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series 3 swb 1983 88 top steering column bearing

Ramraider

Ramraider

Shifting Up
series 3 top steering column bearing, i have stripped the poor land rover down to nothing and am repairing and replacing as i go.
With steering column on worktop i removed the outer tube and then removed the bearing with relative ease....the good part.... the new bearing looks identical to the old one, so i pressed it into the outer tube, another easy task... However when i came to putting the outer tube over the inner column, the bearing was to tight a fit, i did tap it a little but the there was no way the outer tube was going over the inner drive rod, even when they where close the bearing was as rough as can be, worse than the old one ... my question is are there different size bearings or have i done something wrong
regards
 
they have been issues with this bearing before, it is usually when being tried to be fitted in situ. you have it easy with it being on the bench, In pieces. the fist thing I would do is take the bearing back from the our tube and inspect and measure it to find out exactly what the problem is. it may be just a burr on the bearing or the shaft. but if it's really too small then I suppose you should take this up with the supplier, and try to get a different make.

to call it a bearing is a bit of a joke. it's pressed steel with ball bearings. other cars of the era simply have a plastic bush. also make sure the spring goes on under the steering wheel as this takes the slack out of the bearing.
 
And grease the living cack outof it before you fit it. I did mine about 2 years ago, and it needs doing again.
 
holly76 said:
to call it a bearing is a bit of a joke. it's pressed steel with ball bearings. other cars of the era simply have a plastic bush. also make sure the spring goes on under the steering wheel as this takes the slack out of the bearing.
Click to expand...

Would a bush turned to the right diameter be better? I changed mine a few years ago and it wasn't long before the play was back, I've just been ignoring it for years since it doesn't actually influence the handling...
 
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