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Power steering bleeding help needed

Lazboytt

Member
178
7
18
Location
Michigan
Hello I had my steering gear box off for a few days and replaced with a new one. I turned the wheel left and right 100 times but I still seem to have an air in line issue as steering is hard unless you hold the brake down for a while then steering gets easier. I searched all over and can’t seem to find a good step by step for bleeding the power steering and booster.

Any help is appreciated.


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NormB

Well-known member
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Location
Cloverly,MD
I did mine last time over a few days’ time. I had the cooling stack off, replaced PS aux cooler hoses, PS pump (it made noises, winch wasn’t working really well), high-pressure line to gearbox, followed directions to the letter, ran the engine, let it cool off, and started over, and whattayaknow, MORE air came bubbling up.

I found sitting in the truck for the time it takes to go lock to lock 40 times with 5 second holdovers doesn’t have to be done all at once, or even on the same day, so I didn’t.

MUCH easier to do sets of five, or ten, make a phone call, cup of coffee, walk the dog, take a leak, mow the lawn, doing a few more cycles each time.

Less stressful and hey, it works.
 

TOBASH

Father, Surgeon, Cantankerous Grouch
Steel Soldiers Supporter
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Location
Brooklyn, NY
I did mine last time over a few days’ time. I had the cooling stack off, replaced PS aux cooler hoses, PS pump (it made noises, winch wasn’t working really well), high-pressure line to gearbox, followed directions to the letter, ran the engine, let it cool off, and started over, and whattayaknow, MORE air came bubbling up.

I found sitting in the truck for the time it takes to go lock to lock 40 times with 5 second holdovers doesn’t have to be done all at once, or even on the same day, so I didn’t.

MUCH easier to do sets of five, or ten, make a phone call, cup of coffee, walk the dog, take a leak, mow the lawn, doing a few more cycles each time.

Less stressful and hey, it works.
Agreed. Furthermore, bleeding lock to lock a few times then letting sit overnight cured all my power steering jerkiness when it ran dry and needed a refill.
 

Wire Fox

Well-known member
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158
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Location
Indianapolis, Indiana
Yep. Followed to the letter on mine and it was great in the garage. First time I actually drove it, it dislodged some more air bubbles and I ended up needing to do it again. I think the "letting it sit a few times" advice is pretty solid, as it gives air more chance to escape instead of doing it in quick succession.
 

Lazboytt

Member
178
7
18
Location
Michigan
What I did last night was I disconnected the high-pressure line from the power steering pump and I was able to hold my finger on the high-pressure line so I am assuming that my power steering pump must have went bad even though it was working before I replaced the gearbox.


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Milcommoguy

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Supporting Vendor
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Location
Rosamond, CA
That's a good way to give your finger a good shot of ATF.... if you could keep your finger on that tight. 1300 PSI plus point.

Use a gauge, CAMO
 

NormB

Well-known member
1,221
77
48
Location
Cloverly,MD
That's a good way to give your finger a good shot of ATF.... if you could keep your finger on that tight. 1300 PSI plus point.
Use a gauge, CAMO
I was a med student doing an anesthesia rotation back in 1989 when a patient came into the OR for debridement of a wound gotten from a high-pressure ink-feeding line from some Pennysaver-type printing press.

Just a small set of wounds on the hand, but a LOT of dark stuff under his skin.

Surgeons started opening things up and washing/rinsing, and everything got black, sheets, their gowns/gloves, there was black ink on the floor, buckets full of towels stained black were set aside and kept coming and worse, no matter how much they tried lavaging the wounds, the tissues were black and stayed black. There was blood flow aplenty, but the tissues wound't "blanch".

The anesthesiologist I was working with spoke up at this point and said "hey, guys. Remember microbiology? We use staining to fix and kill cells, right?"

At this point, there was a small confab with the surgeons (resident and staff guy), the patient's family, and, after making a few exploratory incisions higher up, the team amputated the guy's arm just below the elbow.

