Rick Beem
I for one appreciate the pictures/info. I have this same job to do in the near future after my repower of my 1450 is complete (which is getting very close by the way) The oilite bushing is a great idea, I wonder how a small bearing would work in this application ? I have never dug into one, so would it need to be a thrust type bearing, or a ball bearing for the type of load presented ? Was the parts that clean on your steering, or is that a load of work into cleaning all that up, also a drill will really help clean those center holes out with a cheapo gun cleaning kit using the correct sized brass brush. I use a drill combined with brass brush often while working on older stuff, and have it sitting on the 1450 seat right now, it's great for cleaning out threaded holes etc, then go back with some anti seize, anti seize is also a great lube for bushings etc.
Someone cross threaded or used the wrong nut on my 1450 steering wheel nut, so now I will have to chase the threads or conjure up a die to chase them out with, I hope someone has the correct thread size/pitch in the future when I start on that. I also noticed a good bit of movement on the cross member on the frame when turning the steering wheel, I guess this will also need beefed up some, and while I'm at it I plan to check/replace the pivot bushing for the front axle, new ball joints etc..