Outdoor Power Equipment and Small Engines - MTD Yard Machines 660 Steering Shaft

I have a MTD Yard Machines Lawn tractor model 13AM660F062. The steering has been real bad on it recently, so I checked and it looks like the 'gear' part of the bottom of the steering shaft is pretty chewed up. I went ahead and order the replacement part but I am having a heck of a time getting the old one off. I took the steering wheel off, but can't seem to get the screw (large phillips head) off the bottom of the mower. The pedal bar is in the way. A few questions:

Any trick to this?
Do I have to take the deck off or the pedal bar off?
How does the steering shaft slide out once the screw is out.
It can't go up because the hole in the consel is too small to slide through and it looks like the hole in the bottom above the deck is too small as well. Do I have to remove the whole steering area?
Might this job be too big for me to tackle?

Thanks for the help!

A very frustrated, Joe.

Most owner's manuals have a parts diagram that will show enough info so you can figure out the way to remove it.

Joe, About that steering shaft...did you ever get it resolved? I am in the same predicament/same series tractor. I think you have no choice but to remove the deck just to access the bottom nut & slide the shaft out. It would be so much easier to simply design the shaft to come thru the top steering column bushing but it is what it is. How did you do the replacement? was it a read pain in the rump? Thanks in advance! Scott