looks like a rat chewed on the gears . Sector is mint.