Ford steering update

[IsaacCarlson]

I looped my power steering lines on my 91 F-250 some time ago. This worked great and allowed me to feel the road. The box had a little play in it and the steering linkages had a lot of play. I could throw the steering wheel back and forth and go straight down the road. I finally came up with the money to buy new steering parts, so I got new tie rod ends, drag link, box, etc...

I am going to try to fill the box with grease the way the manual boxes are supposed to be filled. It is supposed to make steering SOOO much easier.
I will keep you posted.

[Frank Lee]

I was gonna ask if you could tell the fe difference from before to after but it looks like you've stopped keeping records...

[IsaacCarlson]

The mileage picked up some without the P/S. I did a bunch of mods at the same time so it is hard to tell what did how much. Winter mileage is moot since I built a plow for the truck.....talk about taking a hit on mileage.....

I haven't been on here much....
Too much to do and not enough time to do it. Got a few things to fix on the truck and then to get on that motor swap....

I think I will have to mod the internals of the box to be able to use the grease, but I am not sure. I will take apart the old box for a good look before taking it in for a core. This is really making me curious.....gotta get that box open.

I have to replace a wheel cylinder and re-seal the pinion nut. Probably need a new fuel pump and 02 sensor. Need a new bed too. For some reason the stock bed can't handle 2+ yards of river rock... It looks like a duck trying to take off when I drive down the road with the bed sides flopping......
The wheel bearings need to be re-packed, and the motor needs some new gaskets. WOW! didn't realize the list was that long......gotta run.

[IsaacCarlson]

YAY! and OUCH! at the same time......

The auto parts store lists a manual box for a 1990 f-250! BUT it is 400 smackers..... I ordered it anyway since I already spent 200 on a power box but can take it back. Better than spending 600+ I guess.....
All I have to say is, it better fit.

[Frank Lee]

Yikes- no auto junkyards there?

[slowmover]

Good to see this back.

[IsaacCarlson]

I would rather have a new/rebuilt box than one out of a junkyard. Who knows how long it has been sitting and I would have to rebuild it anyway, but the internals might not be good.....I feel better with a new one.

The mileage has been around 20-22 lately with all the cold weather.

[IsaacCarlson]

I used the manual box for a 1990 f-250, but had to modify it some to get the pitman arm to fit.

There are two differences between the power and manual box.
The flat that is machined into the input shaft, is on the opposite side.
The indexing splines on the output are off by 1/8 of a turn.

I solved the first problem by pulling the end of the steering column out, turning it a 1/2 turn and sliding it back in....10 second fix.

The second problem took a dremel, cutoff wheel, and a steady hand. I had to grind out 4 splines to re-index the pitman arm. This worked great and the box is now in place.

original index.jpg

new index.jpg

new index 2.jpg

proper.jpg

[ex-x-fire]

Anytime you loose splines, you weaken the connection.

[IsaacCarlson]

I know, I was going to cut the large splines on the pitman arm into two smaller ones but that proved VERY time consuming and harder to get right, so I modified the pitman shaft instead.

I started with 32 splines and cut out 4 so I still have 28 splines, and the old wide splines still offer support on the outsides, so really I only lost 2 splines. It is still AT LEAST 90% as strong as it was.