steering on 1941 Ford

John Voelkel

John Voelkel

Member
I am having a problem with my 1941 Ford steering.
The car will wonder when I am on a straight road
It is of concern because when on a two lane road
I have to be alert that it does not wander into the
other lane.
I have replaced the tie rod ends, the drag link, the
bushings in the king pins, tightened the steering
adjustment and had the front end aligned (they do
this with a LASER set up now days, and a computer
read out, no more mirrors). The wheel bearings are
adjusted up tight and backed off enough to get the
cotter pin into the nearest opening in the castele nut.

Years ago I had a 41 and don't remember anything
like this.

I am running 600 x 16 bias tires, just like back in 1952.
Need help.

John
 
You might want to check your shocks and shock links . shocks that are too soft or just plain worn out can cause some wandering. Also check the rubber ball on the wishbone to make sure its not oil soaked or worn out. Check the spring shackles and bushings for wear also.
 
You say the front end was aligned. What did they set the toe-in at?? Is the steering box tight?? Also tight to the frame? Tie rod ends, drag link good? Pitman arm tight??
Paul in CT
 
I had this problem with a Ford pickup and after rebuilding the front end the problem was still there. I found out it was the tires even though they looked good. Try putting the rears on the front or even borrow some from a later Ford pickup. Dale.
 
Re; Ford service manual 1939-'48. "Steering" pg. G-11. Item 7. Side pull. " Unequal tire diameter, Unequal tire pressure. A positive or negative camber of a rear wheel. unequal camber of front wheels. Dragging brake shoe. Wheel bearings too tight. unequal caster.

For me, it's been awhile but we used to set the toe in at 1/8th inch. Having had a career in the bearing industry for over 45 years, I would tend to take another look at your front wheel bearing adjustment. I have been on many "bearing failure" complaints from experienced mechanics and 100% had been improper adjustment. Proper adjustment is to bottom out the nut, Not tight or overly snug but just bottomed out. Then back off the nut while turning the wheel until you feel zero drag on the wheel, Then line up the slot with the cotter pin hole. A little loose is way better than too tight. Then grab the wheel at 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock pull out and push in on the wheel you may experience very, very slight movement that's O.K.

All of the other barn members comments are great and legitimate. I sure hope it's something simple for you.:)

Rich O.
 
All, thank you for all the info. I plan on trying all. I want to check the shocks
and may try to rebuild them. I see new ones are in the $230 each catagory.
I will have the tires rotated. The camber I assume is ok from having the toe
in adjusted. The system they used is they put reflectors on all four wheels.
There is a large T shaped form that has flashing LASERs (2 on each side).
The reflection is read by the system and the measurements displayed on a
video screen. On the 41 the only real easy adjustment is toe in and my shop
manual lists 1/16" for the 41. Any adjustment for camber/caster is done with
a hydraulic tool that bends the axle. I will recheck the bearing adjustment.
All replies are very helpful and I thank all for the suggestions.

John
 
i had the same problem with bias tires, i changed over to radials and the problem disapeared
 
Yeah, I have the same problem with my bias plys. Mines ALL OVER the road. Especially if there are any grooves or truck ruts in the road, forget about it.
 
just had a similar problem on my 39. turned out to be very worn rear spring shakles. allowed the rear to shift slightly side to side and made the car wander when going down the road at 30 mph or higher. car drives much better now. randy
 
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