[Shop-talk] Steering gear oil

[Jim Stone]

I don’t know if this will work for a Healey, but I drilled and tapped a hole in my steering box cover and installed a grease fitting.  It stuck out a bit on the inside and I ground that down so that it was flush and squirted some grease through to be sure it was clean.  I then packed as much grease in the box as I could, re-installed it and added more until it came out the original filler hole.

I can’t answer your question about mixing them, and am curious about the answer, too.

> On May 6, 2021, at 12:31 AM, Bob Spidell <bspidell at comcast.net> wrote:
> 
> My Healey 100's box is leaking profusely; has 1) anyone injected the CH Grease into a box with some 90W remaining? Does the CG Grease displace the oil and 2) anyone found a quick-and-easy way to get the grease in (mine's in regular grease gun tubes; just wondering if there's an easier way)?
> 
> Bob
> 
> On 5/5/2021 3:36 PM, Jeff Scarbrough wrote:
>> Having spent some time in the seat of a JD 9900, I can verify that
>> spindle grease is very runny, without being leakingly runny.  Also a
>> fascinating green color...kind of like minty toothpaste.  But
>> slippery.
>> 
>> Jeff Scarbrough
>> Corrosion Acres, Ga.
>> 
>> On Wed, May 5, 2021 at 4:30 PM Jack Brooks <JIBrooks at live.com> wrote:
>>> Pat,
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> My TR3 is a worm and peg.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> The way it was explained to me……..  Cornhead grease is that it’s a semi-fluid, self-leveling grease thick enough to stay put, but will liquify easier than regular grease, so it’ll work “as an oil” in steering boxes that specify oil, not grease.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> I couldn’t find the John Deere spec sheet quickly, but a number of the properties are highlighted here.
>>> https://www.greenpartstore.com/John-Deere-Special-Purpose-Corn-Head-Gun-Grease-AN102562.html
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Jack
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> From: Pat Horne <patintexas at icloud.com>
>>> Sent: Wednesday, May 5, 2021 9:32 AM
>>> To: Jack Brooks <JIBrooks at live.com>
>>> Cc: Shop-talk at autox.team.net
>>> Subject: Re: [Shop-talk] Steering gear oil
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> I’m not involved w/British cars, but old Japanese cars & would like some information about the vehicles that y’all are considering using cornhead grease on. Are these steering boxes recirculating ball or worm & peg boxes? The Datsun roadsters I’m involved with use both types depending on year.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Peace,
>>> 
>>> Pat
>>> 
>>> Pat Horne
>>> 
>>> We support Habitat for Humanity
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> On May 4, 2021, at 11:26 PM, Jack Brooks <JIBrooks at live.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> A lot of Triumph guys like Cornhead grease in the steering box too.  Leaks are a lot less likely than the specified oils.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Jack
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> From: Shop-talk <shop-talk-bounces at autox.team.net> On Behalf Of Jim Stone
>>> Sent: Tuesday, May 4, 2021 10:37 AM
>>> To: Bob Spidell <bspidell at comcast.net>
>>> Cc: shop-talk at autox.team.net
>>> Subject: Re: [Shop-talk] Steering gear oil
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Thanks, Bob. I didn’t want to hijack the thread, so I changed the subject line, just in case anyone else was interested in the topic.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Cornhead grease was recently suggested on the Alpine forum, probably by someone who owns an Alpine and a Healey. In fact, I found the cotton picker oil while looking for cornhead grease.  Besides being more readily available, at least if you have a Tractor Supply nearby, it is just slightly thinner than the grease, which might make it easier to get in the box but still thick enough not to leak out. I won’t know until I try it, and that might be a while. This is pretty low on my to do list right now; I just bought it because I was in the vicinity of a TS store, something that doesn’t happen all that often.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> On May 4, 2021, at 10:28 AM, Bob Spidell <bspidell at comcast.net> wrote:
>>> 
>>>  Side note: The 'goto' for leaky steering boxes in the Austin-Healey universe is John Deere 'Cornhead Grease;' available at many places online (and probably equivalent to spindle grease). A friend sent me a couple tubes, but I haven't tried it yet; getting it in the box is the hard part.
>>> 
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> 
>>> Shop-talk at autox.team.net
>>> Donate: http://www.team.net/donate.html
>>> Suggested annual donation  $12.96
>>> Archive: http://www.team.net/pipermail/shop-talk http://autox.team.net/archive
>>> 
>>> Unsubscribe/Manage: http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/shop-talk/patintexas@icloud.com
>>> 
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> 
>>> Shop-talk at autox.team.net
>>> Donate: http://www.team.net/donate.html
>>> Suggested annual donation  $12.96
>>> Archive: http://www.team.net/pipermail/shop-talk http://autox.team.net/archive
>>> 
>>> Unsubscribe/Manage: http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/shop-talk/fishplate@gmail.com
>>> 
>> _______________________________________________
>> 
>> Shop-talk at autox.team.net
>> Donate: http://www.team.net/donate.html
>> Suggested annual donation  $12.96
>> Archive: http://www.team.net/pipermail/shop-talk http://autox.team.net/archive
>> 
>> Unsubscribe/Manage: http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/shop-talk/bspidell@comcast.net <http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/shop-talk/bspidell@comcast.net>
>> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 
> Shop-talk at autox.team.net <mailto:Shop-talk at autox.team.net>
> Donate: http://www.team.net/donate.html <http://www.team.net/donate.html>
> Suggested annual donation  $12.96
> Archive: http://www.team.net/pipermail/shop-talk <http://www.team.net/pipermail/shop-talk> http://autox.team.net/archive <http://autox.team.net/archive>
> 
> Unsubscribe/Manage: http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/shop-talk/1789alpine@gmail.com <http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/shop-talk/1789alpine@gmail.com>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://autox.team.net/pipermail/shop-talk/attachments/20210506/46f0daa7/attachment-0001.htm>