pitman arm replacement

[SuperDanny]

I have a 98 Suburban 2WD (C1500) and am in the middle of replacing the pitman arm. I pulled the arm to centerlink nut off and also the pitman arm to steering box nut. Also used pullers on both to loosen. Here's the problem. I can't seem to get enough 'clearance' to either pull the center link off of the pitman ball stud or enough room to pull the pitman off the steering spline. It doesn't seem like the center link can drop that much, enough to remove the pitman. Anyone else have this problem? Also when using the pitman puller on the pitman to steering box, I damaged the rubber boot that goes around the gear splines (didn't hurt the splines, just the boot seal, bec. the puller 'grabs' it when you put the jaws on the steering gear shoulder. Anyone have the part # for that?

[dimmer]

There should be enough room to get the pitman off of the center link without too much trouble. In my case, I had to remove the skid plater to get better access. Don't be afraid to crank on the puller ... it's a tapered fitting and gets pretty tight after 8 or 9 years. You might need to loosen things up with a hammer to side of the center link. I used a sledge hammer behind the center link to give it some support and then hit the front part with the hammer.

Getting the pitman arm off of the steering box is another story. I had to remove the steering box. It's not as bad as it looks at first and gives you the opportunity to change the steering fluid. I disconnected the battery when performing the work ... not sure if it's absolutely necessary, but I didn't want to take any chances with setting off the air bags. Then I disconnected the 2 hydraulic connectors on the top of the steering box (be ready to capture the steering fluid). The bolts that hold the steering box can be accessed from the wheel well.
I only loosened a bit at first in order to make it easier to disconnect the steering column from the steering box (1 bolt under the cover). The steering column slides up easily. Then take out the rest of the bolt. Drain the fluid.

My pitman arm was seized onto the steering box pretty tight ... I thought I was going to break the puller. It wasn't graceful, but what ended up doing was loading up the puller as much as possible, putting the assembly on the ground, and then taking a swing at it with the sledge hammer. Everything popped off nicely with one big hit.

It's not a bad idea to change the idler at the same time. Also, a wheel alignment may be required.

[taillight]

Try a tie rod fork on the pitman arm to center link and a hammer. Remove the steering box to get the pitman arm off.

[SuperDanny]

Well, after spending a couple of hours struggling with the damn thing, by FAR the easiest approach was to pull the bolts out of the steering box and move slightly the box upward (with intermediate shaft still attached), maybe 1-2 inches. This gives the clearance necessary to allow the center link to come off of the pitman arm stud. Damn shame the factory service manual, which i own, doesn't say this. i normally go completely verbatim on those FSM's, as they're very precise, but this time, they missed the boat.

[spyder2000]

I have to do the very same job. What size is the nut from the pitman arm to the steering box shaft?

[spyder2000]

Since no one answerd, I'll provide the answer.

Pitman arm nut on my 94 is 34mm.