Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
#3143462
05/09/23 05:35 PM
05/09/23 05:35 PM
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,756 London, England
Gavin
OP
top fuel
|
OP
top fuel
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,756
London, England
|
I'd appreciate some urgent advice! After many years I'm finally getting my Challenger finished by a shop due to health and time issues. They've fitted the Power Steering box and the column is about 2 inches too short!
After a lot of looking at before and after photos, I believe that the only cause must be the shear pins. I was very careful when rebuilding the column many years ago but I think I found the 'smoking gun' picture from that time showing where the shear pins should be (I didn't realise at the time that you should actually see the white plastic but from looking online now I think you should).
I thought if the pins were sheared the shaft would slide in and out easily, but again, I guess not (I pulled on it). It's the original column and I was driving the car before disassembly, so the column must have moved after I removed it, maybe the pins were already sheared.
Anyway - what to do?! I know the options are basically either just pull the shaft out and assemble as usual (the car will be safe to drive), or remove and disassemble the column and try to use some nylon screws or melt some plastic in there.
Obviously the first option is easier and cheaper, but I'd appreciate all input - is there any downside to this? Could the shaft move within the coupler and want to pull out of it (I think no, gravity is against it) or more possibly want to slide further into the coupler (but the coupler would stop it sliding too far anyway)?
Thanks very much!
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: Gavin]
#3143489
05/09/23 08:01 PM
05/09/23 08:01 PM
|
Joined: Dec 2014
Posts: 5,899 ohio
ruderunner
master
|
master
Joined: Dec 2014
Posts: 5,899
ohio
|
Many couplers use a small pin to prevent the assembly from separation. But, it's a small pin, probably there mainly to prevent separation while the column is out of the vehicle. I wouldn't trust it to prevent separation while driving.
If, your shaft is loose enough for it to bottom out in the coupler body, it's loose enough to not cause any problems.
My take, replace the pins with nylon screws
Angry white pureblood male
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: ruderunner]
#3143500
05/09/23 08:38 PM
05/09/23 08:38 PM
|
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 1,841 South Bend
John Brown
top fuel
|
top fuel
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 1,841
South Bend
|
Aluminum pop rivets work well. They are soft enough to shear in the event of a crash.
July 19th should be "Drive Like Rockford Day". R.I.P. Jimmie.
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: John Brown]
#3143525
05/09/23 09:49 PM
05/09/23 09:49 PM
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,605 Freeport IL USA
poorboy
I Live Here
|
I Live Here
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,605
Freeport IL USA
|
For what its worth, I don't believe the shaft can pull far enough to separate without some major body damage on the car. At the plastic shear pins, the outer shaft has to move outward at least 4" (closer to 6" if I remember correctly) before the inner and outer parts can separate.
Your only concern would be if it clasped too easily, which probably won't be an issue. Once everything is in place, the bottom sort of floats, there is no up or down pressure. For the column to clasp in a crash, the column crushes the perforated outer shell of the column between the steering wheel and the floor mount so the sheer pins would break and the inner shaft would slide farther into the outer shaft. Before those shafts can slid inside each other, the outer column housing has to crush, or the steering box has to move towards the firewall. In either event, the sheer pins won't make much difference weather they were previously broken or not.
I suspect that while the column was out of the car, it got dropped on the bottom end which is what sheered the pins, otherwise the outer housing of the column would have been crushed.
Back when we ran the stock bodied Mopars on our local dirt track, we would pop the sheer pins on the column and pull the shafts apart another 3" so we could mount the the wheel and the column closer to the driver and still connect to the steering box. This allowed easier steering without having the power steering connected (a closer wheel gave the driver better leverage). I had one car that got crashed bad enough for the column to pull out of the lower connector at the steering box, even with the sheer pins broken and the column stretched out 3 more inches, the column at the sheer pins did not separate. On that car, the front frame rail got pulled away from the trans crossmember almost 6", rust issues were also involved.
