Pitman/idler Arms Question To Those Who've Done It Themselves

[ukrkoz]

hello everyone.

my question is strictly to those who replaced idler and pitman arms by themselves and learned the tricks.

i have 2000 silverado that has very much of occasinal steering wobble, and the usual culprits would be idler, pitman, and steering damper.
i have 2 tierod ends, that go into long rod that connects to idler and pitman arms. forgot the name. idler arm connects to what looks like a large aluminum cylinder, assuming it's steering damper.

1. can steering damper/idler assembly be removed without removing that long steering rod? i'd like to get it out and see if the damper does work
2. does pitman have to be removed with steering gear or can it be removed without removing steering gear? if not, how do you prevent pitman from re-installation onto a wrong spline? (obvioulsy, fitting it with locking pin was too easy for designers, they just had to do this "guess which spline" game) what is the right tool to pull pitman off steering gear shaft?
3. how much of a hassle is to remove steering gear with pitman? i have no problem doing this, but i have inherent dispise to messing with steering system, as one spline off - and you end up in crooked steering wheel. no, i will not give this job to a mechanic, it's simple mechannical task. once again, besides locking steering wheel and tying the hell out of it to seats to block it in place, what are the pricautions to keep everything aligned? chilton says "mark pitman relationship to steering gear" but if you are replacing pitman, the mark is gone with it.
4. has anyone tried to press idler and pitman ball joints out? and replace them with new ones? i have no idea why it can't be done. i replaced ball joints before in control arms that were told to be replaced completely, and had no trouble. large socket and hammer do well. anyone?
thank you in advance. i have to do this over the weekend, as it starts feeling unsafe on freeway.

[j cAT]

if this is a 2000 silverado and you have steering problems explain what type of front end steering you have... I have found the idler arms in this model very solid when compared to the pre 99 model year....the weak componet in this set up is the tie rods just a small amount of wear will cause poor tracking esp. on the hywy... idler arms can move 1/8in or less with 25lbs of force applied....so inspect componets and report what type of steering system you have as i believe gm also had a steering rack type of system...

[ukrkoz]

Originally Posted by j cAT

if this is a 2000 silverado and you have steering problems explain what type of front end steering you have... I have found the idler arms in this model very solid when compared to the pre 99 model year....the weak componet in this set up is the tie rods just a small amount of wear will cause poor tracking esp. on the hywy... idler arms can move 1/8in or less with 25lbs of force applied....so inspect componets and report what type of steering system you have as i believe gm also had a steering rack type of system...

truck is made on 11/99, so i am assuming it's 2000 model.
with setup described, it's not rack and pinion, as rack and pinion does not have trailing rod, pitman, and idler.

symptoms are viscious: if i hit a bump at freeway speed, on slight incline, and wheels turned to the left gently, the whole front may go into severe sidewise and upwise shake. it's mostly felt in steering wheel, as it starts dancing side to side, but up and down bounce is also very much present.

i found a post place else, from 2005, with very similar symptoms. guy had his pitman and idler replaced, and it took care of it.

the whole setup is g'ol paralellogram truck steering geometry. if i count it right, there are 2 tierod end ball joints, trailing rod to tierod end joints, and 2 ball joints for pitman and idler. thus, plenty of parts to go lose. truck "snakes" on the freeway - wonders sidewise as it wishes. not always, but does it time to time. and it ain't getting better. got to the point that i am afraid to drive it on freeway.

as that shake feels like it's amplifying itself - it does, i call it flutter, like in jet wing flutter - i have serious suspiscion that steering damper has some to do with it, as obviously sidewise resonance after bounce is not reduced. i did not have a chance to yenk on trailing rod or check on it otherwise, will do saturday. but before i go under and start tearing it apart, i'd love to talk to someone who's done this before, so i don't do something stupid, and get stuck. it's my daily ride. parts are redily available from local stores, obviously it's a daily issue with trucks.

oh, and i had alignment done by guys i trust some 4 mths ago, and they won't touch it if tierod ends are worn out. it's been maybe 6K miles since, so i don't think tierods blew on me all at a sudden.

