Chevrolet 1973 Overhaul Manual page 429

9 -4 STEERING
Fig. 9-Rem oving Adjuster Plug Bearing Race
HOUSING RACES
Using a drift or punch (inserted
1. Corvette only--
into the housing from the adjuster plug end) drive
the sheet metal expansion plug out of the lower end
of the housing.
2. All Series - Using a drift or punch, drive the
bearing race out of the housing.
3. Press the new bearing race into position using Tool
J-5755 (fig. 10).
4. Install a new expansion plug into
Corvette only--
the lower end of the housing. Press on the center of
the plug to deform it inward and secure it in the
housing. Make sure the plug is tight or lubricant
leakage could result.
Ball N u t Servicing
As a rule, disassembly of the ball bearing nut will not be
necessary if it is perfectly free with no indication of
binding or tightness when rotated on the worm.
However, if there is any indication of binding or
W O R M
BEARING RACE
Fig. 1 0 -ln s ta llin g W orm shaft Bearing Race-Typical
tightness, the unit should be disassembled, cleaned and
inspected as follows:
1. Remove screws and clamp retaining the ball guides
in nut. Draw guides out of nut.
2. Turn the nut upside down and rotate the wormshaft
back and forth until all the balls have dropped out
of the nut into a clean pan. With the balls removed,
the nut can be pulled endwise off the worm.
3. Wash all parts in cleaning solvent and dry them
thoroughly with air. Using a magnifying glass
inspect the worm and nut grooves and the surface
of all balls for signs of indentation. Check ball
guides for damage at ends where they deflect or
pick up the balls from the helical path. Any parts
that show signs of damage should be replaced.
4.
All Except Corvette (fig. 11):
a. Place the wormshaft flat on the bench and slip
the nut over the worm with the ball guide holes
up and the shallow end of the ball nut teeth to
the left from the steering wheel position. Align
the grooves in the worm and nut by sighting
through the ball guide holes.
b. Place two ball guide halves together and insert
them into the upper circuit in the ball nut. Place
the remaining two guides together and insert
them in the lower circuit.
c. Count 24 balls into a suitable container. This is
the proper number of balls for one circuit.
d. Load the balls into one of the guide holes while
turning the wormshaft gradually away from that
hole. When all of the balls have been installed,
the circuit is complete.
e. Fill the remaining ball circuit in the same
manner as described for the first circuit in Steps
c and d above.
5.
Corvette only (figs. 12 and 13):
Fig. 11 -F illin g Ball C ircu its-E xce pt Corvette
OVERHAUL MANUAL