The background is that all four balljoints have been replaced with Moog, all tie-rods and the track bar have Lukes Links.

In the last week or two, the front end sounds and feels like it's going to fall apart.

Fearing a bad "new" balljoint, I jacked it up, put stands under the axle and used my bottle jack to lift the knuckle. There was a very small amount of upward movement at the lower balljoints, maybe a 64'th of an inch so that wasn't the problem.

I had my daughter saw the wheel back and forth and I watched the Lukes Links for movement but didn't see any. However, I can feel what I call a knocking when the wheel is turned back and forth. In addition to this, when I make 90 degree turns I hear and feel a loud pop.

I grabbed a screwdriver and put it at the center of the lower steering shaft while my daughter continued sawing the wheel and there is about a 16'th of an inch of movenment at the shaft and there may be more under load.

I think it safe to say the the DSS will help. I've put it off for since I did the balljoints and then again when I rebuild the tie rods but I guess the steering box is one of the last crappy parts to deal with.

Last on the list:

1. DSS
2. Energy control arm bushings
3. 9000X's +2 to work with the D25's.

I think my stock link 9000X's are blown due to being over extended and possible overextending with force.

Car manufacturers really screw us when they source the cheapest parts

 

if you need a steering box in the future I hear a place called diesel connection in MD ( they will ship) can get rebuilt saganaw boxes but there rebuilt with better componuts not that orignal junk. I cant remember price exactly.. 400-600ish?

 

Wow! that is expensive. Maybe AGR has them for less.

 

are you sure your axle U-joints arent the culprit?

 

I don't think so, but I use four-wheel drive periodically to keep the xfer case lubed but they have just been spinning for most of the trucks life. When I replaced the axle seals, the u-joints appeared to be tight.

 

The way to tell if a DSS will help you is to leave the tires on the ground and have someone turn the wheels back and forth while you watch the shaft coming out of the box and the pitman arm. I've seen some shafts with over a half inch of side to side play and some will even flex the frame where the box is attached. DSS work great in these situations but can also prevent the slop from developing in a steering box that's still tight.
$400 seems steep for a box, I had insurance replace one where an accident snapped the shaft right off, cost $250 brand new. Sorry, I don't know the brand or where the body shop got it.