Three on the tree linkage

[Dlowrider]

Hey everyone, I own a 70 C10 250cid 3 on the tree. Everything works but when its cold the shifter is really hard to move forward and backward. I think its just 39 year old grease if so can anyone know the best way to clean off the old grease. And does the column need to be regreased?

[oldblue1968chevy]

ima try to take mine apart tomorow ive adjusted everything but ima tear downt he column..

[roger0080]

Oh man you just jogged my memory on that stiffness part with the 3spd setup! That was a long time ago for me.

IF I recall correctly, we use to spray WD40 either in at the shifter lever where it pivots on the column inside the cab or down on the levers/linkage on the column in the engine compartment, or both probably.

[PanelDeland]

Use a good degreaser in the linkage area of the column where it sshifts.Then wash it out at the carewash.Lube it with a good grease,or spray Lithium and adjust per the instruction in the FAQ index provided by member "Krue".This should get you to be a little less "Shiftless"

[Dlowrider]

Thank all of you for the replies, found the information I was looking for. This site is great.

[northerngmc]

We have been talking 3 on the tree in this thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=368064

As I posted there I had the same problem and last Saturday I finally took the column right out of the truck, and poured varsol through the column, than relubed, reinstalled, readjusted and now you can shift with one finger. Took me a friend about 2 1/2 hours.

Feel free to post questions about the procedure or pm me directly.

Good luck and well worth the effort.

[oldblue1968chevy]

ive got mine all apart.... mostly
how do you get the shifter tube that fits around the steering stem out???!!?!?

ima clean it up and look for worn spots?

I havent disconected any linkage under the hood..should I????

When you guys say your taking the column out and washing it, do you mean the whole steering column or just the shifter tube?

HELP thanks! sorry about the typing my hands are cold.

[northerngmc]

Originally Posted by oldblue1968chevy

ive got mine all apart.... mostly
how do you get the shifter tube that fits around the steering stem out???!!?!?

ima clean it up and look for worn spots?

I havent disconected any linkage under the hood..should I????

When you guys say your taking the column out and washing it, do you mean the whole steering column or just the shifter tube?

HELP thanks! sorry about the typing my hands are cold.

I did not disassemble the shifter tubes out of the column when I did mine last weekend. I simply put the bottom end in a bucket and poured varsol through the tubes and moved them back and forth. I used a turkey baster to flush the varsol through without spilling it everywhere, sort of a poor mans parts washer.

[northerngmc]

Originally Posted by oldblue1968chevy

I havent disconected any linkage under the hood..should I????

So is your column still in the truck? Did you just remove the steering wheel and disconnect it at the bottom and pull out the steering shaft?

[oldblue1968chevy]

I took steering wheel all the turnsignal stuff off

HOW DO YOU DISCONNECT IT AT THE BOTTOM?

SHOULD I DO WAT YOU DID TAKE IT OUT AND POOR STUFF THRU IT?

Sorry im going nuts over this lol

its haning up between 1-2 gear everyting else is fine. I did the FAQ adjustments it helped some.

wat should i do thatnks

[northerngmc]

Originally Posted by oldblue1968chevy

I took steering wheel all the turnsignal stuff off

HOW DO YOU DISCONNECT IT AT THE BOTTOM?

SHOULD I DO WAT YOU DID TAKE IT OUT AND POOR STUFF THRU IT?

Sorry im going nuts over this lol

its haning up between 1-2 gear everyting else is fine. I did the FAQ adjustments it helped some.

wat should i do thatnks

I have found that the first part is usually a plan!

I disconnected mine at the rag joint ( where it hooks to the steering box) with two bolts. But do you have the steering shaft already out of the column?

And I disconnected the shifter linkages, each has a bolt that holds them on.

There is also a clamp on the firewall, under the hood, that holds the column up and in place. I needed to remove the bolt holding the band onto it, and I needed to remove the bracket ( held with two bolts) from the firewall to get the column out.

[northerngmc]

I took mine out and washed it because it was very stiff to pull the shifter back into the first/reverse position. If your shifter is easy to pull it back into first/reverse then I wouldn't worry about trying to flush dirt out of the column tube itself.

I would be trying to adjust the shifters if it is hanging up into multiple gears.

You mention that you have tried the alignment procedure in the FAQ section. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=215307 Did you do both parts of the adjusting where you loosen the lower bolts and tighten the slack and adjust the shifter rods? If you are having trouble with it hanging up between gears while shifting then this is where you need to spend your time. Possibly your bushing is worn and you can't adjust the slack out and that is causing the problem.