Does your steering suck?

Thanks! Ive put a EMS off road free spin kit ,dt trac bar, dtcontroll arms,heim joint sreering, red head steering box, rock solid ram bushing and bourgeson shaft and still drives like ****! Next im putin new ball joints and see where we stand. I have 35" good year mtr's that are d range so im lookin for some 20's
other than that not sure what to do?
 
Oh yea ,bigbldodge i might be in longview but probably be puttin cam in 05 so i will def be @ speed tech so find me if u are there ill be in the dually in my avitar!
Zack
 
Lucky Jeff said:
just so you know.. 20's take a LOT of weight to balance out..
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I know this is off topic...but not always true. I've got a set of 20s/35" Nittos that only took a few ounces. In fact they ride/drive better than the factorys. And the're for sale....:poke:
 
1coalcummins said:
Did'nt think about it being sleeved...and yes they are very close so I'd need to fill the old holes in before drilling new ones. Well I think I'll be making a plate, and tackling this project soon...I'll post some pictures when/if I get it finished.
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Making an adapting plate is relly the only way. Even if you fill the holes its still not as strong as the orig frame itself. You could weld a piece of 3/8"s plate on both sides solid and start from there. But im telling you, on that dakota we used a 79 ford box and it was a btch to get those holes to line up. Two damn days of hell:doh:

Another thing I dont quite understand is the bracket. As close as the holes are are you just gonna bolt the box to the plate? Surely not...
 
Lets see if this works.


Edit: Nope... I was trying to show the third picture on the first post in the thread. Are those really long grade 8 bolts that go throught the frame and just have another nut on the other side and thats it? or is their atleast another plate on the other side to distribure the pressure, something that wond bend with all that pressure?
 
1coalcummins said:
Also about the steering shaft; instead of cutting the 3rd gen end off and welding it to the 2nd gen shaft could you just use a 3rd gen shaft or is it alot different?
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You could use the 3rd gen steering shaft. The column end on the 3rd gen is the same as the 2nd gen. I do believe you would have to cut it down. If I remember correctly the 3rd gen is longer.

Replacing just the end is a cost saving measure. I hate paying a fortune for parts so I figure I would invent something that was a fraction of the cost of a new shaft.
 
Red Sleeper said:
Lets see if this works.


Edit: Nope... I was trying to show the third picture on the first post in the thread. Are those really long grade 8 bolts that go throught the frame and just have another nut on the other side and thats it? or is their atleast another plate on the other side to distribure the pressure, something that wond bend with all that pressure?
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You bolt the steering gear using the socket head flats to the adapter plate first then bolt the assembly to the frame just like you would the regular gear. I first used the factory metric 14mm bolts, but tapping with the metric tap was a PAIN. The 4" long 9/16" grade 8's with washer and lock washers work much better and are MUCH easier to tap for.

I am still working out some bugs, but when it is finished I will post up complete step by step instructions on how to install it.
 
I might be interested in doing this if the price is right and the gears dont go on a 2 year back order!
 
Interested in the plate.
You need to start making these, much needed on these trucks.
Was going to buy a new steering box next month, but now I will hold off.
 
How thick is the casting at the 3 pads? How thick do the countersunk holes end up after being countersunk? would there be enough room to counter bore the holes and use regular hex head bolts instead of the flat head bolts? I assume it is made of cast iron? I just wonder about strength, with all the forces on the steering box. This is a great idea, thinking outside of the box, I like it. I would just hate to see you sell one and have it fail.
 
Why would you counterbore for a hex head? The flat head will be plenty strong enough to hold and gives you the maximum amount of meat around the bolt head. You will break the bolt itself before the head pulls through.
 
Billysgoat said:
Why would you counterbore for a hex head? The flat head will be plenty strong enough to hold and gives you the maximum amount of meat around the bolt head. You will break the bolt itself before the head pulls through.
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A flat head screw is not as strong as a hex head is what I've always been told. With the stresses on those 3 bolts, I would like to see as much strength as physically possible. + the fact that they are a royal pain in the a$$ if you ever have to remove them. I work on industrial scales, and some scales were spec'd with flathead bolts in certain locations, my experience shows that A. they do not hold their torque as well. B. They tend to gall in their mounting. C. They strip out easily when trying to remove them. At our shop we have retrofitted every one we have come across to counterbored holes with good old fashioned grade 8 hex head bolts.
 
Not to mention the fact that if the countersunk hole, or in this case the threaded mounting hole in the steering box itself is off by any amount at all you do not get even clamping on the bolt head to the mounting surface. A slightly oversized hole with a counterbore will allow full contact between the mounting plate and the head of the bolt, despite any manufacturing tolerances. I'd rather not take a chance by moutning the steering box that way, that is all.
 
murfman said:
How thick is the casting at the 3 pads? How thick do the countersunk holes end up after being countersunk? would there be enough room to counter bore the holes and use regular hex head bolts instead of the flat head bolts? I assume it is made of cast iron? I just wonder about strength, with all the forces on the steering box. This is a great idea, thinking outside of the box, I like it. I would just hate to see you sell one and have it fail.
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I will grab one when I get home and take some measurements.

Going from memory the pads on the casting are about 3/16" to a 1/4" thicker then the tabs on the steering gear.

We are just transferring shear right? Transferring shear from the mounting bolts to the socket head flats. The bolts I am using are much stronger then then the factory bolts. The 9/16" bolts are about 10 thousands bigger in diameter then the factory 14mm bolts. The socket head flats are identical diameter of the factory mounting bolts.

Field testing is going great. I beat the snot out of my truck on the deer hunt and all is well.
 
justinp20012500 said:
I will grab one when I get home and take some measurements.

Going from memory the pads on the casting are about 3/16" to a 1/4" thicker then the tabs on the steering gear.

We are just transferring shear right? Transferring shear from the mounting bolts to the socket head flats. The bolts I am using are much stronger then then the factory bolts. The 9/16" bolts are about 10 thousands bigger in diameter then the factory 14mm bolts. The socket head flats are identical diameter of the factory mounting bolts.

Field testing is going great. I beat the snot out of my truck on the deer hunt and all is well.
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Shear with the box trying to move front to rear, but also strech with the box trying to pull off of the frame when turning the wheels from side to side, especially if the tire is stuck against a rock or in a rut. I was amazed at how much the frame flexes when the steering is working hard. The entire frame corner flexes enough to be visible to the naked eye.
 
justinp20012500 said:
I will grab one when I get home and take some measurements.

Going from memory the pads on the casting are about 3/16" to a 1/4" thicker then the tabs on the steering gear.

We are just transferring shear right? Transferring shear from the mounting bolts to the socket head flats. The bolts I am using are much stronger then then the factory bolts. The 9/16" bolts are about 10 thousands bigger in diameter then the factory 14mm bolts. The socket head flats are identical diameter of the factory mounting bolts.

Field testing is going great. I beat the snot out of my truck on the deer hunt and all is well.
Click to expand...

Glad to hear its working good,I want one!
 
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