63 Steering Box

[Marco H.]

The JG calls for a plain cover on the '63 steering box. My car currently has a plain aluminum (no texture) cover that's painted black along with the entire box. Other 63s that I observed to this point all have the later #723 cast iron cover installed. It is my understanding that the alum. covers were used later on the C3s.
Any clarification is greatly appreciated.

Marco

[Jim S.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Here is a scan of the 1963 through 1966 C2 manual steering gear. The side (actually located on the top of the gear) cover is malleable iron with the words "CHECK" "LUBE" and small arrows cast into the cover.



Jim

[Harry S.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Great picture.

Depending on when your 63 was built the words check lube may not be there. My April built 63 does not have it. All I have is the number cast into the cover just above where the check lube would have been.

[Gary R.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Aluminum covers started in 69, the 63-68 were iron as far as I know. Most if not all the 63 boxes I built had the plain covers on them. Look at the input splines as well to see if there is a D-Flat, could be a swaped out box. I don't recall if the Service covers were plain or had any numbers in them.

[Wayne M.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Here's a steering gear assy # 7808927, which I got NOS as a service unit for '63-9 (but not 1970) per the Jan '70 P&A30B.

Smooth aluminum cover.



m

[Gary R.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Wayne
That box as the aluminum cover and flange head bolts. Date code is early 1969 so that would have the 360* fine spline input used up until late 69 time frame. Interesting to see the date tag most of the original car boxes I see don't have them until around 75 or so.

[Michael H.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Great picture.

Depending on when your 63 was built the words check lube may not be there. My April built 63 does not have it. All I have is the number cast into the cover just above where the check lube would have been.

I agree with Harry. The wording "CHECK LUBE" first appeared somewhere around the last month or two of 63 production.

[Jim S.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Looking at the revision record on my 1963-66 steering gear assembly drawing (5677641)and the cover casting drawing (5666723) I cannot determine if the CHECK LUBE script was originally on the drawing or if it was added. The casting drawing was REDRAWN Rev "T" on 7/19/66 and the CHECK LUBE script was on the top cover at that time. I have no revision history before that date so I can't tell if it was added before that date or not.

The 1963-66 Gear Assembly drawing (5677641) dated 1-15-62 shows the top cover (machined part number 5666722) with CHECK LUBE script on it. The gear assembly drawing does not show any revision with respect to adding the script to the top cover. So you could assume that the CHECK LUBE script was on the top cover from the begining of production. (However, maybe they were not real diligent as to recording revisions to the drawing for things like that.)

BTW, the original gear assembly drawing (5677641) shows split washers under the top cover bolt heads. Flange head bolts showup on the next gear assembly in my collection (5696900) released for production 5/29/68. So flange head bolts show up sometime between 7/19/66 and May 1968.

Jim

[Marco H.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Thanks everyone for their input.
It appears as the JG is not totally correct on this subject. If I gather all your info correctly, all '63s should have a cast iron cover with a part#5666723 showing. The words "check - lube" were added late in the '63 production.
With this car being a July built vehicle, I will hunt down a box with the check lube lettering.
Thanks again.
Marco

[Kenneth S.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

This is from my mid April '63
Ken

[Harry S.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

This is from my mid April '63
Ken

Looks just like the one on my April 20th 63.

[Wayne M.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Member Mark Nagy emailed me these pics for posting and comments, if any. No "Check Lube" and what looks like a '13' following the casting #.

[Joe L.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Member Mark Nagy emailed me these pics for posting and comments, if any. No "Check Lube" and what looks like a '13' following the part #.

Wayne------


I expect the "13" is a foundry pattern number for the cover. Many GM malleable iron castings of the period were produced at the old Danville, IL foundry. However, Danville was usually pretty faithful to having their foundry identification mark of "D" appear on most of their products. The other GM cast iron foundries including several in Saginaw and Defiance, OH usually didn't include a foundry ID mark. I don't recall seeing a "D" casting mark on one of these covers, so I have to assume they were cast at one of the Saginaw malleable/nodular iron foundries.

[Joe L.]

Re: 63 Steering Box

Here is a scan of the 1963 through 1966 C2 manual steering gear. The side (actually located on the top of the gear) cover is malleable iron with the words "CHECK" "LUBE" and small arrows cast into the cover.



Jim

Jim------


I wonder why the "Check Lube" was not carried over to the aluminum covers used for 1969-82? It could just as easily have been included in the design specs for those covers but it was not. I suspect that GM learned that using that bolt hole position to check the lube in a Corvette steering box that used ~140 weight grease as the lubricant was fairly meaningless.