I have a '49 1/2 ton, 3" dropped axle, rebuilt original brakes and rebuilt original ball and socket steering. New kingpins and new-ish wheel bearings. I am running radial tires. I did shorten the pitman arm and swapped the tie rods to under the steering arms for the drop. I've lowered the rear to the same height as the front, so the truck is sitting level. I have driven this truck since I pulled out of the woods and dropped a inline 250 motor and got it on the highway again. I have slowly done the mods and rebuilding as I have the money and time. It has always had bad road manners. It tracks straight until I hit a slight bump and then it just goes where it wants. Sometimes even without a bump it will just start roaming but not often. I have tried to adjust the steering box but not sure if I did it correctly. The only other thing is I think the passenger side axle hole for the kingpin is very slightly wallowed. The kingpin can slide all the way through. So I probably need to get oversized kingpins.
My main questions are: would the kingpin being a bit loose give me these steering issues? How do I know when my steering box is worn and needs to be rebuilt or replaced? and are there any other things I've overlooked that could be giving me these problems? I'm trying to get my truck steering like it should to drive to Austin for the Lone Star Roundup show in April. Thanks for any help guys!
