Truck wanders

[Griff]

Well yet another steering issue...
Truck won’t drive straight. First I thought it was just the beer. Even with just two it wanders so it’s nothing between the seat and the steering wheel.

I’ve replaced the upper+lower ball joints, tie rod, repacked the wheel bearings (they’re good), driveshaft u joints are good, new steering box and pitman arm, no crack in frame, drag link is tight, installed a Jeep driveshaft, all new rubber spring bushings, new calipers, new pads+shoes, tried it with and without the steering shock (surprisingly zero bump steer without it) and yet the problem still remains... 33x9.5” tires (for now), 6” suspension lift 3” body. I have shims under the leafs up front and thought maybe the castor is too close to vertical but both my friends with 6” lifts have the same shims and no problem. I guess taking the shims out might be worth a shot but I have a th350/np205 and my front driveshaft is already about as steep as I’d like it to be. Any other ideas? Thanks,
Griff

 

[rpcraft]

have you had your caster checked at an alignment shop? Also with 6 inches of lift and 3 inches of body lift are you still running your front sway bar and if so does it have the brackets to put it in the right place? Also what about the bushings in the spring ends and similar stuff?

 

[bucket]

1st things 1st, check the tow-in.

 

[Snoots]

1st things 1st, check the tow-in.

Also check the torque on the front axle U-bolts.

Then, more beer.

 

[bucket]

Also check the torque on the front axle U-bolts.

Then, more beer.

Yep, that too.

I just am thinking back to the last time my friend replaced all the tie rods on his K10, then asked me why it was all over the road. Turned out he counted threads thinking that would keep the alignment (that never works unless it's just sheer luck) and when I checked it, it was towed out over an inch as measured by the tread. I set the tow-in to 1/4 inch (he had 33's) and all was well.

 

[Griff]

have you had your caster checked at an alignment shop? Also with 6 inches of lift and 3 inches of body lift are you still running your front sway bar and if so does it have the brackets to put it in the right place? Also what about the bushings in the spring ends and similar stuff?

Haven’t had it checked at a shop but I can tell by eye that there is still positive castor. I think it has 4 degree shims but I’ll check and confirm. I am running a front sway bar with new bushings. I used 2” square tube and longer bolts at the front frame mounts. New bushings on the leaf springs and shackles.

1st things 1st, check the tow-in.

When I did my tie rod the toe was set to 1/4” in and the potato doing my safety said it should be set to 1/8” in. So I put it to 1/8” in and it maybe helped a little bit but hard to really tell.

Also check the torque on the front axle U-bolts.

Then, more beer.

I’ve been doing it in the opposite order maybe that’s part of my problem ...
New bolts are torqued to 110 IIRC, it was a few 24’sweeks ago. Has only driven up and down the street a few times since then.

Yep, that too.

I just am thinking back to the last time my friend replaced all the tie rods on his K10, then asked me why it was all over the road. Turned out he counted threads thinking that would keep the alignment (that never works unless it's just sheer luck) and when I checked it, it was towed out over an inch as measured by the tread. I set the tow-in to 1/4 inch (he had 33's) and all was well.

When I did my tie rod I just measured from center to center on the old one and matched that on the new one. Then when I adjusted it the second time I jacked the front axle and spun the tires while making a line with a marker and checked it that way.

Thanks for the advice! I’m almost out of ideas

 

[bucket]

Did the wandering problem exist before the new steering box?

 

[Snoots]

The only reason I mentioned the torque on the U-bolts is because I had gone through and touched/examined everything (so I thought) to cure my trucks wandering issue.
Then one day looking things over again for the umpteenth time, I noticed a 'coloration' change on the axle tube where the U-bolt is.
Took it out for a short drive and came back for another look. The 'coloration' change was gone.
So I got out the manual and checked the torque specs. 110 ft-lbs. Man was I shocked to find they weren't even close.
Torqued to spec, end of problem. No wandering since.

Then there was the cracked frame behind the steering box . . .

 

[Griff]

Update!
The wandering has been resolved!
I installed front lift springs and the trucks only driven about 10km since then but the front u bolts still ended up being loose. After a few good snacks with a bfh, each nut took a good 1/4 turn to get to 110 ft lbs. while I had the torque wrench out I checked the rear u bolts (which I had never touched) and they were incredibly loose. I must’ve turned each nut a 1/4” down before they were at the proper torque. Took it for a quick spin down a bumpy road, and then smacked them with a bfh and torqued then again. Took the truck for a test drive and it was still slightly wandering. Retorqued the steering arm nuts (the front one took a 1/4 turn the middle one about an 1/8th turn, the rear was tight). Another test drive, still wandering. Checked all of my spring bolts and all 4 front shackle bolts were loose. Torqued them to 60 ft lbs (a guess) and the wandering is fixed! The truck still doesn’t center after I make a turn but maybe that’s from my castor shims... I guess I still have to play with it a bit but I’m super happy right now! Thank you all for the helpful responses! Always grateful for this site and the awesome members on here. Cheers

 

[K201979]

I've been wanderin a bit and blamin the beer too. Guess maybe its time to crawl under my truck with a torque wrench. Glad you got that fixed.

 

[Rusty Nail]

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[Snoots]

Wander Lust!
No matter where you're at, there you are.

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