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Originally Posted by MiraclePieCo
You know the old joke, "Doc, it hurts when I do this," and the Doc replies, "Then don't do that."
In this case the Doc says "Don't turn the wheel while standing still."   |
Too much!
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That's interesting to see the flex on that arm and the drag link kind of twisting too. Not sure if the flex is designed in or not.
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I think the arm was made tough enough to flex. It's a damn strong part. I'm with Mr48 in that I've never seen a broken steering arm. But I also think tires and roads were different enough that the arm didn't have to be rigid. I promise that these arms flex while the truck is driving. With fatter or softer tires it will happen any time you try to turn the wheel when you're not moving. BTDT over 35 years ago. And if you live in an area with poor roads (like the Northeast) it happens on bumps or ruts or mismatched pavement. It doesn't take much force applied to the tire to get visible results. Truth is I can make it happen with the vehicle in the air by securing the steering wheel and trying to turn the tire from outside.
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It does flex a bit but most of the movement appears to be in the worn end of the drag link.
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There's nothing wrong with the drag link. The joints at both ends are tight. The twisting seen in the video is the natural result of the pitman arm and steering arm movement.
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Who ever was turning the wheel was also pushing against the stops pretty hard
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And now I think we're at the heart of the issue. From the driver's perspective there's no significant change in the wheel feedback to indicate the knuckle contacted the stop. With most vehicles the steering linkage is rigid enough to alert the driver when the wheels require more force to hold or change direction. But in the 1/2 ton TF that just isn't the case. I had probably 1/8 to 1/4 wheel motion available after the knuckle hit the stop. Steering wheel resistance built up like a spring being compressed rather than a hard "stop."
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driving down the road the flexing may actually dampen the jolts from the tire to the steering wheel.
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Exactly! But it's not a good thing. When a rut, or a groove, or a bump applies enough force to a wheel to potentially change vehicle direction, most vehicles transmit that information to the steering wheel. The driver can apply corrective action quickly, based on the road feel. But in the TF truck the driver has to rely on realizing the vehicle is actually changing direction to apply a correction. Once the driver applies a correction there's a delay again in figuring out if it's the right amount of correction. The game of keeping the vehicle straight involves reacting and predicting in a way that most vehicles don't require. It feels like the road, not the driver, is in control.