Is my steering box bad?
- Thread starter Buddha.
- Start date
twodollars
Active member
I guess I have lucked out on rebuilt boxes. Replaced a couple in 90s 2500 burbs, no issues. Stinks that you got a turd.
Buddha.
Finally in expo white.
Got the redhead delivered and installed today. It’s much better. I tried my best to install it the same as original again so the wheel would be straight, no dice. Oh well.
Went a little faster the second time. Saved some time not removing the skid plates or driver side tire.
Went a little faster the second time. Saved some time not removing the skid plates or driver side tire.
Buddha.
Finally in expo white.
Wanting to re use my new $140 pitman arm I tried my little gear puller, didn’t work. Ended up using the pickle fork under one side and the the other.
Getting the pitman arm off the original rusty box for core return was fun. Put two MAP gas torches on it for ten minutes and then wailed on it for a couple mins with the three pounder and it popped off.
Getting the pitman arm off the original rusty box for core return was fun. Put two MAP gas torches on it for ten minutes and then wailed on it for a couple mins with the three pounder and it popped off.
Buddha.
Finally in expo white.
The crappy rebuilt one came with new o rings, the redhead did not interestingly.
The big nut on the gear box is 1-11/16, not the 1-5/16 that the previous generation was. Also no one could find me a new one of those nuts.
I’m a little annoyed that the gear box has been worn out since ~100k miles. Everything else is still tight at 160k.
The big nut on the gear box is 1-11/16, not the 1-5/16 that the previous generation was. Also no one could find me a new one of those nuts.
I’m a little annoyed that the gear box has been worn out since ~100k miles. Everything else is still tight at 160k.
Buddha.
Finally in expo white.
Oh dam, I should have looked in there.
I’ll look for them when I package everything up for return.
Buddha.
Finally in expo white.
So after a few days driving with the new box it was sloppy again. I admitted defeat and scheduled a time to bring it into the pros.
Long story short he tightened the bolt up on the steering shaft to steering gear and the steering is tight again, for now. He mentioned that the shaft might be worn out due to the bolt being loose and sloppy. He could not source a new shaft. Napa was supposed to have one for me last week and I'm still waiting.
This just leaves me with more questions.
At no point when I uninstalled the previous steering boxes did it seem like that bolt was loose. I used Loctite on it and tightened it up sufficiently both times I installed the new steering gears. The steering felt tight after I installed the previous boxes and then got sloppy. This leads me to believe that it wont maintain tightness, for whatever reason.
Was the original steering box worn out or was it always that bolt? If so why did that bolt loosen in the first place? I've been driving the truck with loose steering for two years, shouldn't that bolt have fell completely out by now?
I assume my cheapo rockauto steering gear was in fact fine and not worn out. By this point they they wouldn't accept a return and would only warranty it by replacing it with a new one that I didn't need anymore.
TLDR, I've spent somewhere in the nieborhood of a grand and it still might not be fixed.
Long story short he tightened the bolt up on the steering shaft to steering gear and the steering is tight again, for now. He mentioned that the shaft might be worn out due to the bolt being loose and sloppy. He could not source a new shaft. Napa was supposed to have one for me last week and I'm still waiting.
This just leaves me with more questions.
At no point when I uninstalled the previous steering boxes did it seem like that bolt was loose. I used Loctite on it and tightened it up sufficiently both times I installed the new steering gears. The steering felt tight after I installed the previous boxes and then got sloppy. This leads me to believe that it wont maintain tightness, for whatever reason.
Was the original steering box worn out or was it always that bolt? If so why did that bolt loosen in the first place? I've been driving the truck with loose steering for two years, shouldn't that bolt have fell completely out by now?
I assume my cheapo rockauto steering gear was in fact fine and not worn out. By this point they they wouldn't accept a return and would only warranty it by replacing it with a new one that I didn't need anymore.
TLDR, I've spent somewhere in the nieborhood of a grand and it still might not be fixed.
Last edited:
Buddha.
Finally in expo white.
It's impossible to tell from the video I made if the shaft was loose on the original steering gear. I should have pulled the skid plates off and observed it from underneath as someone turned the wheel. Its very awkward to get to it from up top. You have to stand on a stepstool to get up there and then bend completely in half to get down to the gear.
I know this is way late, but in case anyone else stumbles on this:
After you've checked everything else and confirmed that it's tight, adjusting the box is totally straightforward. There is a point at which the slop can no longer be adjusted out, but until that point, it's completely proper to adjust the lash as it wears.
Just hold the hex head adjuster in place, loosen the jam nut, and turn the adjuster clockwise 1/4 turn. Tighten the jam nut while you hold the adjuster in place. Take it for a test drive.
Your goal is to remove MOST of the extra play on center while not affecting the overall stiffness and return to center. By doing it 1/4 turn at a time, it should be easy to not go too far.
The simple adjustment can make a massive difference.
1stDeuce
Explorer
cbattles,
You are correct that there is one adjustment that's pretty easy to make that can take some lash out of an older box with a lot of miles on it, but 1/4 turn is a LOT of adjustment for this bolt. Usually turning it just 1/16 or 1/8 turn is enough. If you go too much, you'll notice that the steering "sticks", and you have no return to center. You'll be "herding" the truck down the road constantly...
Buddha,
Glad you found the issue! That bolt should have had a factory locktite patch on it... Not sure what would have it coming loose...
Might want to say where you are, roughly... Someone here might be looking for a reman box and could take the rockauto unit off your hands. If that box was truly loose, you would notice that you can shake the pitman arm a bit. (Which means nobody probably wants it...) What was the steering feel like on the reman box anyway? I'm still wondering why the unit we put in our brush truck has absolutely no steering feel.
You are correct that there is one adjustment that's pretty easy to make that can take some lash out of an older box with a lot of miles on it, but 1/4 turn is a LOT of adjustment for this bolt. Usually turning it just 1/16 or 1/8 turn is enough. If you go too much, you'll notice that the steering "sticks", and you have no return to center. You'll be "herding" the truck down the road constantly...
Buddha,
Glad you found the issue! That bolt should have had a factory locktite patch on it... Not sure what would have it coming loose...
Might want to say where you are, roughly... Someone here might be looking for a reman box and could take the rockauto unit off your hands. If that box was truly loose, you would notice that you can shake the pitman arm a bit. (Which means nobody probably wants it...) What was the steering feel like on the reman box anyway? I'm still wondering why the unit we put in our brush truck has absolutely no steering feel.
As I noted: "Your goal is to remove MOST of the extra play on center while not affecting the overall stiffness and return to center."
In fairness, I'm really not sure how you can precisely regulate it to 1/16 of a turn. My point was, turn it a small amount and then drive it. There should still be a VERY SMALL "dead spot" right in the center when you're done and it should still return to center very easily. If you go too far, back it off. If it's still sloppy, go a little more. Rinse and repeat. In my experience, going about 1/4 turn at a time gets you there within a couple of iterations.
Buddha.
Finally in expo white.
It felt like the steering shaft wasn’t connected to anything for the first inch of turning, I suppose.
It seems to still be fixed. Not sure how the bolt loosend up by itself or why I wasn’t able to tighten it properly.