bolt on steering brace Q

[Jonny-K5]

let me start off by saying this is a great product and every truck should have one. but when i bolted on the steering brace last weekend i ran into a little problem. everything went together fine until i went to tighten down the bolt that goes into the crossmember( the one you drill out). the brace was about a 3/8 inch away from the cross member and took alot of torqueing to get it to lock down. the problem is now my steering wheel is no longer straight. its almost a 1/4 turn to the left as i drive down the road. does this mean my frame was already bent a little before i put it on? the truck has only done light wheeling with 32-33" tires. or did i bent it by putting on the brace. should i have shimmed it up with washers instead of tighening it down? has anyone else had this problem? its no big deal to just adjust the drag link a little , but im wondering if a screwed something up.

 

[88Silverado]

Thats funny, I just installed mine today and noticed the same thing /forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif About the same spacing and I had to adjust the wheel back. I also noticed most of the bumpsteer is gone and it feels alot firmer. I think it might be me but when I get a few more miles on it i'll be able to tell better.

 

[Jonny-K5]

ya mine felt alot firmer too. i dont know if the bumpsteer was changed, but definatly more solid.

 

[Jonny-K5]

ttt...

 

[88Silverado]

Drove mine last nite on a 150 mile drive down the local freeways. The bumpsteer has reduced greatly. Steering feels good. I cant believe the difference it made. /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

 

[Jonny-K5]

glad to hear your bumpsteer is better, just wondering, what kind of steering mods did you do for the lift? dropped pitman arm? steering arm?

 

[88Silverado]

I went with 4" springs on front so installed a raised steering arm. Did other mods while I was in there (shock towers, lines, disconnects, bushings, etc) After everything is installed I had to adj the draglink to get the steering wheel straight. I did the brace 2 weeks after the lift. I had to readjust the link after installation. I really noticed a difference. Im going to replace the tie rod & draglinks soon and see if that also tightens things up abit.

Check out the pics on my 88Silverado link above. /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

 

[Stephen]

Trying to fit anything on a GM frame is tough so it doesnt' surprise me that you had a gap. Stacking 2-3 washers in there would have been my solution but I don't think you're messing anything up by just sucking it down. These frames are pretty loose a lot of the time which is why this system works so well, it just stiffens it all up. It's the little blue pill for the GM frame....

 

[88Silverado]

[ QUOTE ]
It's the little blue pill for the GM frame....

[/ QUOTE ]
/forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif /forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif /forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif /forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif

Now theres a great marketing slogan /forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif

The fun part was getting it to fit between the power steering and oil cooler lines /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
I tightened the three bolts little by little until everything pulled together. Didnt take much force.
My 88 was owned by a woman. She never wheeled it and its fairly (well...for GM) straight thats why I was so suprised to notice the big improvement. On the other hand, Im not suprised looking at the lack of frame supports /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif.

I am very pleased with your products.
Worth the investement...Thanks /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif