Considering the amount of stuff between obstacles, and the steering box, a skid plate seems rather redundant to me...... If something gets past the axle..... steering linkage, etc, I am thinkin' you have much bigger fish to fry, than worrying about something hitting the steering box....

Also, the steering box mounts pretty near a riveted in frame brace..... I would like to see a demo of what you claim there. Got a video???

 

I see what your saying, but I doubt its very common. The frame is going to flex regardless if it ties both frames together or only one side. Now after reading your post, I can visualize that with the frames tied together, and the frames flex, it puts the shaft at an awkward angle against the brace/bearing. I can see how over time that may cause issues. But with the brace that ties only one side, what good is it doing? Its not bracing anything. It doesn't sound like anything more than a piece if expensive metal...

 

I agree. The top of the frames are tied together through the motor mounting, and this would tie the bottom, making the frame very rigid. Ugh I'm tired of thinking lol

 

I hear it causes cancer.......

 

It's not that uncommon to get a tree branch up where the steering box is. There is no protection there at all, especially on trucks with aftermarket bumpers. The axle and steering are pretty far back of the front of the gear box. Take a look under your truck. Skid plates aren't needed if you aren't wheeling, but it still serves a good purpose of strengthening the whole bracket and it looks cool too. The skid plate might be unnecessary for some, but I'd rather have it and not need it. Check out some Jeep steering box skid plates. It's a pretty good insurance plan. The skid plate mounting adds a 3rd plane to the mounting pattern so it is needed to keep the brace from spinning or twisting in it's other bolt holes (two vertical, one horizontal) in rough conditions. For highway driving, the three main bolts would be fine - but fine isn't good enough.

I'll get some video with my Go Pro of the movement with traditional steering braces. I'm used to people not believing me, because for years everyone thought the DSS-style brace was adequate. I have turned many nay-sayers into believers. One guy called me out on it and then checked his bearing and found that the edges had rounded off from the twisting! This happens more than people realize. But the brace is one of those "bolt it on and forget it" pieces so they don't often get checked once they are installed. I think if you really take the time to see what is going on, you'll come to the same conclusions that I did years ago. But this isn't about proving facts to anybody. I feel confident that everyone will figure it out on their own once they see how it works.

The riveted in frame brace for the box is not bad. It's the fact that the sector shaft inside the box is not designed to handle a lateral load. It is only supposed to spin in place. So now you have a box that is very securely mounted to the frame, and one splined arm hanging several inches down below the lowest bolt holes, there is no way it can keep from moving. It's like if you were to wrap your leg and left arm around a pole and hold yourself there, and then stick your right arm out to the side. When I walk up and barely push on your arm, it's still going to move, regardless of how securely attached you are to that pole. That is what leverage does, and that is exactly what happens with our steering boxes. That's why a steering brace is so important. It braces up that otherwise-exposed part and gives it some support. I think we all agree that the brace itself is an important upgrade.

Now imagine what the brace is doing in this picture:



Notice the gap between the bumper and headlights. What do you think is happening to the DSS brace on there? Doesn't seem like the motor mounts really helped a lot. And that is a very soft suspension. Stiffer suspensions with sway bars attached have more frame flex since wheel travel is so limited. This is basic engineering stuff.





EndIsNear, the frame is going to flex no matter what - you are correct. But with the brace only tied to the one side WITH the steering box, they both move together - not against each other like if you tie in the passenger side. As long as the frame and brace move together, there is no problem... because the box is bolted to the frame, and so is the brace.

The brace being tied to one side does not matter, as long as the bearing is rigid enough that it cannot move. And this is certainly the case with the DOR brace. Using 8 bolts and all 1/4" construction, it doesn't move at all. I've had it in testing for well over a year, made some modifications to it, and now it's perfect. These will be the standard in a few years once people realize what is going on with the DSS-style braces. And since the price is about the same, it's not like it's a risky purchase.

 

Steering box: Cast Iron.... Branch: Wood.... Would have to be a pretty substantial branch to be able to cause any damage to the steering box.... and something getting up in there would be more likely to cause damage to other components, or simply jam up the steering linkage, before it could actually do anything to the box.... I would think... There is a lot of other stuff up there that is substantially easier to damage than the steering box... I would think the box itself would be more likely to deflect whatever object decided to come for a visit into something else, (that you would rather not have damaged....) than the box itself.

Some visual aids here would be REALLY good. Some pics of your design brace wouldn't hurt my feelings any either. Since I do believe the major problem here is the box flexing the frame mount itself, I don't really see how only tying the brace to one side of the frame would be all that effective. However, I am always happy to learn something new. Please educate me.

 

Seems to make perfect sense to me....

 

Unfortunately, in the world of trucks and wheeling, "paper rock scissors" does not apply. You are thinking in terms of density or breaking strength only, but the biggest factor here is force. If you hit a cast iron box with a wooden branch hard enough, there will be a noticeable impact to both. While the wooden branch will suffer the biggest damage, it does not leave the box undamaged. Even a Prius traveling 10 mph is going to have some effect on my parked truck if it hits me.

And as you said, there are other parts in that area that may need the protection more than the box. That's why the skid plate covers them all up so that nothing can get in there at all. Well, unless it pierces 1/4" and continues traveling. But the skid plate prevents most normal things from ever getting inside that hole.

And if you can't get past the skid plate idea, just look at it this way - it adds rigidity to the whole brace. It's good to have even if it never makes contact with anything.

The box does not flex on it's frame mount. I'm not sure what gave you that idea but my testing has never shown that to even be an issue. If it was, again the brace would help secure the box because the bearing supports the sector shaft which will partially support the box itself. Since the brace bolts on in several places, it spreads the load out over an area roughly 6 times the size of the three box bolts. The bearing supporting the whole box is not ideal but then again the box doesn't flex on the frame so it's a moot point. :-)

I will get some pics up this week which will help give you a visual o what is going on. I'm posting from my phone now. The brace has been in development for two years, testing for over a year, and is just being released this week. I had to get patents on it so people won't copy the design like they did to DSS. As soon as I have the high quality photos taken, I will post them on here and the DOR site to show you what perfection looks like. :-) :-) at least in regards to a steering brace.

 

I've been watching your site grow for quite a while, and I was interested in your steering brace since the day you started talking about a better design. If I could afford it I would have already sent you the money for one of your first run prototypes.

 

http://www.genosgarage.com/BD-STEERI...fo/BD-1032004/