Steering Improvement Suggestions

[greatlakes08]

I will start off by saying that this is a daily driver and will have minimal offroad use. I purchased this burb out in California and it seems like the previous owner installed the lift (4" according to previous owner) mainly for looks which I also like. There are 5.5" blocks in the rear. The front is all spring and has a raised steering arm. All of the shocks are probably original from when the lift kit was installed including the steering stabilizer ones.
I recently put new tires on, Nexan Roadian MT 35x12.50 x15. I replaced the leaking steering gear box with a Borgeson and purchased a skyjacker drop pitman arm (not installed yet). The drag link has also been replaced with a factory one.
My main goal at this time is to get the steering tightened up as much as possible to get the burb driving well at highway speeds. I know it will never drive like a car but it would be nice to not have to correct as much while on the highway. I have not installed the dropped pitman arm yet because I am not looking forward to fighting the existing steering arm off. I have inserted some pics below to show the angle of my drag link and the current setup.
Questions:
Is it really worth it to changeover to the dropped pitman from raised steering arm?
Does installing an ORD steering Box brace tighten things up?
Would installing a new tie-rod assembly help?
Did I sabotage myself by purchasing MT's instead of AT's and 35" tires just don't work well on the highway?


Any suggestions would be appreciated!

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[Grit dog]

Nice Burb!
I'm not certain there is noticeable difference between a lifted steering arm or a drop pittman arm. May as well throw an offset drag link into the equation as option 3 as well though.
Interested to hear suggestions on this, as well as what you really think is wrong with the steering. Everyone's idea of "drives good" is different.
Still a couple things to look at that could be worn out. Tie rod ends, like you said, but only if there's noticeable paly in them IMO. Easy to check and easy to spot. Other thing is the rag joint on the steering shaft. Common to replace worn with new, or with a Jeep steering shaft that eliminates the rag joint as a source of slop or play in the steering.

Similar setup on our K20. Alignment is good, drag link was shot, but new, now. Tie rod ends look tight, rag joint also looks like no deflection, but it still wanders a bit on the highway.
Going to adjust the steering box a bit once she's got new meats and steering stabilizer. Otherwise, not alot else I can see to improve that is worn.

The steering box brace is interesting. I was only aware of the frame brace, which is IMO a good idea, but more of a repair or pre-emptive means of not cracking the frame. Also like to hear any experience with this piece.

 

[greatlakes08]

Thanks very much!
I was going to replace the steering shaft but my rag joint looks good and everything is very tight so I don't see the point at the moment....
The steering box brace is the one...https://www.offroaddesign.com/bolt-in-steering-box-brace-for-81-91-gm-4wd-trucks.html and like you IM not sure how it would help with tightening things up but the review I read on ck5 forum which is attached to the ORD webpage said it helped them. I wanted to hear from some other folks about it though.

 

[nvrenuf]

Your drag link angle looks great, imo. Stock would be close to level so you’re really close. •IF• you make any changes it might be a 1” steering block under the lifted arm (partsmike.com) to get closer but I don’t think I would.

The drop pitman arm is worth 2” of correction where your arm is 4”. Adding the pitman arm would be too much and only using it wouldn’t be enough.

Frame cracking on square bodies is SUPER COMMON so always CLEAN and look at the frame behind the steering box for cracks. There are weld on repair patches and bolt on braces, I would add the bolt on brace at minimum to prevent future cracking. The brace and patch can help frame flex a lot, especially if there’s already damage.

These trucks are from a different era and with the flexy frames and leaf suspension they aren’t going to be as tight as a new truck, it’s just the nature of the beast. That said, eliminating the rag joint with and aftermarket or Jeep XJ ujoint type steering shaft made a tremendous difference in how tight my Blazer feels. This upgrade made the biggest difference of all my steering mods, no doubt. .

 

[greatlakes08]

That said, eliminating the rag joint with and aftermarket or Jeep XJ ujoint type steering shaft made a tremendous difference in how tight my Blazer feels. This upgrade made the biggest difference of all my steering mods, no doubt. .

John,

Thanks for confirming my suspicions about the drop pitman arm situation.
Was your steering shaft loose at all before you replaced it?
I had someone get in and turn the wheel all the way to lock in both directions while I watched the shaft and shaft/gear box connection. I also had both front tires up and tried to turn it by hand. During both inspection I saw zero play in the shaft or at the shaft to gearbox connection at the rag joint. There is some play in the input portion of the gear box and I have tightened the adjustment screw as much as possible but I figured since it was a new gearbox that is normal? Please tell me if I am missing something. I just hate replacing the shaft if its not broken...

 

[nvrenuf]

When looking for play, don't steer lock to lock. You want to have someone rocking the steering wheel back and forth just taking up the slack while you look for moving parts, kind of a quick movement creating some shock to the linkage. Steadily steering to lock (fast or slow) won't show slack unless it's really obvious, you need that little bit of bounce that rocking the steering wheel creates to cause loose parts to "flex" / move.

