Sloppy Steering

[Bostonlocalbulldog]

I have a barn fresh 1986 K-20 wih 19K original miles but the steering is remarkably sloppy. Are there any adjustments I can make or am I looking at a steering box replacement? Something else?

[Rogue_Alphonse]

I always forget what it's called but the arm that goes from the box to the pitman arm is usually a major fix. AZ or Advance sells it in two pieces.

WHen I replaced the one on my Gimmer, I took a pic of the amount of threads AND measured how far out of the collar it was, and did one end at a time. The original collar was re-usable. The steering wheel was dead straight when I was done and the steering...well I felt like I was in a top heavy Ferrari at first!

[spencer_41188]

red circle is where you adjust the steering

[donut]

Make sure the rest of the front end components are in good shape first. Adjusting the steering box won't do you any good if the ball joints/rod ends are all junk, and may harm the box more than fixing anything.

[Bostonlocalbulldog]

What is the adjustment?

[Keith Seymore]

There are two adjustments on a steering gear: the "preload" (adjusted by the big nut which goes around the steering shaft), and the "overcenter" (as shown by the red circle above). The preload is like the "baseline tightness" of the gear, and the overcenter is what helps provide a stable feeling while you are going straight.

As has already been mentioned - make sure all your suspension components are in good shape. After that, try tightening the gear up. The service manual has the procedure on how to do this (although they recommend removing the gear from the frame).

Lastly - you can crank the caster up on an K10 or K20 using tapered shims between the axle perch and leaf spring. I've gone as high as 10 degrees caster on K trucks in order to improve the stablility going down the road.

K

[1774btcrew]

There may also be play in the rag joint. A good cheap fix is to upgrade to a Jeep Cherokee intermediate shaft as it gets rid of the rag joint and replaces it with a Borgenson joint.

[legendman]

Originally Posted by 1774btcrew

There may also be play in the rag joint. A good cheap fix is to upgrade to a Jeep Cherokee intermediate shaft as it gets rid of the rag joint and replaces it with a Borgenson joint.

Anymore info on this swap? Took a quick look around here but couldn't find anything.

[Billy81]

[hatzie]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28MVJxM5-l0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y26tFeofUfA&feature...

[Bostonlocalbulldog]

I like the swap idea. What year Jeep Cherokee shaft works? Is it a Grand Cherokee shaft?

Thanks!

[v30crewcab]

standard cherokee, also known as xj. probably 88up works.

[tylervalo]

Looks like it'd be a good upgrade, quite a bit of work though.

[1774btcrew]

Check this link it isn't as involved as it looks.
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...rokee+steering

[tylervalo]

Yea, I actually did it today. A little unsettling taking a grinder to the nub, overall it wasn't too bad. The steering definitely tightened up a bit.
Posted via Mobile Device

[1774btcrew]

It does seem to tighten up the steering. Only makes sense. I was looking at my Dad's 2002 Silverado and it pretty much uses the same steering shaft as the Cherokees(no rag joint with Borgenson joints)

[tylervalo]

I have notice little bumps in the steering wheel, I guess I'm just used to feeling nothing with the sloppy stock shaft.

[Billy81]

Originally Posted by 1774btcrew

Check this link it isn't as involved as it looks.
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...rokee+steering

Thank's for the link it is now on my to do list.