Weird steering

[Big Bart]

Brian,

Hot and humid, yes that is miserable!

If you have a dana 60 axle, then I do not beleive there is a washer between the outer bearing and the inner spanner nut. (Even if so, doubt it would cause your issue, it would just push in the inner race in like a washer.) I beleive the dana 50 axle uses a washer.

Let's see how the ballance works out, you should ask them which tires require the least amount of weight to balance. Then have them put those tires on the front end.

 

[TNBrett]

I believe the spindle nut on a 50 uses a lock plate between the nuts. The first nut has a nub on it. It is installed with the nub out, then the lock plate goes on. It has lots of holes and a tab that engages a groove on the spindle. One of the holes lines up with the nub. The second nut, smooth on both sides, goes on next, and locks the lock plate in place.


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[BrianX128]

I believe the spindle nut on a 50 uses a lock plate between the nuts. The first nut has a nub on it. It is installed with the nub out, then the lock plate goes on. It has lots of holes and a tab that engages a groove on the spindle. One of the holes lines up with the nub. The second nut, smooth on both sides, goes on next, and locks the lock plate in place.


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So mine is somewhat like this, it has the lock plate in between but mine doesn't have the nub like I've seen in other videos, it has 8 tabs on the outside and one bends in to one of the notches in the back spanner nut. Before I take the truck to get the wheels balanced tonight or tomorrow, I'm going to take things off to the spanner nuts one last time just in case the bearing keeps adjusting when I drive it, and I'll tighten them down one more time. I will say I'm now questioning whether the spindle could have not wanted to go the whole way back in when I shoved it back on the steering knuckle. It was crazy rusty where those two items mate up, and the bolts / nuts were awful. I wire wheeled it all down pretty good and impacted the nuts onto those bolts at what honestly felt like too tight so I wouldn't think that would be loose..

 

[Big Bart]

Brian,


As much as the 3rd time is a charm! Making sure the spindle plate is in square in the hole and the wheel bearings are tight will take those out of the equation. Also when you tighten the spindle plate be sure to do so in a star pattern and tighten in 3 different torques. Tight, tighter, and final tight. Guessing you did the first time but just in case.


You mentioned your wheel seemed a little loose after the 1st test drive because you could feel it move on the axle. Before you take it apart again try pulling and shoving at 12 and 6 (More likely ball joints or wheel bearing.) and 3 and 9. (Ball joints, wheel bearing, or steering components.) See if it is loose, but don't assume that is the wheel bearings. Loose/bad ball joints are a common cause for the death wobble/shimmy on all dana axles.


Not saying you have the death wobble but you inferred it feels much worse than a wheel out of balance. You could have had all the right things in play for the wobble but everything was running true or perhaps pulling one way and it was not being set off. Now just changing something a little bit, or an axle shaft or wheel a little out of balance (Because it was put on say 180 degrees differently.) could have set this off now. Maybe the hammering took something on the steering from marginal to now damaged/loose/looser. (Again nothing you could do, the part had to come off.)


Also before you take it apart, spin your wheel and watch the axle shaft for run out. It should not be out swinging wide on one side VS the other. It should spin true and in a straight line when the wheels are facing straight forward. Just make sure it is not bent/warped/swaying. Look on the other side first, you will get an idea of how it should look turning.


One last suggestion if you pull the spindle plate. Pull the axle shaft and rotate 180 degrees inside the axle. If it is out of balance it may act differently after. (Get a little better or a little worse.) But that change might be a clue the axle shaft is part of the issue.

 

[BrianX128]

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I would think this shouldn't do this.. tire jacked up on side I worked on, looks like play in steering. Does same amount on both sides when shoving tire from 3-9 / 9-3

 

[Big Bart]

Brian,

Correct your pitman arm appears to be wallowed out or loose. See in your video, the pitman arm (6' piece of metal between your steering box shaft to your drag link) moves, but the powersteering box shaft does not. It is loose or is damaged. If you took it off, it is likely just loose. If you did not take it off, then you need to at this point. Then see what the powersteering box shaft and pitman arm look like. If damaged you will have to replace. If decent try tightening the nut on the powersteering box shaft. Yours is so loose you probably do not need the pitman arm removal tool to get it off for inspection.

The death wobble is generally set off by loose steering components. In your case the pitman arm. If you did not take off the pitman arm, it was likely loose. But if your truck had a pull to the left or right or the tires were in ballance you just noticed as sloppy steering. Once things started acting different after the repair (Out of ballance, both tires pulling one way or against each other, or drag from the bad u-joint, etc.) now your steering is jerking back and forth because that part is loose, the steering is occilating, and the loose part lets it do so and perhaps violently.

Send a couple pics or a video if you are not sure about the steering box shaft damage or pitman arm damage.

 

[BrianX128]

It was loose, just tightened it. Forgot I had played around there yesterday. I also went to the alignment shop. Not sure if the pitman arm will make it even better, but the truck is already fixed (or at least as good as it was before this)...

I'm not ashamed to admit I screwed up, stress got the better of me here.

The truck for sure had an issue when I put it back together, when I was able to tighten the axle spanner nuts in further I didn't clean the threads well enough and was able to get them pressed against the bearings and cleaned up 25% of my issue there. Unfortunately I put my lug nuts on backwards paying 0 attention to putting everything back together when I had taken it apart. Who knows what % the axle nuts accounted for, and what % was me just straight up not paying attention but my buddy at the alignment shop had me look at both front tires while on the truck and handed me the impact. Problem solved.

I'm really good at taking axle shafts out / hubs apart now. I almost wish I wasn't.

I just can't pay attention to detail doing stuff like this. I blame my profession. Working in IT you find out in milliseconds if your solution worked or not when you press a button. I will work on something for hours and get so frustrated in all the mechanic stuff / small engine work I do with trucks / mowers / weed eaters / chain saws and I overlook stuff like this all the time. I just expect it to work. It's lug nuts, they're on, moving on..

I feel a little less bad knowing I had an issue in all of the tearing apart I was doing, I just wish I didn't create one while fixing it. But I went 75 back home and it's straight and tight. Lesson learned... sorta

 

[Big Bart]

Brian,

Pat yourself on the back! (Don't beat yourself up.)

1) You are man enought to admit a mistake when you make one, many cannot!
2) You stayed with it and did not quit. If you had you would not of learned anything.
3) You found and fixed multiple issues with your truck. (Even if one was due to end user error.)
4) I am pretty darn sure you will not make that mistake again!
5) You just saved hundreds and know how to do it right next time.
6) If you just watch few Youtube tech fail videos, you might feel better. Many "Professionals" forget to add oil, tighten the oil drain plug, tighten lug nuts, tighten hub nuts, and worse yet have cars fall off lifts in the shop from not racking them right. So know that even "Professionals" have bad days and make mistakes.
7) You have a fleet of old cars, if you did not do some of the work, you probably would not have had the money to add on to your house!

Due to your hard work, your truck is now ship shape and ready to serve you!

 

[subway]

glad it was simple and you got it all straightened out. Trust me, anyone who has worked on vehicles long enough has made a mistake and had to re-do it. I have my share of "what the hell was a thinking" moments looking at some of my work.

sometimes pushing through when you are tired is not the right answer. sounds like you are back on track now.