Mack Crab Bracket Bearing.

Mack Crab Bracket Bearing

Over many years of experiencing premature failure of input seals on steering boxes fitted with a supporting bracket lead Hydrosteer to develop our Mack Crab Bracket Bearing. This bearing has been designed to eliminate the root cause of premature input seal failure and improve the driveability of the commercial or heavy vehicle.

It is designed to work with, and allow for, the natural movement induced by the universal joint as it rotates activating the steering gear input. The universal joint / shaft design induces side and end loading onto the input shaft of the steering gear.

By allowing for the natural movement, the Mack Crab Bracket Bearing design minimises side loads on the input shaft, which extends the input shaft and seal life significantly.

Typical Arrangement of Crab Bracket Bearing

What’s more the Mack Crab Bracket bearing is fully serviceable and greasable. This is a critical point when the bearing arrangement is fully exposed to the elements in the engine bay, facing the full gamut of environmental and road conditions encountered on Australian roads.

The result is improved steering box input shaft seal life as well as significantly reducing overall system friction. Reduced system friction in turn improves drivability, including self centering. It also can be the root cause of other steering problems such as lumpy steering or motoring steering gears.
The Mack Crab Bracket Bearings are designed and manufactured out of quality components in Australia. It suits

R600, R700 and CH Macks

with inside chassis mounted steering gears. Because of the mounting of these steering gears inside the chassis rail they are particularly difficult and expensive to remove and reinstall. Extending the life of the steering gear can delay this cost significantly.