I would say my rag joint was not new but in good shape when I replaced the shaft. My steering always had a little sponginess to the feel but not sloppy / loose going down the road. Changing to the ujoint style shaft gave my steering a much tighter, more responsive "sportier" feel.

It should be noted that, in addition to bad parts, alignment can cause the steering to feel loose. Out of spec caster can make the steering feel too light, can cause wandering and prevent the return to center after a turn.

 

[WP29P4A]

Keep in mind, road conditions make a difference also. Where I live we get chain ruts from the big truck, and because it snows here the roads are not always in great shape. (some places get it from the high heat) Our classic car drives great on the freshly paved roads and wonders like crazy on the older ones. I replaced EVERYTHING with the highest quality parts I could find, from the steering wheel to the wheels and tires, and everything in between. It was a massive difference, but still no where near as good as my 2003 Ford (pos) explorer, as far as the steering and tracking. The wide tires make it wonder worse than stock width tires also.

 

[greatlakes08]

When looking for play, don't steer lock to lock. You want to have someone rocking the steering wheel back and forth just taking up the slack while you look for moving parts, kind of a quick movement creating some shock to the linkage. Steadily steering to lock (fast or slow) won't show slack unless it's really obvious, you need that little bit of bounce that rocking the steering wheel creates to cause loose parts to "flex" / move.

I will try this method and see what it looks like. I also will get it aligned again.

It was a massive difference, but still no where near as good as my 2003 Ford (pos) explorer, as far as the steering and tracking. The wide tires make it wonder worse than stock width tires also.

I think Im expecting too much out of it as well with the oversize mud tires...I don't want to keep throwing parts at her expecting something thats never going to happen...

 

[gmbellew]

the steering box brace from ORD will help stiffen it up a little bit. it reduces frame flex at the box. it made a small difference with my 33s, but it was noticeable. I'd imagine it would have a larger impact with larger tires that stress things more.

 

[hoagster]

My frame had a cracks in it and I have had to repair to trucks with cracks in the frames. As stated before this is common especially in lifted ones. @nvrenuf Was spot on on how to find movement, caused by a crack or damaged frame. I know you said you replaced the Steering box and probably would have looked a lot closer and all the four bolt locations if you had posted this before hand.

I haven't driven my truck yet as the body is still in the paint process, so I can't tell you if this will help your situation but as stated before if the frame is ok the ORD brace will keep it that way.

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I didn't see the crack 1st image until I blasted the frame.

 

[greatlakes08]

Thanks very much. I did go out and look and see if there were an obvious cracks but didn't find any. I am definitely going to order the brace though to avoid future issues even if it doesn't do much for the steering it will be worth it.

 

[fast 99]

I have seen a lot of rebuilt boxes that the pitman shaft moves laterally when loaded.

Doesn't appear like the wheels have much offset and that is good. However, with those tires there will be a trade off in steering "tightness".

 

[WP29P4A]

I will try this method and see what it looks like. I also will get it aligned again.

I think I'm expecting too much out of it as well with the oversize mud tires...I don't want to keep throwing parts at her expecting something that's never going to happen...

Tightening everything up helps, getting rid of the quarter turn of slop in the steering makes it easier to drive too. Worth doing, I just thought It would feel more like a modern vehicle when everything was replaced. I was wrong.

 

[Italianwagon]

Nice burb. ORD steering box brace made a noticeable difference on my burb.

 

[ali_c20]

Nice Burb!
I'm not certain there is noticeable difference between a lifted steering arm or a drop pittman arm. May as well throw an offset drag link into the equation as option 3 as well though.
Interested to hear suggestions on this, as well as what you really think is wrong with the steering. Everyone's idea of "drives good" is different.
Still a couple things to look at that could be worn out. Tie rod ends, like you said, but only if there's noticeable paly in them IMO. Easy to check and easy to spot. Other thing is the rag joint on the steering shaft. Common to replace worn with new, or with a Jeep steering shaft that eliminates the rag joint as a source of slop or play in the steering.

Similar setup on our K20. Alignment is good, drag link was shot, but new, now. Tie rod ends look tight, rag joint also looks like no deflection, but it still wanders a bit on the highway.
Going to adjust the steering box a bit once she's got new meats and steering stabilizer. Otherwise, not alot else I can see to improve that is worn.

The steering box brace is interesting. I was only aware of the frame brace, which is IMO a good idea, but more of a repair or pre-emptive means of not cracking the frame. Also like to hear any experience with this piece.

I run the steering frame brace on my k5. When everything is tidy and without play it makes a noticeable difference and it protects the frame from cracking. Money well spent imho.