Steering problem. Bad.

[davo727]

Is the frame good where the steering box bolts to it?

 

[acesneights1]

Yep frame is good. I am thinking the ORD bushing kit has lousy springs.

 

[acesneights1]

Well, it was ORD's springs it seems ,because I pulled the caps and put 1/8 inch washers under them and now the wobble is gone. New springs are apparently weaker than the 28 year old factory ones. Not sure if I got a bad set or what the deal is.

 

[rlltide12]

Man, get springless caps. Best thing i ever bought.

 

[acesneights1]

Man, get springless caps. Best thing i ever bought.

Link to that please..

 

[rlltide12]

Just one place you can buy em. https://www.wfoconcepts.com/pr/Dana...e-springless-Cap-with-hardware/3163/3948/4277

 

[Keith_J]

I used ORD D60 bushing and spring kit to solve my death wobble issues, worked fine, new springs were 1/4" taller. The wobble is precession, the same thing as a wobbling top spinning on the floor. The frequency is related to the rolling mass of the wheel and the spring constant of the king pin bushing assembly, if you run larger tires, you will have it at different speeds.

 

[Keith_J]

Man, get springless caps. Best thing i ever bought.

And why did the engineers at Dana use springs instead of shimmed bushings? Because springs provide force that varies less with displacement. Yes, springs allow movement which is wobble but precessional force cannot be damped. So it will eat nylon bushings. So swap in bronze, right? Now you have even less movement so more wear. Which then requires shimming so the bushing isn't beat to death by Hertzian stress.

Engineering isn't perfection, it is a balance of factors.

 

[Jeepsinker]

Acesneights1, it would be a good idea to pull the steering box and inspect the frame regardless. They can crack and spider behind the box and around the bolt holes where you'll never see it. Also, have you ever noticed if either of your hubs had partially rotated toward the lock position after experiencing any of your issues? I've seen hubs lock themselves in running down the road before. You might also take a look at your spider gears.

 

[rlltide12]

Engineers dont always get it right. I know that because I am one. The springless setup works just fine, ive got a couple thousand miles on mine, and i check them religiously. What the springless kit doesnt allow for is any vertical movement of the outer spindle assembly. There is a reason why dana got away from the spring and bushing kingpin. I would assume its because they couldnt keep the death wobble out of the 60.

 

[rlltide12]

I will happily replace 5 dollar bushings every couple thousand miles to keep from having death wobble due to larger tires.

 

[TiminOr]

TiminOr

The m1008 developed a problem which has me a bit stumped. I have owned many many OBS chevy trucks and had from stock to 15 inches of lift running 44's and never seen one do what my 1008 is doing. One minute it steers fine. She'll cruise down the highway doin' 75 and I could let go of the wheel. Then All of a sudden I'll be making a slow turn somewhere and the whole front end feels like something is wobbling like a wheel is gonna fall off. Then driving down the road no matter what speed the truck starts pulling violently to either side. The steering also feels very heavy. it's been starting to get some death wobble as well. Here is what I have done so far:
I replaced the steering stabilizer.
Greased the whole front end including king pins
took apart calipers made sure they moved freely and lubricated slides
steered truck lock to lock with truck on stands. No binding at all.
Checked center bolts.
Checked u bolts.
Checked sway bars.
Springs are 4 inch Rancho I think and bushings are poly and in good order.
Checked the spring eye bolts both spring and frame.
Checked steering column.
Spun wheels,on a jack feel fine.
when it pulls it also feels like it's binding.
The only thing I can think of is something is coming apart in the steering although I don't think I have ever seen a bad steering box in one of these aside from minor seal leaks.
Any ideas ?
Again it's random. Sometimes it's fine which is making it harder to diagnose.

Where did you purchase the steering stabilizer for the M1008? I have a bent
driver's side stabilizer.

 

[EODTECH90]

You should check the steering box, if it's too loose that may contribute to the problem.