Thomba48 Posted December 6, 2019 Report Share Posted December 6, 2019 (edited) Now the terrible part of the year is here again. Driving is no more and I am embarking on improving my cars health, fitness and look and feel. With the usual, almost unbelievable obscure battles and feeling lost far too many times. I literally spent 3 hrs. today trying to the change the vent window gasket. Ok, the change is done but the window does not close nor move. What an annoying bummer. Something that should take 2 hrs in total will probably take me two weeks in the long run. Well, sorry for me dragging on. Here now my actual question (supported by pictures below). The steering wheel needs refreshment. On I went and aimed for a 20 minute session (that is actually the link to my long and winding introduction :-). Off they went, the screws, the horn ring, the nut and I felt like the best mechanic in the world. Cool, that was easy, so I thought. And then I pulled on the steering wheel for the final feeling of victory. Only looking baffled and ... well of course this bloody thing does not come off, does not even vaguely move. Now what? I have searched and saw this ancient looking horror device called "steering wheel puller". Is that the answer to my problem? Have I missed any other screws? What if such a puller is not at hand (which is the case), how else can I do it? Is it in the end a question of brute force? thanks for your help. Thom Edited December 6, 2019 by Thomba48 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plymouthy Adams Posted December 6, 2019 Report Share Posted December 6, 2019 in the absence of the C612 tool....often folks use a harmonic balancer puller.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Buchanan Posted December 6, 2019 Report Share Posted December 6, 2019 (edited) Do not try to yank the wheel off by pulling on the steering wheel rim! You will be sad when you destroy the wheel...... Yes, you need a puller. Read the threads about pulling the steering wheel to get the big picture of the process. If you are fortunate the wheel will pop off the shaft once you start persuading it with the puller. I used a generic puller like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lisle-45500-Harmonic-Balancer-Puller/352774075278?epid=9028573416&hash=item5222f9338e:g:avAAAOSwxMNdazxy Instead of putting the pointy end of the puller into the steering shaft, drop a bolt into the shaft so the puller can push against the bolt head instead of damaging the threaded end of the shaft. Edited December 6, 2019 by Sam Buchanan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomba48 Posted December 6, 2019 Author Report Share Posted December 6, 2019 OK. Just ordered one. Thanks ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andydodge Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 Thomba.....just a suggestion from Sams bit of advice........be careful when doing this not to cut the horn wire that comes up the steering column tube when you attach the puller to the wheel and start screwing the pullers center bolt onto the steering tube..........before doing anything you may have to double the wire over itself a couple of times enough so that it sits just below the top of the threaded part of the column, then screw the center nut back on so that its level with the threads but not tightly onto the wheel, then screw the center bolt down onto the nut which protects the threads from being chewed up( you may find that you have to place a washer over the nut as the pullers center bolt may fit into the shaft, which you don't want ,tho' Sams puller pictured appears to have a large tapered end which should stop this happening)), this should be enough to loosen the wheel on the spline and then you undo the puller etc, use a piece of stiff wire to fish the horn wire out and remove the steering wheel........its also a good idea to mark the spot where the steering wheel and shaft fit so that you install the wheel in the correct spline....sometimes the spline has a keyway spline that means the wheel only goes on one way but not always and marking the wheel/spline interface ensures that this occurs correctly.............hope this helps.............andyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomba48 Posted December 7, 2019 Author Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 Just to be on the safe side and to get it right. The nut and I call it spacer, which it probably is not called. So the nut and spacer can be taken off easily obviously. Which I already have. When using the puller shall I leave this set up on or off? My assumption would have been: off. Kindest regards. Thom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andydodge Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 (edited) Thomba..........from your 2nd pic , it appears to show just a nut, tho' it may have a flat washer or what you call a "spacer" underneath the nut.........I would undo the nut enough so that the top of the nut sits level with the top of the steering tube and therefore protecting the threads of the tube from being damaged by the centre bolt of the puller............however if the puller is like that shown by Sams pic and has what appears to be a tapered pointed end, then it should sit neatly, maybe halfway on the tapered end, but not completely into the steering tube and the nut helps to protect the tube................ ........... then what you want to happen is the center bolt of the puller to push down against the steering tube/shaft nut with the puller bolted to the three holes in the steering wheel hub.............this force of the centre bolt then pulls the wheel away from the steering column tube or shaft and the wheel comes off the tube or shaft............to reinstall you place the wheel on the shaft in the correct place on the shaft then push it on as far as it will go, install the flat washer or spacer and nut and tighten the nut to push on and secure the wheel in place.........andyd Edited December 7, 2019 by Andydodge rephrasing.......lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tooljunkie Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 I used a deep socket, stacked a couple nuts inside to fill the deep void in the socket. The nut on the column was loosened only a couple threads. wire up through nuts to prevent damage. A little lift on wheel and a couple raps on socket with a hammer and wheel popped right off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plymouthy Adams Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 I do not recommend tapping on the shaft with a hammer and pulling the wheel by hand while doing so....you may get lucky, you may end up needing a new assembly...the puller is designed to prevent damage when utilized properly. Back the nut off till flush with t he steering column...this will protect the threads and at the same time when it pops loose will prevent the