I had my PS pump and gearbox rebuilt and just installed them on the car. I don't have the car running yet but am following the directions in the manual. It says to fill the reservoir with ATF fluid and bleed the pump by turning the pulley counter clockwise until the bubbles disappear. I never got any bubbles no matter which way I turned it. I loosened the high pressure hose at the gearbox a bit to verify that fluid is down there. I also don't feel much (any?) resistance when I turn the pulley. Should I? Will it not bleed completely until the steering wheel gets turned under power? Would like to get this put to bed before moving on to bigger challenges. Thanks

 

If a 59 is like a 55 or any other power steering box I have fooled with, it will bleed it's self by turning it from lock to lock after its running. I've never heard of bleeding a pump by hand and I can't think of a reason why it would matter. If someone knows for sure please chime in as I always up to learn something new....Lost in the fifties ...Tedd

 

I don't see how you can 'bleed' the system by turning the pulley by hand- especially when it's measuring about 1000 psi under normal running conditions. Just run the engine, turn right, turn left, and you might be surprised how much the fluid level will drop. Last note- there really isn't much resistance when I was spinning a pulley on a 394 with the belt off and fluid in the reservoir

 

Thanks gents. I'll wait until I get it running, hopefully in a week or so!