Searching for My Dad's 1979 Chevy Suburban

[edgephoto]

There is a gear on the output shaft of the transmission called the drive gear. The other gear is called the driven gear. The driven gear is the one the cable fits into.

A couple of things. Jack it up, disconnect speedo cable at the gearbox put into gear and see if the driven gear even spins.

You said if you run the cable with a drill the speedo reads. So you know that the cable and speedo are connected and the connection is good.

The drive gear, at least on an automatic, is plastic and so is the driven gear. A common failure was the cables would get sticky or bound up and the square the cable end fits into on the driven gear rounds out. You may just have a bad gear. The driven gear is easy to change. You will need to change this gear to calibrate your speedo. There are online calculators to tell you how many teeth you need on the drive gear.

 

[TheHoundsman]

There is a gear on the output shaft of the transmission called the drive gear. The other gear is called the driven gear. The driven gear is the one the cable fits into.

A couple of things. Jack it up, disconnect speedo cable at the gearbox put into gear and see if the driven gear even spins.

You said if you run the cable with a drill the speedo reads. So you know that the cable and speedo are connected and the connection is good.

The drive gear, at least on an automatic, is plastic and so is the driven gear. A common failure was the cables would get sticky or bound up and the square the cable end fits into on the driven gear rounds out. You may just have a bad gear. The driven gear is easy to change. You will need to change this gear to calibrate your speedo. There are online calculators to tell you how many teeth you need on the drive gear.

Thank you very helpful I will look that up and see what I need

 

[TheHoundsman]

So we are off and running. No turning back now. However it wouldn’t be a project for me if there weren’t issues. My steering gear box has some type of torx bolt holding it to the steering arm so I am trying to find a socket that fits that. The brake calipers are also held on with a hex bolt (supposed to be a T50) It’s not!!!! lol I do have the anti sway bar taken out. So that’s a good thing! Here are some pics. I’ll keep them coming. I will keep you guys updated.

 

[HotWheelsBurban]

So we are off and running. No turning back now. However it wouldn’t be a project for me if there weren’t issues. My steering gear box has some type of torx bolt holding it to the steering arm so I am trying to find a socket that fits that. The brake calipers are also held on with a hex bolt (supposed to be a T50) It’s not!!!! lol I do have the anti sway bar taken out. So that’s a good thing! Here are some pics. I’ll keep them coming. I will keep you guys updated.

The calipers on our R2500 (2wd) square body Burb had the 3/8" hex/Allen head bolts holding them on, just like the half ton Burbs. My one ton OBS Crew Cab has those bolts (same head anyway, bolt shaft is different). I haven't seen any GM truck calipers with Torx head bolts other than the NBS/GMT 800 '06 Burb; those are T55.

 

[squaredeal91]

Photos 5

 

[bucket]

So we are off and running. No turning back now. However it wouldn’t be a project for me if there weren’t issues. My steering gear box has some type of torx bolt holding it to the steering arm so I am trying to find a socket that fits that. The brake calipers are also held on with a hex bolt (supposed to be a T50) It’s not!!!! lol I do have the anti sway bar taken out. So that’s a good thing! Here are some pics. I’ll keep them coming. I will keep you guys updated.

The caliper bolts aren't supposed to be torx, they are supposed to take a 3/8" Allen key.

What bolt are you talking about on the steering box? Whatever it is you are referring to is likely just a 12 point head and you just need a 12 point socket.

 

[TheHoundsman]

The caliper bolts aren't supposed to be torx, they are supposed to take a 3/8" Allen key.

What bolt are you talking about on the steering box? Whatever it is you are referring to is likely just a 12 point head and you just need a 12 point socket.

I think you might be right I have 12 point sockets but it is so tight i need a thinner deep well socket. Below are the best pics I could get.

 

[TheHoundsman]

The caliper bolts aren't supposed to be torx, they are supposed to take a 3/8" Allen key.

What bolt are you talking about on the steering box? Whatever it is you are referring to is likely just a 12 point head and you just need a 12 point socket.

Also your were right it was just an Allen Thanks

 

[TheHoundsman]

So day one is in the books. Let’s say it wasn’t easy and I had to come in the house and jump on you tube A LOT and look up one thing after another. I couldn’t get the lower ball joint to break free, I couldn’t get the axel shafts out, I couldn’t the spindle back on. The good news is I learned a lot and it should all help me when I do the drivers side. I really appreciate all the advise you guys are offering. It has truly been a huge help. I’ll put some picture up from today’s adventure.

 

[TheHoundsman]

Day 1

 

[TheHoundsman]

Day 1

 

[TheHoundsman]

Day 1

 

[bucket]

I think you might be right I have 12 point sockets but it is so tight i need a thinner deep well socket. Below are the best pics I could get.

Yep, that's just a 7/16" or 11mm head that is 12 point. A 3/8" drive, short socket with an extension on it works well.

Front axle work like that is definitely not an easy task for someone that has never done that type of work before.

 

[TheHoundsman]

Yep, that's just a 7/16" or 11mm head that is 12 point. A 3/8" drive, short socket with an extension on it works well.

Front axle work like that is definitely not an easy task for someone that has never done that type of work before.

Feeling pretty good about what I got done today. Mounting the support brace for the steering box is probably not going to be easy but when I get to that point I will hopefully be close to the end.

 

[edgephoto]

I think you might be right I have 12 point sockets but it is so tight i need a thinner deep well socket. Below are the best pics I could get.

Yep, a 12 point head bolt. Snap-On sockets are thin enough. Or just take a bench grinder to a junk socket like a Craftsman or Husky.