hard steering f-100

F

flathead 53

Well-known member
I have a 53 f-100 ,replaced steering box , tie rod ends ,center link ,rebuilt drag link,correct adjustment on steering box , truck steers hard when backing up or moving slow ,king pins are good ,only items not replaced are outer and inner wheel bearings , A good friend has a 52 f-1 pick up and it steers a lot easier then mine. I also have new tires ,same as his ,and run 36 lbs pressure in them ,I am lost on what the problem can be .
 
Flathead53
Does your truck still have the I beam axle? Some times spring sag can cause caster angle changes. Have your front end alignment checked.
Bruce
 
flathead 53 said:
I have a 53 f-100 ,replaced steering box , tie rod ends ,center link ,rebuilt drag link,correct adjustment on steering box , truck steers hard when backing up or moving slow ,king pins are good ,only items not replaced are outer and inner wheel bearings , A good friend has a 52 f-1 pick up and it steers a lot easier then mine. I also have new tires ,same as his ,and run 36 lbs pressure in them ,I am lost on what the problem can be .
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Just curious if you replaced the steering box with a used one or a rebuilt one?

And how sure are you that the adjustment of the steering box is correct ?

I know if the adjustment screw is turned in too tight, the steering gets tight.






.
 
Steering box has been replaced with a rebuilt one from mid fifties , it is adjusted correctly, the driver side spring does sag about 3/4 lower then pass side,even with new springs .there is more weight on driver side do to location of gas tank under frame rails driver side on 53/55 f100,plus weight of driver .thinking about heaver spring pack on driver side.
 
Worked on one for a friend with the same problem and it turned out the kingpins weren't taking grease. Pulled the grease fittings and cleaned all the hard grease out no more problem!
 
I would put a floor jack under the center of the axle an jack it
up until the tires just clear the floor and see how it feels. Then
let it down so the tires lightly touch the floor and feel it again.
Double check tire pressures. All old Fords turn hard when not
moving. G.M.
 
Skinny bias plys or wide radials?

Good suggestion above re kingpin grease.

I'd remove the drag ling and test each individual part for tightness.

Steering box, left spindle, right spindle. tie rod ends etc etc etc.
 
In addition to the above suggestions, overtightened drag links can affecting steering effort as well.
 
I've found a spindle thrust bearing dry and rough causing a bind.

Also as mentioned above the drag link adjustment can be troublesome if the balls are worn, adjusted OK in the straight ahead worn area; but get tight as turned into the less worn area.
 
I'd jack it up and remove a tie rod end , either will do . Turn each wheel by hand and determine which , if any , it is then proceed with walking thru the pieces
 
You can test each item of the system individually for binding but the key factor is the steering gear if all else is smooth & easy. If the roller sector is too tight, it won't rotate as it should. If the tapered rollers are set with too much preload, it will be tighter than normal. If the sector shaft bearings are too tight, it can also stiffen the action. If the sector roller to worm gear fit was adjusted off center then that will make turning movement through the center too tight.

It ain't power steering but it was a big improvement over the earlier designs with no sector roller gear.
 
Ok pulled the grease fittings off, cleaned in the holes ,not much old grease .put fittings back in and greased the king pins .pumped hard to get grease in then grease came out at the very bottom of the king pin and the very top of the king pin ,nothing at the spindle joints. Grease should come out there also . Correct ?
 
Flathead 53
Look at your axle good to see if it is bent anywhere. That could cause hard steering.
Bruce
 
Try lifting the pickup at the axle and take vehicle weight off of the king pins leaving the front tires still in contact with the floor. Then pump the grease into the zert. Yes you should see grease come out of the top and the bottom of each knuckle. Highly recommend using jack stands under the frame rails while doing this task, don't trust a jack by its self. I also grease my leaf shackles with the vehicle weight off of them and pump till grease comes out both ends. Keep us posted on the out come.
 
Greasing with both wheels on shop floor and wheels off the shop floor changes the pressure application on the spindles. This could be why grease only comes out of one side or the other due to pressure application on the spindle king pin bosses.


Some of the new king pin kits come with thrust bearings that have smaller ball bearings than original. I always look for kits with the best possible thrust bearings in them. Sometimes I get lucky and find good NOS OEM stuff. There is some crap out there for sale these days.
 
Another suggestion is to replace the top bushing with a bearing. O'Rilleys has a wheel bearing part number 7-04133 (12 bucks). This bearing has a small lip which you grind off and it fits perfectly into the F1 barrel. This makes a world of difference in the steering. Ed
 

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Too much positive caster will also tend to make a vehicle steer hard. The only way to correct caster adjustment on a straight axle is to bend the axle or shim between the spring and the axle. Just a thought- good luck!

Bill
 
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