Steering Slop
 

Hate to be a pain but. quick question, lately i have been feeling my steering is getting a little loose.... in my 67 its non power steering...i looked at everything and all seems fine , greased everything today and drove it, its the same...im thinking it may be the Pitman Arm? .. any good way to tell would be great. also is there really anything that can go wrong with my steering box? other than worn out from age?

Re: Steering Slop
 

the rag joint can turn to rags.

park the truck and have someone steer the wheel back and forth while you lay in front and look for slop.
if you still don't see it, park with the front wheels sunk in mud, and repeat.
Also check all alignment shims are still there and tight.
jack it up and check for play in wheel bearings, balljoints ,and a arm bushings.

Re: Steering Slop
 

thank ya will do

Re: Steering Slop
 

Also, there is a nut on top of the steering gear box that you can loosen then tighen the screw in the center of that nut then tighen it back down but don't do it too tight because you can cause premature wear on your gears.

Re: Steering Slop
 

ok great tips guys.. it kinda feels like its out of alignment, but i had that done about 4,000 miles ago...and it doesnt pull. my 72 had this problem but it wasnt this much....i replaced the Pitman Arm and all was well. im gonna try what you guys said first thing tomorrow


Edit: thanks again Tony

Re: Steering Slop
 

IMO, this would be a good time to switch to power steering...unless your a pro wrestler.

Re: Steering Slop
 

Um why yes Dan42 i am a Pro wrestler you didnt know that ? they call me Tator Salad lol...:lol:yeah the P.O gave me a new box and pump... i will post some pics after work tomorrow and see if it the right one.... he said he took it off a 6cyl truck....but im not shure.... i do have the dimples in my frame but im ot shure on what i will need to do the swap..........

Re: Steering Slop
 

i checked everything over real good tonight,and i still cant see anything wrong??? i did notice that it pulls alittle to the right, just going down the road and pulls a little to the left on braking?? i think im pretty smart but i cant fingure this out for nothing......ever heard of this???....my step dad keeps on saying wheel bearings? to my knowledge they are original so i know it couldnt hurt to replace them ...but about 5,000 miles ago when i did the brakes i did repack them and everything then looked good......

Re: Steering Slop
 

Do you have disc brakes on that truck?
If so you can pull the caliper off and tie it out of the way, then you will have a better 'ear' for what the bearing is doing.
Wheel bearing fail in 3 ways.

#1 loose adjuster - there should be 1-10/1000" in and out play in the hub &the nut should be a little shy of finger tight.

#2 contamination/impact/no lube damage - If its making crunchy noises, its had, most likely needs both inner and outer bearings.

#3 Hub failure - This one is sneaky, sometimes the hub surface the race is supposed to press into becomes loose, the bearing is fine, but won't hold adjustment. usually the inner bearing.

#4 Not exactly wheel bearing, but sometimes the spindle will be too worn where the inner race rides on it.

Neither the idler arm or pitman arm should have any up and down play.
Just a few thoughts.

Re: Steering Slop
 

Might be the road you are using. If there is a crown to the road, you'll need to steer left a little bit since you are not quite level and this can reverse when on the brakes. Wide tires and wheels with a big offset (to the outside , deep dish, etc) can make that worse as well.

Is there a 'deadband' in the steering? In other words, can you move the wheel some amount and nothing happens?

Re: Steering Slop
 

yeah i can turn the wheel a little and nothing happens, its when its in the center and from when i go left to right...i done this while looking outside the truck and it took a longer turn to make anything move....lol am i making sence????

Re: Steering Slop
 

It sounds to me like the gear box is worn pretty bad. I had similar issues with the one in the C/20 I just got and wound up switching it to power steering.
Mine was leaking that heavy oil as well so changing it out with something was gonna happen anyway, and switching to power steering was the right move for me.

Frank

Re: Steering Slop
 

I had the same issue in my C10... There was a lot of back and forth movement in the steering wheel and it was a real chore to keep it driving in a straight line. At that point, I had replaced the entire front end with the exception of the steering box.

This past year I completely rebuilt the truck and replaced the steering box. I also replaced the factory style steering shaft and rag joint with Borgeson steering components and it is like driving a new truck.

Re: Steering Slop
 

i have a power steering unit that the P.O gave me..he said he took it off a 6cyl truck and it looks differnt from my 72, i will take an inventory tonight and see what i do have , the old guy was about 75-80 and baught the thing new. so i will try and get few photos for you guys to maybe help me identify what i have and if its correct....thanks again tony