power steering on a '53 Dragon

[jmxkf1]

Hi,
I reviewed the shop manual for power steering but have questions.  Does driving the car with no oil in reservoir cause damage?   When the car was delivered a couple weeks ago I could tell something was wrong since too hard to steer.   No oil was in the steering.   I add oil and now there's a lot of noise turning the wheel.   At some point, when the DMV opens I'll be able to get tags to actually drive around to see if I can make the noise go away but I thought I'd check with everybody ahead of time. 
Is there someone in the club I can contact with power steering questions?  Who made these units for Kaiser?   If it's one of the big 3 then I could find someone local to work on it if needed. 
I haven't tried the troubleshooting suggestions yet.       Thanks,  Jim

[joefrazer]

Monroe produced the power steering units for KF. None of the other contemporary makes used the same unit although I've heard a late 50s Rambler unit is close. Likely the noise you're hearing is coming from the pump - there are just two major units to the system, the pump and the ram which is the unit that controls wheel direction.

Pumps can be rebuilt and perhaps one of the other folks who frequent this page can help with a suitable rebuilder.

Here's a link to an online version of the power steering shop manual - http://circlekf.com/index_dept.php?sid=132721&dp=publicity&yr=all&mk=all&cls=all&chk=la&pub=KF&typ=SM&nbr=710&mg=all&modID=242&srcID=1789&action=source_detail

[konrad]

Monroe produced the power steering units for KF. None of the other contemporary makes used the same unit although I've heard a late 50s Rambler unit is close. Likely the noise you're hearing is coming from the pump - there are just two major units to the system, the pump and the ram which is the unit that controls wheel direction.

Pumps can be rebuilt and perhaps one of the other folks who frequent this page can help with a suitable rebuilder.

Here's a link to an online version of the power steering shop manual - http://circlekf.com/index_dept.php?sid=132721&dp=publicity&yr=all&mk=all&cls=all&chk=la&pub=KF&typ=SM&nbr=710&mg=all&modID=242&srcID=1789&action=source_detail

Joe, I know it was 53 when Kaiser started offering power steering.  Do you know, can these Monroe units be used on earlier Kaisers, or easily retrofitted for them?

Thank you sir, for all the knowledge you share with us!

Er...after reading through the ps shop manual you linked to, I'm going to infer it is not an easy transition to adapt to an earlier Kaiser model.  Changes to the water pump, moving the radiator, even by 5/8", new tie rods...seems such modifications would be better made in a resto project, or if you desperately want power steering on an earlier model. 

[kaiserkid]

Lots of noise, is probably the air being pushed out of the system. Fill the reservoir to the full mark and work the wheel back and forth. Lock to lock. Check the fluid and refill. It may take a few minutes before the air is pushed out. Check for leaks, as the system shouldn't have gone dry.

[jmxkf1]

Thanks to all for your great information.  I'll be following up on suggestions.    Jim