1956 play in steering wheel

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George Clayton

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Jun 12, 2021
Thunderbird Year
1956
1956 Steering Wheel Play is quite loose. Already tried the adjuster screw. Not much improvement. I have seen parts in catalogues to rebuild steering box. Would prefer to buy a new or rebuilt steering box. Does anyone have ideas on where I can get this work done or where i can buy a new box?
 
If you call the company, they will rebuild yours for under $500.
Or
If you call them, they may have a rebuilt one and charge you a core charge, but you’ll be able to drive your car until you get the box and swap it out. A little more expensive but quicker
 
Before removing the box, check all front end components to make sure the play is not somewhere else.
 
That’s a great suggestion.
Often the bushings, tie rods, or even who’ll bearings can be at fault.
It could also be an adjustment to the power steering valve., or a wheel balance or alignment issue. In fact, if a wheel is bent and “wobbles” that can also be at fault.
So by all means, that is the checklist.
 
George Clayton said:
1956 Steering Wheel Play is quite loose. Already tried the adjuster screw. Not much improvement. I have seen parts in catalogues to rebuild steering box. Would prefer to buy a new or rebuilt steering box. Does anyone have ideas on where I can get this work done or where i can buy a new box?
Click to expand...
I sent my 55 box to Redhead Steering Gears to be rebuilt. The cost, excluding shipping, was less than $300. Fast turnaround, and I am pleased with the results. If you ship yours, make sure it's insured for the core value.
 
Raise the car out at least front wheels on a lift or stable Jack stands with all due safety precautions.
With the front wheels off the ground and the engine running, look at the per steering valve and if the tie rods are oscillating, the adjustment screw needs to be tightened all the way in and then backed out for a quarter turn. Then lock it in place and replace the cover.
 
55blacktie said:
I sent my 55 box to Redhead Steering Gears to be rebuilt. The cost, excluding shipping, was less than $300. Fast turnaround, and I am pleased with the results. If you ship yours, make sure it's insured for the core value.
Click to expand...
Half the fun of owing a classic car is doing the work yourself.


doug7740
1955 Thunderbird Blue
 
When driving, the steering needs constant slight correction to stay in the lane.
Have replaced steering box, all tie rods, bushings, bits and parts like new, nothing loose.
Adjusted power steering valve, replaced shocks and springs, lowered front end 2” from stock.
Alignment specs maxed out due to lowering, at 0.5° caster, camber @ +.25°, toe in @ 1/8”.
Wheels balanced, radial tires.
New shocks and springs on rear @ stock height.
All shocks are bilstein gas.
Rear sway bar in place.
Question is, why does this still wander so much?
Requires constant course corrections.
Frame is straight.
 
Did you use shorter springs or drop spindles to lower the front end? Shorter springs will change the steering geometry; drop spindles won't.
 
Used shorter springs.
That's why the maximum caster I could achieve is only 0.5° without going negative on the toe in.
The range in the shop manual is from 0.5 to 1.5 degrees, and the desired specs are
Castor 1.5°
Camber 0.25°
Toe In 1/16”
I am only off by 1° in the caster which puts me toward the minimum recommended setting.
I don't believe that accounts for the degree of instability in holding the line.
Thanks
 
Reach in when the car is off, how much play is in the steering wheel?
 
If you are on west coast, try Straight Line Steering in San Jose. Lares does good work but they tend to be on the high end of the pay scale. I have had good luck with Straight Line and they are very reasonable.
 
radar said:
When driving, the steering needs constant slight correction to stay in the lane.
Have replaced steering box, all tie rods, bushings, bits and parts like new, nothing loose.
Adjusted power steering valve, replaced shocks and springs, lowered front end 2” from stock.
Alignment specs maxed out due to lowering, at 0.5° caster, camber @ +.25°, toe in @ 1/8”.
Wheels balanced, radial tires.
New shocks and springs on rear @ stock height.
All shocks are bilstein gas.
Rear sway bar in place.
Question is, why does this still wander so much?
Requires constant course corrections.
Frame is straight.
Click to expand...
Are you running with bias ply tires? Try switching to radial plys. It made a huge difference on my 64, it now drives like a modern car! No more wandering all over the road.
 
radar said:
When driving, the steering needs constant slight correction to stay in the lane.
Have replaced steering box, all tie rods, bushings, bits and parts like new, nothing loose.
Adjusted power steering valve, replaced shocks and springs, lowered front end 2” from stock.
Alignment specs maxed out due to lowering, at 0.5° caster, camber @ +.25°, toe in @ 1/8”.
Wheels balanced, radial tires.
New shocks and springs on rear @ stock height.
All shocks are bilstein gas.
Rear sway bar in place.
Question is, why does this still wander so much?
Requires constant course corrections.
Frame is straight.
Click to expand...
Looking at your alignment settings, it looks like the lower caster setting is the cause of your steering needing a constant slight correction to stay in the lane. Negative caster causes the wheels to follow the irregular surfaces of the road. Positive caster makes front wheels travel straight ahead. If you change the caster setting more towards the 1.5 degree specification, while keeping camber at 0.25° and toe at 1/16”, I’m sure that will correct your needing a constant slight correction to stay in the lane.

Caster is not a tire wearing angle; it does however affect handling and wheel pull. Caster aids in directional stability by helping the steering wheel return to a straight ahead position.

Caster is determined by the contact point of the tire and the imaginary centerline through the spindle support. For example; negative caster on a shopping cart causes the wheel to follow the irregular surfaces of the floor. On the other hand, positive caster, like on a bike, makes front wheel travel straight ahead.

Attached is an article I wrote that explains wheel alignment geometry and its effect on stability and tire wear.

doug7740
1955 Thunderbird BlueWheel Alignment Geometry.jpg
 
There are two other alignment angles that I didn't mention in the article that you might want to consider, those are Front Wheel Set-Back and Thrust Angle.
  • Front Wheel Set-Back is the distance fore and aft of one front wheel versus the other. If set-back occurs, one side of the vehicle will have a shorter wheel base than the other, causing the vehicle to pull in the direction of the shorter wheelbase. This is a non-adjustable angle and problems with set-back usually occur on vehicles that have been involved in an accident and not repaired properly.
  • Thrust Angle or Tracking is the position or direction of the two front wheels in relation to the to rear wheels. Improper Thrust Angle causes the rear wheels not to follow in the tracks of the front wheels. Poor tracking will increase tire wear, lower fuel economy and upset handling.
doug7740
1955 Thunderbird Blue
 
Don't overlook the obvious, either. When I bought my 56, once we really started to drive it, it had terrible steering. Put her up on blocks, and virtually every bolt in the running gear was loose...e.g., the bolts to the inside plates on the wheels/brakes were *very* loose, as in the wheel could be moved by hand independent of the steering gear, about 1/2". Most just "snug", some only hand tight. Tightened everything to specified torques, and steering is excellent now.

Same thing with all the body bolts. Some odd thumps and bumps...turns out most of the body-to-frame bolts were also not torqued properly. Fixed that problem.

We found a LOT of bolts and nuts that needed tightening :).
 
Thanks to all for your comments and suggestions.
The frame and running gear bolts are all properly torqued.
The tires are all radials.
The steering box was a rebuilt box with new bearings, seals, and whatnot. All set up to factory specs and it was then adjusted to tighten the play.
The power steering valve does oscillate a bit when the wheels are off the ground and the adjusting bolt was tightened to 1/4 turn loose from all the way tight.
The steering wheel when the engine is off and the wheels are on the ground does have about 4 minutes on the clock or in other words, about 24° of play in it.
I will see if the Alignment caster can be further adjusted based upon digging into the methods in the shop manual
I welcome all comments and suggestions.
Thanks
 
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