The Ford Barn

dam555 · 11-10-2012, 03:53 PM

I have a 1930 sedan which going down the road if you hit a bump will start shaking severely. I have checked the kingpins and they are tight, I used one of the teflon rebuild kits on the tierod ends and pittman arm. I still have considerable front to back play on the sector shaft/pittman arm, over an inch, am I looking at rebuilding the steering box?

Dennis/CT · 11-10-2012, 04:05 PM

I had the same problem. I rebuilt the king pins,tie rod ends,and both steering arms and the pitman arm, PERFECT. Even though the king pins feel tight the may have a little play that will cause trouble. My king pins had less then 1/8 wobble my steering arms were not round they were egg shape and so was the pitman arm. Also you might want to adjust the steering box.

dam555 · 11-10-2012, 04:12 PM

my steering arms and pitman arms were all still round, the kingpins have no wobble at all that can be felt

1931 flamingo · 11-10-2012, 04:58 PM

toe in/out set correctly, tire pressure right, how old are the tires, wishbone "ball" round and installed correct, pitman arm TIGHT to shaft???
Paul in CT

Patrick L. · 11-10-2012, 06:19 PM

Check and adjust everything [ tie-rod, drag link springs], wheel bearings, toe-in [ 1/16"] , the radius arm/wishbone ball and pitman arm..
It sounds like the main problem is the steering box adjustment though.. You should have a 2 tooth box which has 4 adjustments.. The service bulletins have the best instructions for this..

ba49 · 11-11-2012, 08:44 AM

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Had the same problem in my coupe. It would shake so hard I had to almost stop. If I hit the brakes hard it would help. Everything seemed tight except the steering box. It had a lot of play in it and it leaked. I tried adjusting it but no luck. The steering wheel had about 2-3 inches of play. I replaced the entire box with a rebuilt one from Snyders and changed to the short pitman arm. What a difference! No more shimmy and it steers great. I really recommend the shorter pitman arm. Changing the steering box was fairly easy and I'm a novice. Took about 4 hours total.
Bill

BILL WILLIAMSON · 11-11-2012, 12:49 PM

A friend corrected a "wobble" by tightening the nuts that hold the left & right steering arms to the spindles, they were just slightly loose, but corrected the problem. Bill W.

Tinbasher · 11-11-2012, 07:22 PM

Check your Caster Angle and a steering dampener may help.

J.Poole

Ice man · 11-11-2012, 09:05 PM

A steering dampner stopped my problem. Ice man

Tom Wesenberg · 11-11-2012, 10:00 PM

A steering damper might cover up the problem, but it won't fix it. My 28 has a very worn temporary front end on while I rebuild and paint the original. If I jack the wheels off the ground I can move the tops of the wheels back and forth at least two inches, yet I've never had a hint of wheel shimmy.

I'd check toe in, camber and caster for the cause of shimmy. Also any links that are loose, such as pitman arm clamping bolt, steering to frame bolts, and ball sockets for the steering linkage.

allen · 11-12-2012, 08:10 AM

Look at your ball on the radius arm make sure it is tight if you are running a rubber ball make sure it is not tore if you are running the steel ball make sure it is round and tight

Tom Cavallaro · 11-12-2012, 10:57 AM

I would hit a bump and the wobble was real bad. I had to turn the wheel to the left and right to stop it from wobbling. Once I got my toe in tool (long adjustable rod) and corrected the toe in to within a 1/16 in. No more wobble.

11-10-2012, 03:53 PM	#1
dam555 Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 25	Steering wobbles I have a 1930 sedan which going down the road if you hit a bump will start shaking severely. I have checked the kingpins and they are tight, I used one of the teflon rebuild kits on the tierod ends and pittman arm. I still have considerable front to back play on the sector shaft/pittman arm, over an inch, am I looking at rebuilding the steering box?

