Steering box play and stiff ride questions

[usar17]

So I'm sure I'll get **** for lumping 2 issues into 1 post but...lol

Setup: 1994 tbi350 with hydroboost brakes, 3" lift, extended pitman arm, poly bushings all thru the front and the cab mounts. Gm10bolt front axle, 32" tires

Steering issue:
I swapped out the front accessory brackets for serpentine system and swapped in a power steering pump from a newer van tbi350 that I got the hydroboost off at the same time. Added the lift and pitman arm. Since i did all that I've had a decent amount of play in the steering box and a super easy to spin steering wheel. I can confirm none of the play is in the column. IDK if the pump swap increased pressure to the gear box and that's why it's so easy to move. I have almost no resistance turning the wheel while I'm parked. Driving I can feel the changes in the road and when potholes thru my steering wheel. Suggestions on tightening this up? New steering box or steering box adjustments? Crossover steering? I've already replaced the stabilizer with no change.

Suspension:
This square rides hard haha. I don't expect a cloud but damn compared to other lifted trucks I've driven this is messing with my back now. Poly bushings across the front and can mounts. 5 leaf upgraded front springs when I did the 3" lift. New shocks that I chose based on suggestions here. I'm debating dropping the front springs to a 4 leaf thinking I have way too stiff of a setup for only a 350 motor to weigh it down. Currently the truck maybe a hair higher in the front than the back so I'm not too concerned with lowering the front some. What would anyone's opinions be?

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[idahovette]

Seems like it's gonna be the pump if it was ok before the change. Can you swap the old pump back by changing the pulley or is it toast? Maybe change the pressure relief valve from old to new?

 

[usar17]

I do not have the old pump. Swapped this 4 years ago just finally fixing old issues. What pressure relief valve?

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[roundhouse]

For the rough ride I can share what I did

We had a 4” lift of unknown brand

And it rode really really rough

This is my sons daily driver
We got it for him when he was 15 as a reward for learning a foreign language

We’ve been paying for most of the repairs and mods and he has been doing the work
And he has become a pretty decent mechanic

He did an LS swap and did the wiring harness mods himself
Swapped in a Nv3500 five speed

We finally coughed up the $$ and bought Alcan 4” springs and ranch RS 9000 adjustable shocks

The difference in the ride is amazing

It now rides about the same as my brothers 2017 3/4 ton Chevy

Firm but not bad stiff

Alcan will want to know all about your truck and if you can weigh it
How much weight is on each axle

Also the angle of the shackle is important
It has to lean back

If the shackle is too close to vertical it will make it ride really rough

 

[usar17]

If you don't mind me asking Roundhosue, what that set you back in costs?

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[usar17]

Also my shackles are pretty much perfectly verticle. Should I start by trying a different shackle?

 

[77 K20]

I'll just comment on the suspension:

For FREE: try this- unbolt your sway bar from the axle. Swing it upward, secure it with a coat hanger/wire. Go for a drive and see what you think. Someone suggested this to me years ago and I had my doubts. I tried it and loved the way it rode. I had 2" Tuff Country HD springs that lifted it almost 3 inches.

If you like the way it rides then just unbolt the sway bar completely.

OR: if you have a slide in camper or some other reason to need a sway bar you can get some sway bar disconnects that will allow the swaybar to pivot. This is supposed to make it ride nicer.

The theory behind this is look at your sway bar- when the truck was stock the sway bar was pretty much horizontal when it went from the frame to the axle. By lifting it the sway bar is now at an angle. When you hit a bump the axle comes up and tries to "compress" the swaybar. That can't happen- and especially when it seems like you have urethane swaybar bushings. At least my old cracked rubber ones would compress a bit.

Or the Alcan/ORD springs (or deavers) will ride great, but will cost probably $800 just for the front springs. Very nice but might not be in your budget.

 

[77 K20]

Also my shackles are pretty much perfectly verticle. Should I start by trying a different shackle?

http://offroaddesign.com/catalog/hdshackles.htm

I'm not sure how much these will help. I'm sure some, but probably not an amazing amount. These are slightly longer like what was found on the '87 and up squares. With the grease they should swing around slightly easier, and allow the spring to move more on a really big bump. And they are stronger. I have these- and think they are pretty nice. Of course I like having heavy duty parts.

 

[CORVAIRWILD]

Don't make the mistake of loosening the lock nut and putting an allen key in the steering box adjuster, that adjustment needs to be done with an inch pound torque wrench on the steering shaft, and generally is not the reason a steering box is loose. And by generally I mean 99% of the time. You can tighten up the steering with that adjustment, but you're not fixing the problem, your just binding the movement, so it feels tight, but the looseness is still there. That adjustment address the top of the sector shaft, that's not where the problem is. The problem is a loose bushing in the bottom of the steering box, and I'm GM's and Fords and Chryslers they always wear 1st the bottom, because there's no oil circulation down there. The only solution is a $300+ steering box. You can get one from Lares, but in my experience they do a second-rate job. They advertise a lot, but I put two steering boxes in an 84 and a 95 3/4 ton 4x4's, and they're not even worth the $150 I paid, as a matter of fact they're worth nothing. And I even called them to mention my dissatisfaction, the guy says what do you expect, it's a poor design. My ex ended up swapping the lares box for a redhead box, but I don't talk to her anymore, but that's a different story for a different day

 

[Craig 85]

In my last truck and my current truck I've run a combination of Tuff Country Springs, ORD sway bar disconnect kits and their greaseable front shackles. My '79 K15 had the 4" EZ Ride with a small block. Huge improvement over the old Ranchos they replaced. In my K30 I have 3" HD springs due to the big block. I think it rides the same or better than the '79 did. I think one of the biggest changes in ride you can do on these 4WD trucks is add the sway bar disconnect kit. The link lets the sway bar and springs move in different arcs, which I believe frees up the bind in the front caused by the sway bar being fixed to the spring plates.

 

[SquareRoot]

So are you using a hydro-boost pump with vacuum brake booster or the complete hydro system? The pressure is different for each. I had this issue when I swapped to serpentine drive until I swapped out the vac booster to hydraulic. Your suspension mods may be adding to your issue as well.

 

[usar17]

Craig 85, Ive been talking with ORD. I unbolted the sway bar and it made a noticeable difference. Ordered their kit while sitting at a gas station I was so impressed. Still seemed a hair rough, 5 leafs is excessive in the front with a small block in my opinion. Next year I'll probably swap in ez rides and greasable shackles. Thanks everyone for pointing me towards that fix!!!

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[usar17]

Square root,

I have a full hydroboost setup. 98 hydroboost boost brake master, 94 power steering pump, 85 steering box. Just noticed the returns lines were leaking at both the box and the brake master. Replaced them and removed my cooler and filter I had added. Haven't driven it much since doing that. I can measure the PS pulley diameter to see if it is different causing more pressure than the 85 steering box is use to

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[roundhouse]

If you don't mind me asking Roundhosue, what that set you back in costs?

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Dont know exactly
I can dig up the receipts

Bout $275 per spring plus $50 each for shipping I think

A call to Alcan will determine he cost for your particular spring
Rancho adjustable shocks were $100 each

The alcan springs were so soft I had to hook the sway bar back up


If / when you swap springs
Get all
New bushings and bolts and a box of blades for your sawzall

Just cut the old bolts off on each side between the spring and mount

It’s not worth the time to try and save the old bolts

 

[roundhouse]

Also my shackles are pretty much perfectly verticle. Should I start by trying a different shackle?

A longer shackle might help but it’s vertical because the springs are too short

Usually caused by an add-a- leaf

When the add a leaf arches the spring
The spring is then too short