I am attempting to remove the steering pitman arm from my 1925 Fordor. I've removed the ball socket cap and the castle nut from the end of the steering post. According to the Model T Service Manual I should "remove the ball arm (pitman) from the end of the post by tapping it with a hammer. The steering gear ball arm key can then be removed by tapping it out of the keyway with a hammer and drift". I got the pitman arm down about 1/4th inch and now it is stuck. Am I doing something wrong or, if not, I would appreciate some ideas on how to free it up. I've banged on it with a variety of hammers and an impact wrench to no avail.
Bill Rigdon in Ajo, AZ (the only Model T within 100 miles)
Try to carefully drive it back up. Use some type of lubricating like WD-40 or etc. Do this a few times and see what happens while keeping it well lubricated.
Bill, if it has come part way off you have done the hard bit. Breaking the taper can be a real pain. It sounds like it might be hanging up on the key, which may be burred. Try John's trick first, and then get a heavy hammer to drive it off.
Hope this helps.
Allan from down under.
Here is a helpful earlier post on getting the arm off.
http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/331880/373403.html?1374070167
Have you tried hitting it on the side? The taper will push it off. you can also try a puller. You need one with a flat jaw which will fit between the arm and the bracket.
Norm
you should use a puller as the end of the shaft can bend quite easily. dont ask how i know this
Thanks for the various tips guys. Sounds like I'm OK, just need to apply more lube and force. Will tackle it again today.
Ajo Bill
I just removed mine using a large "long-reach" puller. You have to be careful to position the puller so that the hooks do not pull off. It is a little tricky, but it worked.
Regards,
Jon
There have been times when problems presented by my Model T have caused me to scratch my head and wonder how the heck I would ever solve them, but because the Tin Lizzie was designed to be maintained by a farmer equipped with the tools that came with the car, the answer would eventually present itself if I stared at it long enough.
I had this same problem with the pitman-arm and couldn't get the darn thing off because there was no space to get in there with a hammer and whack it from above. That seemed to mean some kind of puller would be needed, but then it dawned on me that if the steering wheel and steering case cap were removed, I could hammer the steering shaft from below and drive it up, out of the pitman-arm. -It worked.
This is best done with a soft-face hammer, but a metal hammer and an 18-inch length of wood will work just as well (and there's a great deal of visceral satisfaction to be gotten from dealing with a frustrating problem by swinging away at it like the Model T owner depicted above).
Well, gotter done this morning. Soaked the Pitman arm with penetrating oil overnight and again this morning then used a heavy duty 18" screwdriver and a hand sledge to go at it from above. Tough S.O.B.
Don't know how Bob Coiro got my image to use in the above posting (at least that's how it felt).
Again, thanks for the help.
Ajo Bill
Not that all the pounding is done, make sure the threads are not mushroomed out before you put it back together.