11-10-2012, 04:05 PM	#2
Dennis/CT Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: West Haven, CT Posts: 143	Re: Steering wobbles I had the same problem. I rebuilt the king pins,tie rod ends,and both steering arms and the pitman arm, PERFECT. Even though the king pins feel tight the may have a little play that will cause trouble. My king pins had less then 1/8 wobble my steering arms were not round they were egg shape and so was the pitman arm. Also you might want to adjust the steering box.

11-10-2012, 04:12 PM	#3
dam555 Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 25	Re: Steering wobbles my steering arms and pitman arms were all still round, the kingpins have no wobble at all that can be felt

11-10-2012, 04:58 PM	#4
1931 flamingo Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: new britain,ct 06052 Posts: 9,390	Re: Steering wobbles toe in/out set correctly, tire pressure right, how old are the tires, wishbone "ball" round and installed correct, pitman arm TIGHT to shaft??? Paul in CT

11-10-2012, 06:19 PM	#5
Patrick L. Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Largo Florida Posts: 7,225	Re: Steering wobbles Check and adjust everything [ tie-rod, drag link springs], wheel bearings, toe-in [ 1/16"] , the radius arm/wishbone ball and pitman arm.. It sounds like the main problem is the steering box adjustment though.. You should have a 2 tooth box which has 4 adjustments.. The service bulletins have the best instructions for this..

11-11-2012, 08:44 AM	#6
ba49 Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Sheffield Lake, Ohio Posts: 137	Re: Steering wobbles Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements) Had the same problem in my coupe. It would shake so hard I had to almost stop. If I hit the brakes hard it would help. Everything seemed tight except the steering box. It had a lot of play in it and it leaked. I tried adjusting it but no luck. The steering wheel had about 2-3 inches of play. I replaced the entire box with a rebuilt one from Snyders and changed to the short pitman arm. What a difference! No more shimmy and it steers great. I really recommend the shorter pitman arm. Changing the steering box was fairly easy and I'm a novice. Took about 4 hours total. Bill

11-11-2012, 12:49 PM	#7
BILL WILLIAMSON Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: FRESNO, CA Posts: 12,560	Re: Steering wobbles A friend corrected a "wobble" by tightening the nuts that hold the left & right steering arms to the spindles, they were just slightly loose, but corrected the problem. Bill W. __________________ "THE ASSISTANT GURU OF STUFF"

11-11-2012, 07:22 PM	#8
Tinbasher Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Innisfil, Ontario Canada Posts: 1,174	Re: Steering wobbles Check your Caster Angle and a steering dampener may help. J.Poole

11-11-2012, 09:05 PM	#9
Ice man Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Southern Pines, N.Carolina Posts: 210	Re: Steering wobbles A steering dampner stopped my problem. Ice man

11-11-2012, 10:00 PM	#10
Tom Wesenberg Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mpls, MN Posts: 27,582	Re: Steering wobbles A steering damper might cover up the problem, but it won't fix it. My 28 has a very worn temporary front end on while I rebuild and paint the original. If I jack the wheels off the ground I can move the tops of the wheels back and forth at least two inches, yet I've never had a hint of wheel shimmy. I'd check toe in, camber and caster for the cause of shimmy. Also any links that are loose, such as pitman arm clamping bolt, steering to frame bolts, and ball sockets for the steering linkage.

11-12-2012, 08:10 AM	#11
allen Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: petal mississippi Posts: 550	Re: Steering wobbles Look at your ball on the radius arm make sure it is tight if you are running a rubber ball make sure it is not tore if you are running the steel ball make sure it is round and tight

11-12-2012, 10:57 AM	#12
Tom Cavallaro Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Barrington, NJ Posts: 280	Re: Steering wobbles I would hit a bump and the wobble was real bad. I had to turn the wheel to the left and right to stop it from wobbling. Once I got my toe in tool (long adjustable rod) and corrected the toe in to within a 1/16 in. No more wobble.