Steering Column Bearing

[ZanettiZA]

Hi, will clean it up and see if I can replace those missing balls. My concern is that it feels loose. When I compare this bearing to, say the water pump bearing, it feels loose like there is too much up and down movement (not along the shaft as in in/out movement), it's not firm/tight like the pump bearing, not sure if I can compare the two in this way. Does this sound correct, how should this particular bearing feel?

[lancialulu]

To refit spring and still have some fingers left I used a big vice to compress the spring shut and tie wrapped it with 4 tiewraps (any more and it wont fit back on the shaft) and slide back bolt up and cut wraps.

Tim

What I want to know is the tip to get the rubber boot back over the bulk head and sterring box when you bolt the lower uj onto the box.

[Huib]

The waterpump bearing is a single row deep groove ball bearing which works radially as well as axially. You don't feel any play in any direction.

On the drawing and pictures posted in this thread the bearings on the steering shaft look like angular contact ball bearings which work radially of course but axially only in one direction. When using two of them facing in opposing directions the axial play of the shaft as a whole should be nil. The springs have to push the inner races and balls into the outer races for that to work.

[ZanettiZA]

Huib, I assume by axially you mean as in an X Y axis? If so, this is exactly the problem that I have, there is axial movement... are you saying that the springs, both upper and lower, should prevent this from happening?

[ncundy]

I'm a bit confused as to what you believe your problem is?

With the column installed on the car, the bearings play no part in the longitudinal location of the shaft: that is fixed by the hookes joint onto the steering box (which locates the bottom) and the top of the steering column tube through which the column protubes and the wheel bots up against. That fixes the longitudinal position of the column. If when installed you have longitudinal play it is because probably the bottom joint is loose.

If you have axial play (when everything is installed properly) then it is the bearing. But as Huib says these only designed to act axially and they have a large degree of "free movement" to allow them to self align. They also only become firm when they have a force applied to the back of the bearing (on the plastic ring), hence you can only tell if they have play when they are properly installed (i.e. with the springs loaded behind them to apply a compressive force to the back of the bearing). You cannot check them for axial play once you have unloaded the springs (for instance if you have released the bottom splined connection with the steering box) as they are now free and will move all over the place.

I would suggest two things:

With the steering column fully and correctly installed is there any axial play?

If yes then you probably need to replace the bearings (but is is worth checking the springs are still stiff).
If no then they are OK.

Does the steering feel tight or rough when you turn the wheel?

If yes then the bearings probably need new grease in the bearins

[Bart Verbeek]

quote "I can move the column up, down, left and right in a circular motion if that makes sense"
don't you have radial play then?

And have you checked crosses(see pic) on your steering column?

Bart

[ZanettiZA]

Thanks ncundy, there is play when everything is installed but my thought is also as you mentioned that perhaps the top spring is weak, since there is axial play. Will investigate this further after replacing the balls that are missing.

[ncundy]

It's difficult when we can't feel and see it in our hands !!!!

If it helps I've done a drawing of the bearing. The thing to note is that there is a slight taper on the outer walls of the race that means when it is unloaded if you try to check the axial play all that happens is that the balls try to climb the taper which gives the appearance of a slack bearing. Unfortunately I think the only way to check is to re-install and check again now you know what the system looks like and how it should work.

Best of luck and fingers crossed it is the spring.

Neil

[Huib]

Neil did a good job with the drawing.

I am at home now. No S2 steering columns around. I'll have a look tomorrow.

I was replying from general knowledge of mechanical engineering and by looking at above pictures. If I would have to design an S2 steering column I would use a carrier in which a shaft turns on springloaded self aligning bearings to allow for things like thermal expansion, manufacturing tolerances etc.

Because of the two cardanic joints the axial positioning and play of the steering column should be taken care of by those bearings. The S1 has a one piece shaft. Here the axial positioning is done with the piece the slides onto the steering box.

Bart uploaded a picture of one of those joints. Most problems I find on customers cars are with those joints. The pins come out. Utterly dangerous. I don't understand how Lancia managed to build something where this can happen.

[ZanettiZA]

Thanks Neil, that drawing explains exactly what I saw when I dismantled everything!

The whole column/shaft etc.. had been messed around with, the item No. 23 on the picture I originally attached was somewhere lower down on the shaft and seems to have been attacked by pliers, not sure why, but I had a second column, complete although not in as good condition, which I used to "rebuild" the current column. Removed and dismantled the bearings, cleaned and repacked them and reassembled everything. Also item No. 1 in the picture was missing on the lower end.

The end result is that everything is working better than ever yet I am not completely sure what the problem was, the spring is fine, I can only think is was the bearing housing since after replacing them with the spares that I had the shaft immediately felt firmer, substantially less axial play, even without the springs mounted!

Thanks for all the help and advice!