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: BDW]
#3143674
05/10/23 02:29 PM
05/10/23 02:29 PM
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,495 Minnesota
Hemi_Joel
master
|
master
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,495
Minnesota
|
I used an aluminum bolt or a hot glue gun. My concern is the ujoint pulling apart if there is nothing in the shear pin holes and the tabs on the ujoint cover are junk as usual.
[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum RS23J71 RS27J77 RP23J71 RO23J71 WM21J8A I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do. "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: AndyF]
#3143704
05/10/23 04:34 PM
05/10/23 04:34 PM
|
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 8,301 fredericksburg,va
cudaman1969
master
|
master
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 8,301
fredericksburg,va
|
There are no ‘pins’ in any column, the holes are there to shoot the liquid nylon in between the two pieces so it won’t rattle, they serve no other function. The nylon is still in there so don’t worry about it moving around
Last edited by cudaman1969; 05/10/23 04:35 PM.
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: cudaman1969]
#3143706
05/10/23 04:49 PM
05/10/23 04:49 PM
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 18,425 UPPER MICHIGAN, MARQUETTE COUN...
NITROUSN
I Live Here
|
I Live Here
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 18,425
UPPER MICHIGAN, MARQUETTE COUN...
|
There are no ‘pins’ in any column, the holes are there to shoot the liquid nylon in between the two pieces so it won’t rattle, they serve no other function. The nylon is still in there so don’t worry about it moving around Right. I posted the simple fix above a few posts.
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: Gavin]
#3143726
05/10/23 06:21 PM
05/10/23 06:21 PM
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,495 Minnesota
Hemi_Joel
master
|
master
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,495
Minnesota
|
You had a power steering box put in. What is previously power, or was it manual? The lengths are different for PS vs. manual steering. I just don't remember which is which.
[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum RS23J71 RS27J77 RP23J71 RO23J71 WM21J8A I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do. "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: Hemi_Joel]
#3143741
05/10/23 06:59 PM
05/10/23 06:59 PM
|
Joined: May 2019
Posts: 6,291 nowhere
Sniper
master
|
master
Joined: May 2019
Posts: 6,291
nowhere
|
You had a power steering box put in. What is previously power, or was it manual? The lengths are different for PS vs. manual steering. I just don't remember which is which. Yes, but the power column was shorter than the manual column.
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: cudaman1969]
#3143908
05/11/23 01:01 PM
05/11/23 01:01 PM
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,756 London, England
Gavin
OP
top fuel
|
OP
top fuel
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,756
London, England
|
Take it down to nothing but the shaft, put bottom part in vise, attach a slide hammer to the top nut and pull on it till it’s the right length. Only simple option. In theory I could do the first bit without disassembling further because I have access to the top threaded portion and also the bottom of the shaft. Not sure if I might damage anything if I did that, in theory I shouldn't as far as I can think about it. Again, if necessary I'd disassemble but just thinking about it. Then comes the main question, whether to 'set' the length or not. That may be answered by how much force it takes to move the shaft and how tight it is after that..........
|
|
|
Re: Steering Column shear pins sheared - options?
[Re: Gavin]
#3143957
05/11/23 04:11 PM
05/11/23 04:11 PM
|
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 8,301 fredericksburg,va
cudaman1969
master
|
master
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 8,301
fredericksburg,va
|
Take it down to nothing but the shaft, put bottom part in vise, attach a slide hammer to the top nut and pull on it till it’s the right length. Only simple option. In theory I could do the first bit without disassembling further because I have access to the top threaded portion and also the bottom of the shaft. Not sure if I might damage anything if I did that, in theory I shouldn't as far as I can think about it. Again, if necessary I'd disassemble but just thinking about it. Then comes the main question, whether to 'set' the length or not. That may be answered by how much force it takes to move the shaft and how tight it is after that.......... What have you got to lose? It’s already wrong. One other thing, have you got the column bracket that attaches under the dash on right?
|
|
|
|
|