1969 Case 220 steering problem

[sportsman57]

Hi- I had a problem with the wiring but now that I have that problem solved I have another issue. Last winter when I pushed snow with a 48 inch blade, the wheels would turn left under the weight of pushing heavy snow. I could hold the wheel steady but when I was pushing snow the wheels would turn left on their own, independent of the steering wheel. Could it be the ball joints or the steering gear? Is there a way to trouble shoot the steering system without replacing parts to find the problem?

 

[hydriv]

If you read that manual I sent you, there should be a page in it that describes how to adjust the free play between the quadrant gear and the pinion gear. The pinion gear is the round gear welded to the steering shaft. The quadrant gear is a 1/4 circle and it pivots on a pin. There are shims involved with that gear and shaft. The gear is on an angle. By removing a shim or two from the TOP of the gear and then placing them on the BOTTOM of the gear, you are raising the gear higher on the pivot shaft and that moves the quadrant gear closer to the pinion gear, thus making it impossible for them to skip.

Of course, all of this is based upon the teeth of both gears being in decent shape.....not broken or worn out. The quadrant gear rides only on the lower half of the pinion gear. If the pinion gear is bad in the lower half, then grind off the weld on the bottom and turn the gear upside down. Weld it once again. That will solve any problem with that gear. Sad to say but Eastman has jacked the price of the quadrant gear to an outrageous $118.50.

STEERING AND AXLES It is part number C47514

Decent used gears do show up on e-Bay. If you go that route, make sure the gear you are buying is the cast iron one, NOT the stamped steel one. That one was junk from day one and Ingersoll discontinued it.

When adjusting the quadrant gear, you must put the front wheels in the air so as to allow you to easily rotate the steering wheel from full lock to full lock. There should be no binding in the gears during this travel or you will damage the gears. It is better to have a small bit of free play than to have any binding taking place.