Quick question on power steering

[Nutro]

On my 88 if you turn the wheel either direction a little bit is screeches and groans and almost grinds like an old Ford power steering unit. It's really bad. I just noticed the steering gear looks to be replaced recently with an Atsco and the pump reservoir has fluid. I'm hoping it's the pump that is bad so I bought a new pump and pulley.

I received the pulley and it's serpentine. Mine is a double groove for a v-belt. I looked on Amazon and Rockauto and all they show for my year is a serpentine or if I look for a 350 in an 87 R10 pickup, it only shows a single groove for a truck without A/C.

Can I use a double groove pulley like the Dorman 300-121?

 

[frankin5]

Summit lists that Dorman number for 350 and v6 with duel pulley. Amazon say it and the pump they try to sell you won't fit an 85 blazer with ac duel pulley.

 

[Nutro]

Thats what I saw as well. My luck, it won't work. I guess if its the same diameter and press fit. I also found a Dorman 300-125 which is double groove as well. Hmmm

 

[frankin5]

Summit has another duel pulley that fits for half the price of the Dorman pulley.

 

[Nutro]

Dang for what year?

 

[frankin5]

The pump and pulley for the 350 with AC are the same till they went to full serpentine system

 

[Nutro]

Awesome, that is what I was figuring. I ordered one from Amazon. Fingers crossed.

 

[Nutro]

Well hell. So Dorman lists the 88 as serpentine. I just measured my pulley that is a little bent and it is 6-3/8" I looked up the double pulleys on Dorman and Summit and they show 6.17 and 5.8 for diameter.

Also, should I be able to turn my power steering pump pulley by hand with the engine off and belt installed? I just went out and I can move it with my hand

 

[frankin5]

Should not be able to turn pump with belts adjusted tight by hand. Unless you be superman and are turning the engine too, 6 1/4 = 6.125 6 3/8 = 6.375 small amount to take up in belt adjustment. Do or do you not have air. 1988 is shown as serpentine, but I think it is the change over year or is it 1987? Someone may have changed engine and used its accessories. Can you post a picture of the front of engine.

 

[Nutro]

I do have A/C and yes sir I will post some pics tomorrow AM. I'm sure it's not the original motor or anything else on it. My luck. I might just swap over to serpentine setup.

 

[6872xtc]

It sounds like the belt is loose, correct? That would definitely make some noise!

And the '88 R and V series trucks were not serpentine, just a wider , four groove I believe, belt for the alternator. (Crank, water pump and alternator)
I have seen more than a couple over the years. The C/K trucks, the ones with IFS, had the first generation of serpentine with steel brackets and then everything went serpentine in 1989 with aluminum brackets.
Remember, if you swap to serpentine, you have to change the water pump.

You should be able to get the correct pulley by looking at an '86. That's the year that I found was first with the wide alternator belt.

 

[diesel4me]

Both of my 6.2 diesels ('82 K2500 & '85 K10 Suburban) have double grooved P/S pulleys ,only one has (had) A/C too...they use hydroboost but I bet the pulleys fit all the older V belt P/S pumps..whether the offset is different from a gas engine one I cant tell you though..

I owned two 1986 350's and both had only a serpentine belt for the alternator alone,all the other pulleys were for v belts..that was the year they started phasing in many changes--the one piece rear main,valve covers were still 4 bolt ones,yet some blocks were set up for a roller cam and never got one,etc..'86-87 were tough to get the right parts for,they were "that year only" in many cases..

 

[Nutro]

Yeah this one is half serpentine and half v-rib. Here are some pics. It's not the original motor according to the person I bought it from. He claims it was a rebuilt motor but judging by everything else he lied about, who knows.

 

[diesel4me]

That engine looks to have the TBI style valve covers so it may be an '87 or later than an '87...trouble with Chevy's is you can swap so many parts onto a SBC from other years (and decades!) that you could have any combination of different parts,or all the brackets & pulleys off one particular year someone got off another engine..