wheel from just going all over the place. Note the position of the wheel and the fact it is master keyed for going back on....we had on member who failed at his attempt to remove the wheel without the proper tool....luckily he refinished it in place...as to damage to threads and column...no report on that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomba48 Posted December 7, 2019 Author Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 2 minutes ago, Plymouthy Adams said: I do not recommend tapping on the shaft with a hammer and pulling the wheel by hand while doing so....you may get lucky, you may end up needing a new assembly...the puller is designed to prevent damage when utilized properly. Back the nut off till flush with t he steering column...this will protect the threads and at the same time when it pops loose will prevent the wheel from just going all over the place. Note the position of the wheel and the fact it is master keyed for going back on....we had on member who failed at his attempt to remove the wheel without the proper tool....luckily he refinished it in place...as to damage to threads and column...no report on that. 2 minutes ago, Plymouthy Adams said: I do not recommend tapping on the shaft with a hammer and pulling the wheel by hand while doing so....you may get lucky, you may end up needing a new assembly...the puller is designed to prevent damage when utilized properly. Back the nut off till flush with t he steering column...this will protect the threads and at the same time when it pops loose will prevent the wheel from just going all over the place. Note the position of the wheel and the fact it is master keyed for going back on....we had on member who failed at his attempt to remove the wheel without the proper tool....luckily he refinished it in place...as to damage to threads and column...no report on that. I will just do as you have recommended. Thanks Just to be on the safe side and to get it right. The nut and I call it spacer, which it probably is not called. So the nut and spacer can be taken off easily obviously. Which I already have. When using the puller shall I leave this set up on or off? My assumption would have been: off. Kindest regards. Thom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plymouthy Adams Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 the nut is just the device to torque and retain...for protection of the threaded hollow shaft back the nut to flush with end of shaft.....keep in mind less strength overall by design and ease of damage to the threads should it be struck or pressed without the nut in place. The nut will displace the pressure equally and aid in removal.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Reddie Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 The puller is a good thing to have for the steering wheel removal and other tasks as well. I have a homemade puller that a former coworker gave me that he made to remove his steering wheel. I have had success using it to remove harmonic balancers as well. Once you receive your puller, the wheel should come of easily. Good luck to you. John R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andydodge Posted December 7, 2019 Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 Thomba....you leave the nut on to protect the threads, when the puller loosens the wheel you then remove the puller, undo the nut and remove the wheel................andyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomba48 Posted December 7, 2019 Author Report Share Posted December 7, 2019 Thannnnnkkkkkkkk youuuuuuuu? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomba48 Posted December 11, 2019 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2019 Hi. Me again. How much pressure is actually necessary to get the wheel off? I have tightened up this device so strongly that nothing can be moved any more. But still the wheel sits strong and is not moving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plymouthy Adams Posted December 11, 2019 Report Share Posted December 11, 2019 you did back the nut up to flush with the threads of the shaft where the puller center is applying pressure....if so and all is flush, a light tap on the end of the puller nut could be just the tad of persuasion needed for it to yield to your determination...don't go all out Arnold on this.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomba48 Posted December 11, 2019 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2019 Well. I certainly thought so. But I will go back to it again tomorrow. Thanks. And I certainly love the Arnold phrase. Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plymouthy Adams Posted December 11, 2019 Report Share Posted December 11, 2019 be sure you have your extraction bolts equally threaded into the hub...you wish to have this pressure divided equally when applied....and as a note....reverse the foot.....have the bolts with a flat washer in a position NOT TO hit the shoulder of the center hub of the puller....when turned over the foot is flat across the extremes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomba48 Posted December 11, 2019 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2019 Thanks Thanks Thanks Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desoto1939 Posted December 11, 2019 Report Share Posted December 11, 2019 From looking at your last picture of the wheel puller it looks as if the center threaded bolt is hitting the outer edge of the center section of the steering wheel and the smaller threaded bolt is hitting some where inside the steering wheel hub. If this is the case when you try to pul lthe wheel the main center bolt is pushing the wheel down on the main shaft so you are working against the puller. The three slots in the puller need to alighn up and the smaller threaded bolt needs to thread into the hub of the wheel and the big enter bolt is then pushing against the threaded section of the steering column so that as you crank down on the big bolt it is then pushing the steering wheel off the serrated end of the steering column. Als did you run a stiff wire up thru the steering column from the bottom of the steering box. You will need to do this inorder to get the horn wire back down the steering shaft and to come out the end of the steeringbox. In the internal part of the steering box there is a small tube that the wire needs to pass thru so it then can come out the end of the steering box. The small internal tube prevents the oil or grease from coming out the end of the steering box.to Inside the center hub there should be three threaded holes to thread a bolt into and thru the main puller for each slot in the puller and then the main threaded bolt pushes the wheel off the shaft. remove the puller and look closer to see if this your setup. If not then you might have to use a gear puller under the base of the hub of the steering wheel with a bar over the top of the wheel and just go very slowing with a minimal amout of tighten the main botl so as not to damage the steering whel hub. