[BravadaX]

lots of y’all are gonna deal with this,.. it’s part of having a recirculating ball type steering gear.

my 2wd crew has a zq8 quick steering box. that joker is spendsif af if I had to replace it! and my chit steer tight just like drippy drip..I ain’t aboutspending money I don’t have to.

here’s the way I’ve serviced these type gears for around 20 years

zip off the nut with a 32mm spindle nut. use a pitman puller to yank the pitman while still attached to the center link and move it outta your way.

whipe out the grease,and then douche the chit outta it with some brake cleaner..you’ll see what looks like an upside down seal..it is..it’s to keep chit out,you’re after the one behind it. using this pick i remove it like shown.,

spray some more brake cleaner and you’ll see a clip.

remove the clip with ring pliers or in my case needle nose,..they reach in better for me..

then reconnect the pitman and nut hand tight! then start the truck. the pressure will blow the seal and washer out

then spray it out again with brake cleaner..put a slight dab of bearing grease on the seal where it touches the shaft. stick it over the shaft and using a 30mm 12point with your palm push the seal in with the washer till it bottoms out . when you pull the socket back and the washer will fall out.. that’s normal..lol. then compress the ring with your pliers. slide the washer back over the shaft,then set the ring in while squeezed compressed. Let it expand and it’ll hold the washer.

 

[BravadaX]

Using the 30mm 12 point push those till they stop. then tap the socket with a mallet until the seal,metal washer seat and the clip springs out into it’s groove. this will insure the seal is in perfectly even,…the snap ring will seat and stop you from driving it in too far or crooked

reinstall the upside down seal with the 12 point 30mm with your palm pressure then a few light taps with a mallet to seat it..

wipe in a generous amount of bearing grease to prevent rust and debris from getting to those seals again..install the pitman and torque it to as tight aunta

it’s a wrap..done deal..

this works on pretty much everything…Silverados,..even those trucks those guys that copulate with other guys drive.. seal kit is about $5.

I reuse the GM washer and clip because it’s better metal..the seal is lifetime warranty at AZ.

good luck y’all

 

[BravadaX]

Yeah i forgot to take a picture of reinstalling the black upside down looking seal… some of the nicer kits come with a nifty lil boot too. That steering gear is outta a 2003 xtreme,GM got a lil cheap on us last few years of production. They didn’t get one,just grease

 

[BravadaX]

It’s extremely difficult to remove any other way @chevymec. Prying it outta there ain’t gonna happen..it’s too deep and there’s nothing to use as a fulcrum point..The alternative is dismantling the gear box itself and coming at it from the top… there’s probably another trick but out of the truck the only other way I know of is taking the top off,removing the sector shaft,then knocking the seal out from the other side… I reckon it’s kinda a lost art. nobody I work with has ever seen anyone fix the gearbox itself before lol. nowadays people replace em. that’s what made me think to post it. Hope it saves someone some money