[Jim Boy]

I just finished re&re the steering column. My shifter was getting harder and harder to manipulate. I had the thing out back in 2004 when I did the truck the first time. Over time and dusty roads crap builds up. As I am a grease nut and grease everything even if it doesn't move just in case it decides too, it won't hurt itself, the grease attracts particles. I had the truck in for paint back in the fall and they did a lot of media blasting, above the windshield and all over the engine compartment. When I got it back the stuff was in everything, wasn't too happy but a good job so can't complain eh! The shifter was hard to shift when I took it in and worse when it came back. We got a real cold snap and bingo no ticky no worky. I mean not an inch of movement in the shifter. I thought at first it was in the trany being so hard to shift. I disconnected the linkages and the shifter wouldn't move. It was in the column. I thought by the linkage arms was pretty sick looking with grease and media mixed to a perfect sludge reminding me of valve grinding compound but it turned out to be at the top where the shifter arm enters the column. Yes the media crap got in there as well. Works like a dream now and there was two lessons learned. One is to take the sterring wheele off and do a check at the top of the column, could save one a heck of a lot of work and two is to ease up on the grease gun which is going to be hard to do as I try to build a wall to keep out the salt from the roads. Have a good day eh!