Brake / Steering Shudder

I've had some issues with shudder in the steering wheel when applying the brakes (brake pedal feels smooth). After changing all four rotors and pads, replacing the front two caliper guide pins, and getting the wheels balanced, the problem is still there. After replacing the pads and rotors, the problem was marginally improved, but quickly returned to a pretty decent shudder in the steering wheel when braking, particularly from higher speeds.

The vehicle tracks straight when driving down the road, so I dont' feel like it is an alignment issue. I've heard about ABS sensors being dirty and causing similar conditions, but don't have anything to validate this. Has anyone else experienced similar problems? Thanks for any help.

Vibration in the steering wheel usually suggests something wrong in the front end. If you felt the vibration in the seat, then that would typically suggest a rear suspension problem.

So, I think you can safely focus your investigative efforts on the front end. Certainly, my first suspects would be the rotors. You say you installed new ones..........Were they good ones, or cheapo $20 rotors. The cheapo rotors (even new) still suck, just ask me, lol. I did not get rid of my front end brake vibration until I installed good rotors. I would pull the wheels and mount a magnetic dial indicator to check runout of each rotor. You would need to use a few wheel nuts to hold the rotor locked down while you measured.

If you're satisfied that the rotors are of good quality, then it's gotta be something else in front end. Raise the truck with supports (and use extra jackstands for safety) under the a-arms on both sides, then have someone wiggle the wheels while you carefully look at each joint in the steering system. If you have any visible slop, then replace that joint.

Check upper and lower ball joints by using something to lift wheel up/down (like a piece of 2x4).

Check the axles and CV joints.

Gotta be something in front end...............