Billut

I'd say real bad.
Say you start to pass another vehicle on the road and the truck fights you back. Once stabilized the truck may or may not start pulling in the opposite direction. And if it does you start fighting it back the opposite way. And this goes on and on. Til you make a 90 degree turn: as you crank on the steering wheel, the truck either fights back or let's you go with no resistance. Who knows?
In the past 8 months truck has had put on: 2 new front tires, a new steering stabilizer, new rotors, calipers, axle seals, wheel bearings, tie rod ends, ball joints, 2 new shock absorbers, I must be missing smothering...
What d'y'all think?

jerseybud

I'm curious what you think is ball joints on a "king-pin" Dana 60. Then I would look at steering box adapter plate and the frame, specifically for cracks.

If you have a lift then I would suspect that

oliver foster

I was thinking a cracked steering box plate as well.

NJTman

I had a bad axle joint that would prevent the truck from returning to center while making a turn. So as you're turning left onto another intersecting street, instead of going down that street, the truck wanted to drive onto the lawn of the corner house on that street.

Sounds like a cracked adapter plate.....

jerseybud

Good call NJT, seized axle u joints have to be on list as well

NJTman

Well, I did have the chinese made U Joints, I put in my front axle shafts, for helping me with this .

maybe368

Are we sure that the OP has a 4x4? He mentions replacing the ball joints, which would make it a 2wd, right? If so, he has no steering box mounting plate or front u-joints, right? If all of this is correct, maybe bad steering box? I don't know too much about the 2wd suspension...Mark

1972RedNeck

Sig says W350...

maybe368

I am not seeing a sig on my browser, so, in the words of The great Gilda Radner, Never Mind...Mark Edit: cleared my cache and now I see the sig...

Billut

Sorry about the kingpin/balljoint confusion I made: I had to replace those on the Dana 44 on the old Burb.
The truck is a W350 with a Dana 60 and kingpins. I will get under it tonite and poke around the axle u joint - I actually saw some wet spots there this morning on passenger side - as well as the steering box plate
Thanks to all so far

NJTman

FWIW,

My axle joints appeared to be "normal" until I physically removed them.

Two caps on the cross were lubed and fine. The other two were rusted solid. The cheapo joints you get at autozone didn't have the crosses drilled and the grease was only going through the two caps in line, while the other caps were starved. Once salt got in there (poor seals as well), they froze up. When the axle can't rotate, it prevents the steering knuckle from rotating, even if your hubs are unlocked.

Best with your search...

torquefan

My vote is also for a seized axle joint. Even in 2WD when the front axle shafts aren't turning, those joints still need to flex when you steer.

Billut

One last question: I'd like to take the truck to a buddy of mine where we can work better than on my sloped driveway.
Is it safe to drive it about 15 miles, or a big no no?

NJTman

Only you can determine how safe it is to drive. None of us are there to look at it. If the steering gear adapter plate lets go, you will have no ability to control the truck's direction. If the axle U joint stops moving, it would most likely snap off the end of one side of the axle, causing irreparable damage to the axle shaft itself.

Might want to get under there before you take it out, and consider a tow truck if necessary.

patdaly

Good advice so far, but the very first thing I would do is while it is setting on the ground, engine off, a helper, any helper at the wheel, have them turn the wheel back and forth while you physically start at the bottom of the steering column and following it all the way to the tie rod ends, inspecting each and every area while it is in motion. If it is not the axle u-joints, something WILL be moving excessively, or worse, flopping around.

If the truck is as loose as you describe, this one shouldn't be too difficult to see where it is coming from, here again, assuming it isn't the axle u-joint.

I would pay very, very close attention to the frame, mounting bracket, and bolts of the steering box......... Because to me, it sounds like something broke while you were driving.