Short little tutorial on porting for hydro assist.

[Vbb199]

Use your eye for extra detail In where my screwdriver is pointing. We're aiming for that vein for 1 of the hydraulic ports.


Along the black line is where the vein runs. We're wanting to hit that.
No pun intended for the ex users out there [emoji16]

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[Vbb199]

I marked my spots where I drilled and tapped. You don't have to, but it's kind of a visual guide.
On the topmost marked location its "no as critical" where the hole lands, but you MUST insure that it lands within the area I marked with a marker in the second picture.

Drill to far to the right and you've struck the sealing surface of the worm shaft assembly, go to far to the left, and you're hitting another sealing area. This isn't too hard.
The bottom hole is what's critical mainly.

Notice in the 3rd picture where my top hole landed.
It's in the cavity (see the screw driver?)

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[Vbb199]

I want to point out, anywhere within that cavity you see in the previous 3rd photo you can port it, but where i have it is an easier location to hit.

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[Vbb199]

So back to this photo. Because I can't stress enough the importance of the bottom hole,
Take your time on that one.

3rd photo you'll notice how my drilled and tapped hole landed perfectly on center of the vein.

F

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[Vbb199]

For this, you'll want to go with a 1/4 pipe tap.
The tap drill size is a 7/16 drill.
But I ask that you use a spot drill first,

Don't take this as the gospel, just start with a slightly smaller drill than 7/16.
I used a 13/64 to pilot the 7/16.

Now admittedly. I did use a 27/64 drill instead of a 7/16.
Why might you ask? Because it'll allow for a little tighter fit on the pipe fittings, and 2. If ya know anything about drill at all, if you drill with a 7/16 drill with a hand drill, it'll make it oversized. So it won't truly be .4375, it'll be larger. So I used .4218, with expectation it'll grow a little, maybe at .430, and fittings will fit tighter.

3rd picture is the evidence.
It measures .429.

Take caution when you step up to the 7/16 (or 27/74) when drilling into the vein, you can really screw it all up being a bulldick.

Look at the 4th photo, take note of my drill depth. Slightly past the vein.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE take your time, you can easily ruin your box and drill thru to the other side on the bottom hole that taps the vein.

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[Vbb199]

Notice I have 2 taps, one shorter than the other, both of them being 1/4 pipe.
One of them is choppd down because the hole that taps into the vein you CANNOT get a full length tape very far in, you use the chopped down tape to finish the threads out.

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[Vbb199]

I used the power drill on a LOW clutch setting, in back gear, and carefully tapped it to get it started, I wouldn't recommend anyone else does that, just use a tape handle, but if you've got the eye to line it up perfectly, go for it.

Again, don't be a bulldick with it. You can damage the threads, or snap the tap off.
Apply pressure while tapping into the cast iron, if you *****-wrist it, it'll just spin in the hole and wollar it out making it useless.
Yes, I said don't be a bulldick, then said don't *****-wrist it.
I'm saying don't be "that guy" that uses a 1" impact and crams it in. But don't be the guy that's afraid of it and just stripps the threads out.


2nd photo, I've tapped into the vein, (lol)
Very carefully run in the shorter tap, if you find you can't insert it, you may not have tapped with the full length one deep enough.
If the full length tap is bottomed out, CAREFULLY drill a little deeper, go back with the tap, try again. If you come up and tell me you drilled all the way thru, then you probably shouldnt be doing this little DIY.

You'll only get about 4-5 threads in vein hole, where as the top cavity hole, you'll get the full tap in.

4th photo gives you an idea of how deep the tap goes. About a 1/2 deep.

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[Vbb199]

If you did it right, you should be able to screw in a 1/4 ntp fitting in, if for some reason it's not fitting, drill out the hole a little more, and then run your tap back in a little deeper.
If you can throw the 1/4 ntp fitting thru it, you can go ahead and throw it away. You trashed it.

Now you may ask, why use 1/4 and not 3/8 for you big 2x10 ram? My answer? If you have it flowing too much, it can cavitate the box if your pump is factory.

Also a 3/8 pipe fitting won't really work well when tapping into the vein.

For most of you gentlemen out there, you're gonna be using a 1x whatever ram for your dana 60 or 44, and won't need 3/8 anyways.

Ideally, you want to find yourself a "90 degree reducer, so you can neatly run your hydraulic lines along side the steering box, and down to the ram.

I'll be using a 90 degree 1/4 Male to 3/8 female because my 2x10 ram uses 3/8 pipe fittings.

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[Vbb199]

I would recommend brazing on the pipe fittings after you've secured them to the box, to ensure they don't back out somehow and you piss out all the fluid.

Ensure you route them in a way that doesnt have rocks and **** snapping off the fittings.


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[Vbb199]

For your rebuild, here's what I used, it's precision brand. There's also another brand at oreillys that's 50$, whatever you want. Doesn't matter.

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[Vbb199]

Now, for the last part.
PLEASE PAY ATTENTION AND HEED MY WORDS!!

You're all excited, you have it drilled and tapped for hydro assist, you followed along with what Vince said, whatever, or you did it your own way (there's other places you can drill and tap)

REMEMBER
After drilling and tapping cast iron, you've created little chips that have went all in your box, and it's veins, and everywhere else.
DON'T be a ******* and drill and tap it with it assembled.

You can put a magnet on your drill and it'll help catch alot of the chips.
I'd you've ever drilled out a valve cover bolt, or a head bolt with the engine assembled in frame you'll know the importance of the magnet. Lol

After drilling and tapping, whip out the air gun, and THROUGHLY blast out the vein you tapped into, and all the insides of your box.
I used starting fluid in all of the veins and inside of the box, then went back behind with the air gun, I kept blasting it out until nothing came out anymore. You don't want little pieces of cast iron going into the hydraulic system.
It'll spell certain disaster

Again, notice the hole my screw drive is pointed to, that's what you just tapped. BLAST IT OUT!!!

DOUBLE, TRIPLE, QUADRUPLE clean it out if you have to, you just DO NOT want cast iron chips in your hydraulic system.

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[Vbb199]

I think this concludes the little tutorial of porting for hydro assist.
Once my new kit arrives at 4 today, I'll maybe post up a second part about putting it together.

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[Vbb199]

I want to also say to you folks, there is modifications you can make to your box and pump to make it flower faster, so you don't have a slow hydraulic ram, but..... I'm not going to show how to do it. I won't because there will be that 1 guy that screws up and drills thru his box, or damages a check valve, or whatever and blames me.

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[idahovette]

WOW ,great write up!! Never will I do this but now I know how!! You would make a pretty good instructor, if you ever chose to.

 

[Vbb199]

With a little reading on the web, there's guys out there that have increased flow, I just don't want to be the one who's responsible for you damaging your box.

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