[j cAT]

Originally Posted by ukrkoz

truck is made on 11/99, so i am assuming it's 2000 model.
with setup described, it's not rack and pinion, as rack and pinion does not have trailing rod, pitman, and idler.

symptoms are viscious: if i hit a bump at freeway speed, on slight incline, and wheels turned to the left gently, the whole front may go into severe sidewise and upwise shake. it's mostly felt in steering wheel, as it starts dancing side to side, but up and down bounce is also very much present.

i found a post place else, from 2005, with very similar symptoms. guy had his pitman and idler replaced, and it took care of it.

the whole setup is g'ol paralellogram truck steering geometry. if i count it right, there are 2 tierod end ball joints, trailing rod to tierod end joints, and 2 ball joints for pitman and idler. thus, plenty of parts to go lose. truck "snakes" on the freeway - wonders sidewise as it wishes. not always, but does it time to time. and it ain't getting better. got to the point that i am afraid to drive it on freeway.

as that shake feels like it's amplifying itself - it does, i call it flutter, like in jet wing flutter - i have serious suspiscion that steering damper has some to do with it, as obviously sidewise resonance after bounce is not reduced. i did not have a chance to yenk on trailing rod or check on it otherwise, will do saturday. but before i go under and start tearing it apart, i'd love to talk to someone who's done this before, so i don't do something stupid, and get stuck. it's my daily ride. parts are redily available from local stores, obviously it's a daily issue with trucks.

oh, and i had alignment done by guys i trust some 4 mths ago, and they won't touch it if tierod ends are worn out. it's been maybe 6K miles since, so i don't think tierods blew on me all at a sudden.

my tie rod failed in this mileage time frame as i stated only a very small amount of wear causes this to do as you say the side to side , but this up and down is shocks......how many miles on the shocks....if 50k or more they are probably worn. with shock removed see if they are working properly when you check this weekend the front end....also have you ever adjusted the front torsion bars for Z hieght adjustment ?

[16th hippy]

you can get the loaner tools from autozone or other local parts store. if it is 4WD, you will need to unbolt steering gear from frame, if 2WD, not needed. long steering rod is called center link if memory serves, and that stays on truck connected to tie rods unless those are being replaced as well. one tip is to push up that "seal" on bottom of steering box where pitman arm attaches to box. the puller might not fit on there if you don't do this. and the pitman SHOULD have a master spline so you don't have to worry too much about getting it back on right. as for just replacing the "ball joints" in idler and pitman, it might could be done, but the whole arms don't cost that much(mass produced due to the problem you are now having), and would be easier to replace whole thing. as for upper and lower ball joints though, if control arm bushings are in good shape, would just replace joints. the large aluminum cylinder u refer to, is that mounted to the frame? i usually replace entire assembly just to be safe, but this is a matter of opinion. this job should be able to be done in a few hours, just take your time to do it right and should be pretty easy....some grunting aside. best of luck, and let is know how it went.

[ukrkoz]

that's what i'm talking about!!
thank you, hippy.

i'll do intermediate steering shaft tomorrow, due to stealership biz hrs, and do idler etc sunday/monday, as that i can buy from any parts store, they are opened 7 days a week.

reason i was worried about pitman splines is that there was a post here by someone who did the job and steering wheel ended up crooked. unless he somehow shifted steering gear gears, then he mis-splined it, and that's was my concern. chilton does say to mark relationship.

what i'd do is, if so needed, replace tierod ends and idler/damper. that should serve the purpose for miles to come. then i'll save the idler and figure out how to press the ball joint out and replace it. it's $90 vs $ 12 cost. idler is $82 pretax, damper is $87, and pitman is $70+. replacing ball joint still sounds appealing. honestly, i do not believe they make most of what's sold, they probably do core charge and refurbish them, just like they do with replacing capacitors in starters, or brushes and bearings in alternators. easy $$ for them.

thank you once again, friend.

PS forgot to mention - i have bolt on steering shock absorber ordered and coming next week. that should seal the deal with dampening any horizontal shake in steering. roads ain't worth a flip here, it ain't no tennessee.