steering gear leaks

[trevorcwormald]

I have 1st gen 4x4 power steering gear leaking at top of unit, seems to be at lash adjustment screw so I put brass washer under lock nut. Its still leaking. Should I take top cover off and cut new gasket for it? Is there an internal leak? I replaced previous gear with this one because it leaked out bottom at pitman arm shaft. Time for another or can I fix it?

[mighty]

Did anything ever come of this issue, I am having the same problem on my 87 2wd Ram 50

[noahwins]

Rock Auto to the rescue. They have rebuild kits for sale.

[ragragtimetime]

had the same issue with the 83 4x4...did the rock auto rebuild...lasted a month (hopefully you will have better luck...price is reasonable to try). ended up swopping out with the 1986 parts truck (that I rebuilt with factory components in 1991) only to find the pitman arm splines are larger on the 1986 (but luckily had a good pitman arm...broke my pitman puller). Been about 4 months now...no leaks...very responsive & no steer "wandering"...life is smooth sailing once again.

[pennyman1]

these boxes have the tendancy to wear oval shape on the shafts, usually the one to the pitman arm. If that happens, new seals are just a stopgap until the casing gets new bushings and bearings to fix the slop. That is why rebuilt boxes cost so much - the bearings are custom made to fix the box, no factory ones are available.

[mighty]

Hmm since I don't drive her daily I think I am going to give the repair kit from rockauto a shot. Was the gear difficult to take out? I removed the driver side tire and lifted the truck breifly the other day just to get a better look, seems like it could be a pain to pull out.