Finally went and picked up a 2wd box today. Got every thing bolted on, and realized that I needed to notch the engine crossmember with the plasma cutter to clear my disgustingly over done Jethro-Built drag link. Thats not a problem but the truck was about 20 feet from the furthest point my plasma cutter would reach. All I had to do was get in start it up and drive it forward 20 feet. Unfortuneatley, I forgot that I had the the power steering lines discconected, so when I started the motor, it blew all the fluid out all over the place. That sucked, but I figured I'd just fill it back up and all would be well. So I got the crossmember notched, everything bolted up and connected. Bled all the air out of the system and went for a test drive. Steering was way tighter and more responsive, thats good of course. But it was whining a bit so I decided to try to bleed it some more. While doing this, the steering got almost impossible to to turn lock to lock. It would turn a little bit either way, but not lock to lock. I could look at the power steering pump pully and see it slowing down and struggling when I put pressure on the steering wheel. Did I cook the pump when I blew the fluid out all over the place? I don't really know anything about the pump, as it was on the motor when I got it. It worked fine before blowing all the fluid out though. Should I get another one or are there other things to check? Also, is the steering box and lines supposed to get hot? If not, what cause this and how do I fix it? And can someone explain to me the proper method for adjusting the backlash in the steering box with the little set screw? What can happen if the this setting is wrong? How would I know?
Bled the system till the fluid wasn't frothy anymore. It worked fine on the test drive, went lock to lock fine. Was a little harder to turn than it was with the conventional steering and the pump was whining abit though. I figured the whining meant that it needed bled some more, so I jacked it up and proceeded to go lock to lock. It went lock to lock maybe 2 times before it wouldn't go much past center. Pump wasn't straining at all. Like there was no pressure to the box. I figured I had wasted the pump from running it dry and the test drive just did it in the rest of the way. I didn't have much faith in the pump anyways...the pulley wobbles and it's mounted with a cobbled together bracket from a previous owner. Just looks hammered. 
My grandma still helps me out with it sometime when I need an extra hand. Last week I was trying to mock things up to get a measurement for the draglink. I needed someone to hold the pitman arm with the dre on there so I could take a measurement. It was pouring rain and noone was around but my grandma. So she put on her rain coat and gloves, came out and hugged the 42 to hold the thing up for me. My grandma rocks!
