Grease OK in steering box?

Recently the oil was low in the steering box of my '55 Ford 6 cyl. Custonlime 2 dr. Refilled it with oil. My mechanic, who works on old cars & whose done good work for me says next time fill the box with a good quality bearing grease. Any opinions on this? Thanks.

Cal

I used grease in a box before but only because it wouldn't hold oil anymore. Seemed to take some of the play out of it.

If gear oil was the originally recommended lubricant, then changing to grease can lead to problems. The grease can "channel", that is the wiping action of the gears will displace it and because of it's lack of flow properties those surfaces can remain naked of lubricant for some time.

I strongly recommend you DOo NOT put grease in a steering box. Grease channels--that is, the movement of the mechanism pushes the grease to the inside of the box casting, away from the parts that need to be lubed. Use 140-weight gear oil, or for operation in a cold climate, 90-weight.

If your steering box seals leak, try the 800/900 or even 1200 weight "semi-fluid grease" (actually very heavy oil) made by Penrite, available from Restoration Supply. For ease of pouring, it helps to heat this heavy semi-fluid lube in a pan of hot water on the stove.

Some 1920s cars had grease fittings instead of filler plugs on the steering boxes, which invited the use of chassis grease guns over the years, resulting in blown-out seals. Those cars' tool kits included hand-held pistol-grip lube guns which were to be loaded with 600-W gear oil (equivalent to about SAE 200 today). Those push-type guns and the 600-W were used on chassis fittings in lieu of grease as we know it today.

GM used to have a manual steering gear "grease", which came in a tube. It was for Corvettes. I suspect it was a heavier oil sort of product, with an additive package for the intended application.

Being that rear axle lube is an extreme pressure sort of oil, used in applications where "wiping" of the gears takes place, I think it'd be pretty decent in a steering gear box. Seems like what I remember the filling stations using for the steering gears, to top them off, back then, was an amber-colored oil from a hand pump. It could well have been the same stuff they used for rear axles, too--too young to ask those things, back then.

In order to decrease steering effort, I think I'd go with the 80W-90 viscosity.

Just some thoughts,

NTX5467

I think the service specs for the old Gemmer worm and roller boxes like on Ramblers and early Fords specify using chassis grease. Joe

Old fords used 600w oil in the steering box. A mixture of 50% STP and 90w Gear oil is close. I use that mix in my Model A and 50 Caddy. It's a bit thicker and the older seals hold the mixture in. It also flows around all the gears. I live in Arizona, so the air temp is rarely below 32.

I have used Penrite Steering lube for many years, its an extremely thick oil almost a semi fluid grease but it does flow so it will not channell. Penrite products are available from Restoration supply company and no doubt other suppliers.

Second DavidMc. Not inexpensive, but Penrite Steering lube is working well in my 36. It won't leak like oil or oil/grease mixes but lubricates much better than grease. But it wasn't easy getting into the tiny hole in the steering box.

If you are to use bearing grease in your steering box you need to disassemble

it and make sure none of your old oil is in the box. If the old oil is left in your

gear it will cause the grease to separate and the gear will not be properly

lubricated. Bearing grease has to be packed into the box just as it would be

packed into a bearing. You can't just fill it from the filler hole.<!--EndFragment-->

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So to answer your question yes it can be done but it has to be done right.

GM recomended the steering lube in a tube for all of their cars, not just the Corvette.

Actually most steering boxes would do best with a gear oil in the 320 cSt range, but often this will leak out of older cars due to seal or shaft wear. A thicker oil will make steering harder in the cold. Thinner will not protect. Most greases are 150 to 220 cSt oils. Too thin.

Grease is an oil in a sponge. It is the oil that lubricates and the sponge (thickener) is what holds it in place, or channels if there is too much (the higher the number, the more thickener (I have greases from "00" to "6" (6 is as hard as a bar of soap). A "00" or even "000" grease made with a 320 base oil and EP additives is ideal. there is just enough "sponge" to hold it in place, and the oil does the lubrication it needs, while it also still flows enough in the cold.

Lubriplate Mag 00 is a semi-fluid extreme pressure grease that is readily available directly from Lubriplate. It is recommended for steering gear use and is available in 1 quart bottles.

John Deere corn head grease is a self leveling grease. It works well and unlike chassis type grease it doesn't push away, it stays in contact and properly lubes the moving parts. It also doesn't leak by the worn bushings like a regular oil will. GM calls for a "self leveling grease" for steering components. It is available at all John Deere stores.

Don

Both are excellent examples

"Corn Head Grease"... a great name. Here is a video about this grease. Looks like it would work in early differentials, like in Maxwell.

Phil