Power Steering Start up - is priming necessary?

[68neverlate]

I've bought new hoses for, and replaced the seals in, my power steering pump and am ready to reinstall into my 68 Charger. 

Other than making sure that the pump doesn't run dry, is there anything I should be aware of as far as start-up procedures are concerned to avoid air locks/other problems (turning pump manually to prime before starting the engine, bleeding air out [if so, how] etc.)?   

Appreciate whatever direction you guys could give... 

[Charger_Fan]

Yes, there will be plenty of trapped air in there. The best way I've found to burp the air is this;
Attach both hoses & fill the pump. Then, with the front wheels off the ground & engine off, turn the wheel back & forth from lock-to-lock a half dozen times. Double check the pump to make sure it remains full. Then start the engine for a few seconds, shut it off & repeat the left to right stuff. Make sure the pump remains full.
Do that 3 or 4 times & you should have most (if not all) of the air purged. If the pump whines a little, it should finish self purging shortly, while driving.

[68neverlate]

Perfect... thanks CF.   

I guess the air just bubbles off inside the resevoir then?  Do you need the cap on when the engine is running for those few seconds each time?

[Charger_Fan]

Yep, the air just ends up in the reservior. I would definitely screw the cap on while doing this.

[68neverlate]

Excellent... thanks again CF!   

Any tricks/tips on how to get the belt tension set without prying against the pump and denting the reservoir (that's why it was leaking in the first place, previous owner pulled a whoops!)?   

[terrible one]

Excellent... thanks again CF!   

Any tricks/tips on how to get the belt tension set without prying against the pump and denting the reservoir (that's why it was leaking in the first place, previous owner pulled a whoops!)?   

The belt shouldn't be very tight. I just loosened the bolt that allows the pivot, put the belt on there, then pulled the pump snug with my hand and tightened the bolt back with the other.

[68neverlate]

Does that produce enough tension to avoid belt slippage?    

[FLG]

The pump bracket should have a square hole in it so you can put a 1/2" drive ratchet in there and hold tension.

[68neverlate]

OK, thanks guys.  Appreciate the help.   

[68neverlate]

Just thought I'd give you guys an update on this... I completed the work on this this weekend.  I followed all the suggestions in this post and for the most part, everything went pretty smooth.  This is the procedure I used for reassembly:

1)  Assembled pump and attached mounting brackets
2)  Installed pump by threading mounting bracket bolts on (did not tighten)
3)  Attached both ends of the return hose line
4)  Attached the high pressure hose line to the pump only
5)  Fill reservoir with power steering fluid
6)  Placed other end of the high pressure hose into a plastic cup and rotated the pump pulley manually until primed (minimized air going into gearbox)
7)  Attached other end of high pressure hose to steering gearbox
#8)  Used a 1/2" drive ratchet on the square hole in the mounting bracket to pull the pump up and tension the belt.  Tightened mounting bracket bolts.
9)  Jacked car up so front wheels were off the ground. 
10) Rotated steering wheel back and forth 6 times.
11) Placed cap on pump.  Removed coil wire from coil so engine would not start.  Cranked engine for 10 seconds.
12) Removed cap and topped up with steering fluid if needed.  Repeated step 9, 10 and 11 four times.
13) Reconnected coil wire to coil and started engine.  While running, rotated steering wheel back and forth 6 times.

The only blip I encountered was a spill of a fairly large amount of power steering fluid onto the floor when I started my engine in step 12, despite having the cap on.  I believe this happened because of air trapped in the return hose line.  When it hit the reservoir, it raised the level of fluid, overflowed and spilled out through the cap (down the back of the pump).  Once that air was through, no more spills or leaks! 

Overall a great day... I now have a power steering pump and high pressure hose free from leaks!    Thanks for all your assistance on this guys... appreciate the help!   

Cheers,     

[Charger_Fan]

Glad it worked well for ya.
I haven't had one overflow & spill like yours did, that's odd. You're probably right, that there was an air bubble still in there. I would have thought your thorough procedure would have taken care of it, but it sounds like there was still one lurking in there.