That ink soaked into his hand/forearm, there was no way to rescue/preserve enough muscle or nerves (probably) to reconstruct and rehab. Luckily it didn't get into his bloodstream.

Workers' compensation doesn't compensate for stupid, just the results.


ATF (at least the stuff I got from Miles, Dexon III) is non-toxic (light mineral oil, you can drink it - it'll go through you like grass through a goose). So too is printer's ink - mostly soy-based these days I understand - but there are places you do NOT want it in your body.

There are gauges, PS testing kits available. Fingers and extremities aren't meant to work as pressure gauges.

Just FYI.
 

Lazboytt

Member
178
7
18
Location
Michigan
Guess I got very lucky, was stressed out and didn’t know what else to try. Thank god it was bad.


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NormB

Well-known member
1,221
77
48
Location
Cloverly,MD
Guess I got very lucky, was stressed out and didn’t know what else to try. Thank god it was bad.
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Stuff happens.

One of the more interesting things I’d read here was someone stopping a HMMWV fan with their hand.

Sure, it’s free-floating, but there’s a heck of a lot of momentum built up in those blades and I can easily imagine a good hand surgeon being consulted to do reattachments of severed fingies.

I got to work with a guy they called “Dr. Leech” as he resorted to those critters to decongest reattached digits while veins healed, but that’s another story.
 

Lazboytt

Member
178
7
18
Location
Michigan
So I have the old power steering pump off and waiting on new parts. Anyone know how to install the new pulley? Do you just force it on with the bolt in the middle? Any tricks or tips on what to watch out for? Looks like someone beat the heck out of the old pulley to possibly install so I ordered a new pulley as well. Here is the old one, looks like they also hit on the outside of the pulley as well




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Milcommoguy

Well-known member
Supporting Vendor
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Location
Rosamond, CA
Watch "How to install GM power steering pulley" on Utube. Easy to do.

No banging, hammers or whacked fingers.

Don't have TM's ?? Utube it, CAMO
 

Lazboytt

Member
178
7
18
Location
Michigan
Your back lol, funny how it’s different to remove the pulley from a normal power steering pump since it doesn’t have the lip on the pulley but rather use a steering wheel puller which worked perfect. People are here to help other people and not to try and berate them.

Funny


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Last edited:

Milcommoguy

Well-known member
Supporting Vendor
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113
Location
Rosamond, CA
Not trying to berate or make fun at your expense. I saw the threaded bolt holes and also saw the banged up lip of the pulley, and to that, looks like someone didn't have a clue how to work on such equipment. Bet that was the beginning of the failure. Felt it would make more sense to direct you to the videos. Picture worth thousand words. Sorry it didn't work out in your case. The good thing is you figured it out.

CAMO
 

Lazboytt

Member
178
7
18
Location
Michigan
That comment wasn’t directed towards you. I do understand that you are trying to help and it’s greatly appreciate. I agree that someone that originally put it together probably caused the failure from the looks of the pulley. Waiting on new pump and pulley to arrive


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NormB

Well-known member
1,221
77
48
Location
Cloverly,MD
It’s already removed, looking to see how to install the new one
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As with most things mechanical, there's often a "special tool".

About two years back I bought a box of "special tools" someone was selling here (and on the evil auction site) and this was one of them:

21V1Ove%RrKaWcvJu3CfwQ.jpg

Power steering pump pulley installer.

It's in the manual. What it doesn't say is exactly how far down to fit the pulley, but it DOES say how much to torque the retaining screw/washer. Ostensibly as you do this final bit, the pulley WILL stop drawing down so you can torque it up.

I had to take the pump to a friend's shop to pull the pulley. No special tool in the box for that.
 

Lazboytt

Member
178
7
18
Location
Michigan
Thank you I will have to look for one of those. I’m guessing you had to hold the pulley with a vice or something to keep it from turning while you torque it down?


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