dsrace
sand toys
over the last 2 years, i have adjusted the steering gear box 5 times. the truck had the best steering out of any ford diesel i had owned to date. i purchased the truck with 80k miles on it. the previous owner bought it to tow his fifthwheel only and i use it the same or 90% of the time. with only 142k miles it was possible the steering gear box was worn as each time i adjusted it , it did help some.
back in may we made a trip to mt rushmore south dakota and fought some wind. the truck def had some play in the steering but was manageable. the trip home started to get more interesting in the wind pulling the hills. i decided it was time to put some more money into the truck. i bought a blue top steering gear box and oddly enough, ford still offered a new steering shaft. when when i installed the sxe and t4 kit, the left boost tube is a tight fit around the ps pump. it had rubbed on the cap and rocked one side up and dumped the atf all over the the rag joint. i know thats not the correct term for that joint but the only one i know right now. with a 23 year old puck, i thought maybe that softened the puck and decided to replace it as well. while the steering box is out is a great time to do the shaft. called oreilly's, a local auto parts store, they had 2 by dorman in stock! $100 cheaper but this truck has been such a princess with aftermarket parts i opted for the motocraft at $300 with our shop discount. i had already replaced all the steering linkages as well as wheel bearings. that made a difference but not all of it.
so with both shops full. no time or space to get the job done i paid a local shop i know and trust. $650 labor , fluids and alignment. i was thinking $400 to $500 but it is what it is and it's done. turned out that the steering shaft was the majority of the issue. i took a short video with my cell phone and it was a quick one as i was still at work. there is a bushing inside the upper shaft that is splined like the lower shaft. it has 5 cracks in it that would expand and get sloppy. the section of the shaft that the bushing had ridden on the last 23 years ( rounding up) had worn a bit as well. if you pulled the shaft open or closed it 3" it was solid again. the puck had some play but not much. the u joint has some play and a tad more then the puck. the spined shaft was the worst but it all adds up and in the video you can see how much. with the leverage from the tires and to the steering wheel it had to be a bit more.
thought i would share this in case someone else had a similar issue.
back in may we made a trip to mt rushmore south dakota and fought some wind. the truck def had some play in the steering but was manageable. the trip home started to get more interesting in the wind pulling the hills. i decided it was time to put some more money into the truck. i bought a blue top steering gear box and oddly enough, ford still offered a new steering shaft. when when i installed the sxe and t4 kit, the left boost tube is a tight fit around the ps pump. it had rubbed on the cap and rocked one side up and dumped the atf all over the the rag joint. i know thats not the correct term for that joint but the only one i know right now. with a 23 year old puck, i thought maybe that softened the puck and decided to replace it as well. while the steering box is out is a great time to do the shaft. called oreilly's, a local auto parts store, they had 2 by dorman in stock! $100 cheaper but this truck has been such a princess with aftermarket parts i opted for the motocraft at $300 with our shop discount. i had already replaced all the steering linkages as well as wheel bearings. that made a difference but not all of it.
so with both shops full. no time or space to get the job done i paid a local shop i know and trust. $650 labor , fluids and alignment. i was thinking $400 to $500 but it is what it is and it's done. turned out that the steering shaft was the majority of the issue. i took a short video with my cell phone and it was a quick one as i was still at work. there is a bushing inside the upper shaft that is splined like the lower shaft. it has 5 cracks in it that would expand and get sloppy. the section of the shaft that the bushing had ridden on the last 23 years ( rounding up) had worn a bit as well. if you pulled the shaft open or closed it 3" it was solid again. the puck had some play but not much. the u joint has some play and a tad more then the puck. the spined shaft was the worst but it all adds up and in the video you can see how much. with the leverage from the tires and to the steering wheel it had to be a bit more.
thought i would share this in case someone else had a similar issue.
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