So as title says im sick of my steering clunking i have installed the rock soild ram steering but its inside the column(the clunk) i have a 1998 ram 1500 4x4 with no tilt what should i look for in a junk yard column and what years will work also mine has cruise but it has not worked in years, any one done this swap and have any advise? thanks in advance

 

I think anything from a 98 and up second gen (01 for the half tons, 02 for the 3/4 and one tons) will bolt right in, and hook right up. heres an opportunity to add tilt wheel to your truck.

 

Advice****

 

so i keep hearing watch the clock spring? whats the story on that? sorry im on my iphone at work and its really hard to search the forums im gonna try to pull a column today, looks like pulling it it pretty straight forward just un plug the connectors and then satke steering shaft off then the bolts under the dash, does anyone know if i bring the column to lock smith if they can make a key for it, guessing it being from a junkyard it wont have the key

 

If you can get a locksmith to just remove the tumblers for you (if it doesn't have a key), you can just swap your tumblers into it and keep your original key. Makes life much easier when you don't have a bunch of keys for the same thing.

 

The clock spring is how the circuits in the steering wheel (horn, cruise, airbag) make their way from the wheel, to the rest of the harness. It has a limited movement, and if you go beyond that, it will break. When you have the column removed from the truck, tie off the steering wheel so that it cannot turn, and remains pretty much centered.

You could always just take the ignition switch out of your column, and put it in the new column. Wouldn't have the expense of a lock smith that way.

 

Well all the columns at the junk yard had movement at the same place mine did so did not pick one up back to looking for a new one

 

Maybe grab a used one anyway, if you can get one cheap, and pull it apart, see if you can figure out the issue.

 

Well after not finding a good column i started to think about a bushing to put in the column where there is movment and i found this bushing K9891 http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/de...eyword=+k9891+ i cut it down and covered in silicone spray slid it in and zip tied it seems to work good just kinda hard to shift now because its soft rubber so i just ordered http://www.energysuspensionparts.com...e87MgodWVYAmQ# looks like it will work as good and might be a bit smother and last longer, i really hope this is the end of my column issues i know it wont fix the squeak i have when turning but that's the next thing to look at hoping a little lube in the right spot will fix that

 

Somethin to mention, check at the bottom of the steering column inside the cab where the outside part of the metal column tube slips together at the bottom near the firewall. My 01's column was loose down there which made it clunk like yours and I couldn't get it tight again so I welded it. While it was loose it ruined a bearing in the column and no one made a bearing that size, you had to get a whole column. So I grabbed a bearing and some spares from the junkyard. It really tightened the steering back up