dana60 death wobble with hydro assist now...yikes. Updated 11/27

[y5mgisi]

worth a shot!

 

[protechk5]

update!! well finally got back from school, and had a chance to try and fix this dw issue.

i had my buddy get in the truck and steer lock to lock with the engine running while i looked at all the steering components. i noticed that there is some side to side movement with the 7.25" shackles (would cross-ties help that?), all the tre's looked good, no excess movement or anything. i did notice that the steering box moved on the frame.

i checked the 4 steering box bolts and 2 of them were pretty loose. i tightened all of them up and had my buddy do the same thing, steer lock to lock with engine running, and the box still moves a little bit. i dont have a bolt-on brace or weld on brace on it (shoulda done both a long time ago, i know). so im thinking that the frame might be cracked, and that that is definitely contributing to it (am i correct in thinking this?)

i'm thinking this kind of activity might have contributed to the frame crack (over the summer about 3-400 miles before the DW started)

im thinking that switching to 6" cross-tied shackles and weld-in brace and bolt-on box brace should fix it, would that make sense as a solution? im also going to add another fender washer under each arm.

thoughts given the new information? thanks for the help guys!

Damn, whos truck is that on the right? Thats the nicest truck Ive ever seen.

I first had 6" and now 7.25" shackles, didnt make a difference. I say put the rear tires in the front and see if that changes anything. Then go get your alignment checked at

Chantilly Steering


www.chantillysteering.com - 14059 Willard Road, Chantilly - (703) 968-3502

 

[muddybuddy]

been really busy, finally getting around to getting an angle finder on it and its showing 14*, although im not sure its on flat ground so I will do it again.

thats of the driverside. the pinion isnt pointed up at all (so I assume thats -14*) i had 8* shims on there before and it didnt seem to make a difference.

am I reading this correctly? what degree is the "correct" amount or "within spec" so that I can eliminate this from the list of culprits? thanks

Also, I jacked up each side and tested the lateral on each tire and both of them seemed to have no play.

 

[Bigrigr]

You want SOME positive caster, but not 14*. Positive caster is when the upper BJ (For example purposes only, because we both know u don't have any) is behind the lower BJ when viewed from the side. Unfortunately, when you get the right caster for good handling on the highway, you get the pinion pointed down to far. So most people shim the axle for good driveline clearance, and kill the handling at the same time. That's why it was stated earlier that to do this kinda lift and tire setup right, you have to cut the knuckle "C" off each axle tube. Then set ur pinion angle, and reweld the knuckle back on with the right caster angle. Seems like a daunting task at first, but ur throwing alot of money and time into as it is. May as well do it right and then forget it. Just food for thought......

 

[tomdually]

Ran into this problem on a school bus and ended up calling a GM shop and they said that sometimes the valve in the steering gear develops an imbalance that is sensitive to certain vibrations you pick up while driving and makes the valve shuttle back and forth rapidly. The bus did it only at certain speed after a turn. My one ton chevy only did it around 45mph and stopped doing it after i put new tires on the front(the tires didn't fix it , it just changed the harmonics if you will).

I never did actually try to repair the gear, but i got the impression that maybe a little tinkering would probably take care of it; changing spring tension, or system press. or something like that.

 

[K85 Octane]

OK, no no no, this is BS. I want an answer to this problem. I read through the whole damn thing and this is how it ends?!?!

Did anyone check the centering pins?