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8/7/19:I made some time to work on the truck today and boy did I open a can of worms. The drivers side rear spring mount which is riveted to the frame is loose, in addition to both spring pivot bolts that have slop. After removal I confirmed their degraded condition requiring replacement. I also checked the king pins and tie rod ends. The tie rods ends are good only needing cleaning and re-greasing but the king pins are another story. The passenger side had a bit of slop, about .006” - .008” of radial movement as measured at the bottom of the yoke. I’m not talking about thrust clearance. The drivers side had .002” - .003”. So my question is how much movement is too much? I posted that question on stovebolt and I’m waiting for some responses. My gut feeling is at least the passenger side king pin will need to be replaced.

Since I almost had the entire front axle out I decided to remove the shackles and springs to check them Out more thoroughly. The shackles checked out OK Requiring only replacement of the grease seals but both rear spring eyes are worn thru the bushings into the main leafs in the spring assembly’s and need replacement. Now the question, do I replace both front spring assembly’s or disassemble the spring sets and replace just the main spring? I think disassembly is required to assess the damage before I decide. It’s no wonder the truck wandered!

I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed right now.