It can be a real pain finding the one right pulley or bracket..
I have two 307 engines ,1970 & '71 vintage,I need water pump pulleys for,that have the short water pump--I may still have one...somewhere.....so far it has eluded me..

I've found half a dozen "long style" crank pulleys,found a short water pump too,which I knew had a single v pulley,but I remembered I gave that one away to a guy who's old Coupe had the chrome Mr'Gasket pulley crack all around the bolts and fly off,just as he was passing my friends shop..He was in a real bind so I was his guardian angel,he was 50+ miles from home..

I'll probably have to use the long pump setup if I ever put those engines in a square body anyways..but no complete pulley & bracket setups exist in salvage yards that old here,everything has been picked clean on the few 350's left in yards around here..and the aftermarket ones are cheap crap unless you buy billet ones that are $$$..

 

[Nutro]

Yeah junkyards here have almost no good squares left in them. They are picked clean if you can find them.

Question:

I posted on one of the K5 Facebook groups and a nice guy on there offered to send me his whole serpentine setup from his 1991 K5 with a TBI 350. Can I use everything from that truck? Is there a list of EVERYTHING I'd need to make it work? Hopefull I won't need to drill holes in the heads.

Alternator
Water pump (I'll buy new)
Power steering pump he said is good
A/C compressor and lines?
Crank pulley
Idler
Tensioner he said was pretty new

Anything else?

 

[diesel4me]

Others here will have better answers to that question,I do believe you can swap "everything" to an old school 350 if you have all the parts,but there may be a few tweaks you need to make...

Other guys here will know,my knowledge pretty much stops around '87 when TBI and computers started being used..
I still own earlier 80's vintage trucks ..

I looked in a few salvage yards locally and there are dam few Chevy's older than 1990 in them...a few old 70's Monte-Carlo's and Impala's were still at one yard,but both had engines stripped clean of every unboltable part,full of water......

I forgot the 229 V6 and 4.3's are the same,the guy at one yard said they might have a setup off one of them,but they might balk at "breaking up" a complete engine if everything is intact...if swap meets this year hadn't all been covid cancelled,I could get a pulley for $5 or a whole "original" setup cheap..
I'm not in any hurry,I'll come across something..my older brother 85 miles away probably has everything I need and more--if he hasn't sold them off yet..

 

[frankin5]

I think you have the belt on the wrong side of the power steering pulley.Where is the first belt to ac, then power steering, then crank, with the outside position with a belt that just went to the water pump, then to power steering back to the crank pulley. SEE next post.

Alternator
Water pump (I'll buy new)
Power steering pump he said is good
A/C compressor and lines?
Crank pulley
Idler
Tensioner he said was pretty new

Anything else?

yes make sure you get the fan, thermo , water pump pulley.

 

[frankin5]

@Nutro
I think after doing a little research that you are missing a belt. Check to see if you have another groove on the crank pulley. The inner should be a belt from crank to AC to power steering. the next grove out on the crank goes to water pump, power steering and back to crank. The next should be the serpentine belt from crank to alt to water pump back to crank.The front pulley on the water pump went to the smog pump.

 

[6872xtc]

I was just going to ask about the lack of a rear belt on the power steering pump. Other than that, it all looks correct for an '87 to '88 TBI small block with A/C. (In the R/V series) I spent a decent amount of time with an '87 K30 3+3 that had a little small block. The truck was an old government truck with only 100K on it when we got it. I also messed around with several others.

But the parts from the '91 will work too. Shouldn't have to drill any holes.

And you should be able to sell your old parts, don't just scrap them. They were only made for 3 years.

 

[Wes Harden]

You need a second belt for P/s pump. Crank alt p/s, remove the ac belt install the p/s belt, tighten. Do not pry on can, if it gets bent dinged or warped it will leak. Then install and tighten a/c belt.
this goes for all the sbc with p/s, a/c and V belt.