$&¥£#% Steering gear NUT stripped!

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Dfnsmn34

Dfnsmn34

Margarita Mike
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Need advise... (66 barracuda 273) Redid the complete engine bay, engine etc. New steering gear. Got 20 mile on the engine and working out the bugs. Discover that the single bolt of three on the fender side stripped and the gear is moving.
The welded nut in the K frame is stripped. I'm was so close...Very bummed... Brand new MC, brakes, headers, Etc.

Will a HELI COIL WORK? Must I remove the steering gear to put the helicoil in it?

Can I drill thru the frame and put a bolt that will reach a nut?

Sad sad sad.

Mahalo and aloha!
 
You might get luck and be able to put a nut behind it. We had to do it on dads challenger. might have to use a wrench to get it up there.


Curtis
 
Another alternative would be remove the steering box and buy a stud long enough to go through the box when mount and weld the stud in place. Then just use a lock washer and nut on it.
 
On the K frame the nut doesn't go all the way through. If I had to cut a hole it would have to be in the k frame lower. It has an angled portion on top that allows the welded nut to sit.
To get to that nut... I think you'ed have to cut the frame.... DAMN!!'

Thank you for all your ideas. Keep them coming!
 
get longer bolt if needed and put a nut on it....the threads are 1/2-20...been there and done it
 
Duct tape!!! Fml!!!

70aarcuda~ I thought of that.. But how in the hell do I get to the nut? The k frame would need to be cut and then re-welded I guess.
 
They make a cinch nut that works like a pop rivet You drill a hole where the threads used to be, put the cinch nut in, tighten the bolt up and you have threads . It works almost like those steel expanding ancor screws you put through drywall just much stronger .Kennedy uses that system to screw their tool boxes to each other. You can get them thru McMaster-Carr catalog. google it up online hope it helps Jim oops sorry they are called knurled rivet nuts
 
Not bad... Ideas. Really truly was hoping.. For a solution that required minimum tear apart.

Mahalo fabo friends!
 
I was just out looking at mine. That welded nut does not seem accessible as you say (from what I can tell).

You could just drill it and tap it for the next higher size provided the new bolt head still seats properly on the steering gear and bolt thread still clears the gearbox thru hole.

Alternately, I found this cool thread repair interesting but haven't used it. You'd have to remove the steering gearbox (likely) and drill but could maintain the same bolt size:

http://www.timesert.com/index.html

Check out the installation video, it looks like a quick fix.
 
Problems with those 3 bolts were common. If one loosened and wasn't repaired imediately all 3 would fail. If the holes in the steering gear were worn egg shaped the bolts never would stay tight again. Chrysler provided the majority of funding for the R&D that gave is Duponts' Locktite for this very reason. The locktite along with special bolts solved the problem.
I've heard that the service departments would support the engine and drop the K member to repair or replace it. In the worst cases the steering gear was replaced also.
Knowing this now doesn't help much but may help someone else.
Good luck with it.
 
Dfnsmn34 said:
Need advise... (66 barracuda 273) Redid the complete engine bay, engine etc. New steering gear. Got 20 mile on the engine and working out the bugs. Discover that the single bolt of three on the fender side stripped and the gear is moving.
The welded nut in the K frame is stripped. I'm was so close...Very bummed... Brand new MC, brakes, headers, Etc.

Will a HELI COIL WORK? Must I remove the steering gear to put the helicoil in it?

Can I drill thru the frame and put a bolt that will reach a nut?

Sad sad sad.

Mahalo and aloha!
Click to expand...

I feel your pain! :banghead: I went through virtually the same problem. My steer box went south and then i found that the enclosed welded nut had broke.

Basically what i ended up having to do was dissasemble the entire front suspension, lift the motor, yank the k-frame, Use a crow bar and big impact gun to zip off that nut. Then cut open the enclosed piece, weld on a new nut, weld the top piece back on. Then reinstall.
 
Use a metric bolt one size larger, get the right tap and retap the nut to the larger metric bolt. It should work like a champ!
 
Drop the whole k frame.... NOOOOOOOOO

I just got it all in. Just this saturday i had the last peice put on the Exhaust. Now im dead in the water....k-frame drop??? That's got to be a last resort. But I understand where you are coming from. It appear the other two bolts are ok. As far as loctite... I never used it. Live and learn. Crap this is painful.
:violent1::violent1::violent1:

Got to see if I'll be able to tap it.

Aloha and mahalo
 
Dfnsmn34 said:
Drop the whole k frame.... NOOOOOOOOO

I just got it all in. Just this saturday i had the last peice put on the Exhaust. Now im dead in the water....k-frame drop??? That's got to be a last resort. But I understand where you are coming from. It appear the other two bolts are ok. As far as loctite... I never used it. Live and learn. Crap this is painful.
:violent1::violent1::violent1:

Got to see if I'll be able to tap it.

Aloha and mahalo
Click to expand...

If you can get the old box off, you probably wont have to drop it. In my case i couldnt get the box off so i could not access the broken nut. And believe me i know your exact feeling, my issue came literally two weeks after i rebuilt the suspension. :banghead:

The problem with that enclosed nut is that mopar was too cheap/lazy to fully weld it. Mine was just tacked in 3 or 4 places.
 
Mahalo all. I'm hoping it will repair itself. I've had it up on jack stands in the garage for two days now...just to help along the Menehunes.

So far no luck...I think I may be able to get the gear out without the K frame drop. But I know I'll need to pull the starter, push up the motor mount, maybe loosen the tranny lines and for sure the headers. #1 exhaust tube comes out easily as its a Dougs. Maybe even the MC/brakes. :finga:

But what a kick in the pants.

Thing is once I tear it all apart...I just really dont know if I can tap it or what. Such an evil spot to work. :banghead::banghead::banghead:
 
I liked the stud idea. pull the box screw in the stud and tack weld it in where the box hides it.
 
Call me crazy, but I would look for a metric bolt a smidge larger and wind er in.
 
So...after looking at the striped bolt...I called my a mechanic up...ran it by him and he said bring it down. Which actually works out cuz I was going to do it anyways to have a different set of eyes look over the car to giv me any ideas or suggestions on my first rebuild.

As it turns out good news...he was able to fix the steering gear with minimal effort. I guess he used a longer bolt and that helped. (Not sure why it was the correct bolt to begin with) regardless its FIXED!!! HE also fixed some little thing that I hadn't yet (Mounting the distribution block, brakes)


so I'm a happy camper right????

WRONG...on the way home the POWER STEERING pressure hose blew in two! sending oil all over the headers and a huge white cloud of smoke...I swear I thought the engine blew a head gasket. with only 65 mile on it...my @$$hole was tight!

discovered that the power steering pump was rebuilt wrong form the beginning!
got another pump! NO ASSIST...another bad pump....this weekend got another (Actually two) and installed the third...

Guess what? it frikin' WORKS!!!! Sweet three pumps later my cuda is done! (well are they ever done?)

aloha!!!!
 
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