The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 54 3600 Front End Help...

Hey OLD TRUCK Fans...

I finally got he wife's 54 3/4 driving around town this weekend, and BOY does this thing drift all over the road. I felt like I was on an old amusment ride going side to side.

Since I have never dealt with king pins, I am not sure if this is the problem. Any comments? The factory shop manual makes this repair look simple, but I KNOW better.

All help appreicated!

Jim

The front end play could be any number of problems..

Try a couple of things. First with the tires on the ground, get a helper to move the steering wheel to the left and to the right 6 inches each way. While your helper is doing that, crawl under the truck . Listen for any unusual noise and look for loose parts. Grab the tie rod ends, the drag link ends, the Pitman arm , sometimes you can feel the vibration in a worn part..Pay attention to see if a small steering wheel movement moves the Pitman arm. If not you have steering box play..

Then put the truck up on good jack stands so that the wheels are just off the ground. Have your helper shake one tire back and forth while you look around underneath. Look for the same symptoms as above. Then put a pry bar under each tire and shake it up and down to check for loose king pins..

Before you can begin repairs, you need to identify what parts need repairing.. When you have the front end tight, then it is time to check alignment..

Once you have ID'd the problem the repairs are not too difficult to do. The tough part is getting everything disassembled. Putting the new king pins in or rebuilding the old tie rod ends or tightening up the steering gear are not to hard to do but getting the old stuff apart can be a real pain.

I had the same problem with the front steering on my 55 1st series 3600 and before I knew it I had a bare frame. :rolleyes: Won't know for a couple years how the front end repairs worked out, but it sure looks good.