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomba48 Posted December 11, 2019 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2019 4 minutes ago, desoto1939 said: From looking at your last picture of the wheel puller it looks as if the center threaded bolt is hitting the outer edge of the center section of the steering wheel and the smaller threaded bolt is hitting some where inside the steering wheel hub. If this is the case when you try to pul lthe wheel the main center bolt is pushing the wheel down on the main shaft so you are working against the puller. The three slots in the puller need to alighn up and the smaller threaded bolt needs to thread into the hub of the wheel and the big enter bolt is then pushing against the threaded section of the steering column so that as you crank down on the big bolt it is then pushing the steering wheel off the serrated end of the steering column. Als did you run a stiff wire up thru the steering column from the bottom of the steering box. You will need to do this inorder to get the horn wire back down the steering shaft and to come out the end of the steeringbox. In the internal part of the steering box there is a small tube that the wire needs to pass thru so it then can come out the end of the steering box. The small internal tube prevents the oil or grease from coming out the end of the steering box.to Inside the center hub there should be three threaded holes to thread a bolt into and thru the main puller for each slot in the puller and then the main threaded bolt pushes the wheel off the shaft. remove the puller and look closer to see if this your setup. If not then you might have to use a gear puller under the base of the hub of the steering wheel with a bar over the top of the wheel and just go very slowing with a minimal amout of tighten the main botl so as not to damage the steering whel hub. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com 4 minutes ago, desoto1939 said: From looking at your last picture of the wheel puller it looks as if the center threaded bolt is hitting the outer edge of the center section of the steering wheel and the smaller threaded bolt is hitting some where inside the steering wheel hub. If this is the case when you try to pul lthe wheel the main center bolt is pushing the wheel down on the main shaft so you are working against the puller. The three slots in the puller need to alighn up and the smaller threaded bolt needs to thread into the hub of the wheel and the big enter bolt is then pushing against the threaded section of the steering column so that as you crank down on the big bolt it is then pushing the steering wheel off the serrated end of the steering column. Als did you run a stiff wire up thru the steering column from the bottom of the steering box. You will need to do this inorder to get the horn wire back down the steering shaft and to come out the end of the steeringbox. In the internal part of the steering box there is a small tube that the wire needs to pass thru so it then can come out the end of the steering box. The small internal tube prevents the oil or grease from coming out the end of the steering box.to Inside the center hub there should be three threaded holes to thread a bolt into and thru the main puller for each slot in the puller and then the main threaded bolt pushes the wheel off the shaft. remove the puller and look closer to see if this your setup. If not then you might have to use a gear puller under the base of the hub of the steering wheel with a bar over the top of the wheel and just go very slowing with a minimal amout of tighten the main botl so as not to damage the steering whel hub. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com Awfully kind of you for providing so much insights. I shall keep this in mind for my hopefully final push. ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Buchanan Posted December 11, 2019 Report Share Posted December 11, 2019 A photo of how you have the puller set up on the steering column would be helpful....can't tell much from the photo you provided. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andydodge Posted December 12, 2019 Report Share Posted December 12, 2019 Thomba........the pic with the puller attached to the steering wheel DOESN"T LOOK CORRECT......the puller has 4 "arms".....2 opposite each other and another two at about 130degrees above and below the centreline of the first two..............the last pic you posted with the puller attached seems to show at least ONE of the holes, without a bolt in it, which is NOT CORRECT............your 2nd pic from last saturday shows the steering wheel hub looking down at the centre nut and there appears to be THREE HOLES equidistant around the steering wheel , these appear to be slightly larger in size to those which were used to attach the horn emblem etc onto the wheel.....these larger holes...do they have a thread inside them?..........if so then they are the three that the puller arms align to with the centre bolt lined up onto the shaft and a bolt going thru each of the three arms of the puller into those three holes........... ...............don't get me wrong here..but have you ever used a puller like this to remove a steering wheel or what about using a similar but larger puller to remove a rear brake drum from a mopar tapered rear axle ..the principle is the same and the basic attachment setup also similar............ ...........if the puller has three arms and there is three holes in the thing being removed then each hole MUST have a bolt from each arm going into the hole.......the only exception to this when using a 4 armed puller like what you have is when the thing being removed has only TWO holes, one each p on opposite sides of the larger centre hole which the centre bolt from the puller pushes against and then you use the arms on each side so the "pull" is equal................ ........does this make sense?............Andy Douglas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andydodge Posted December 12, 2019 Report Share Posted December 12, 2019 Thomba.........I just did a search via google....... "how to use a steering wheel puller" and there are a couple of you tube videos showing how to attach the puller correctly........Andy Douglas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_shel_ny Posted December 12, 2019 Report Share Posted December 12, 2019 Position looks good to me. Bolt holes are very close to the nut. His camera angle make it look strange. As well as the coned end mine has a flat adapter that would push flat against a washer that can be placed atop the nut, and threaded shaft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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