Bwahahahaha, well, guess WHAT>!>!

STILL HAVE PLAY.

I drove it 50 miles today and wow, total dead zone and vagueness from 11 to noon. Went to visit the fiancee and she turned the wheel for me.

Any bets as to what it is????
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.The F R E A K I N G



REDHEAD STEERING GEAR HAS PLAY IN THE OUTPUT SHAFT SIDE TO SIDE. What a piece of crap! What a terrible #$^&^%$# company. Wow. Cannot believe I fell for their crap. I guess the track bar was only part of the problem. Unbelievable. "Best gears out there" "only get redhead" "redhead is the strongest" well, now I know why they call it redhead. Step child and all.

Back to shopping for steering gears for the FOURTH TIME. Why. Why does my truck have so much %^&* trouble with steering?? Is the axle completely upside down or what? The frame rails twisted like a pretzel? It's only ever been on road and towed lightly. Why is this such a drama. I dont' get it. My parent's Tahoe has a steering gear that still drives like a car at 16 years old and 225k. What is the FA-reaking deal.

 

How many miles on the steering gear? Redhead seems to have gone downhill. Bluetop or PSC is what i was told to go with from the Facebook groups I'm in.

 

I really can't remember. This was the second replacement from a "bad" one the first time that I only had a couple weeks. I know my friend helped install it before he died so it must've been 2017 or 2018. Probably 30k? Must've been a dud as well because it drove super tight for years and I could never bleed it properly.

Ugh. Blue top looks and sounds just like RH. All they claim is an "improved lower bearing" whoopdie doo. Besides, they're out of stock.

The only PSC I could find was this super heavy duty deal which would work with my T steering. But I'm not taking any more chances with my money. I don't care what they claim, I'm not throwing more good money after bad. With my luck, I'd get the "only bad one" and it would leave me stranded somewhere. Unless they want me to try one free of charge, I'd be happy to give feedback. If it works great, I'll pay them. If not, I'd just throw in a Napa reman.
https://www.pscmotorsports.com/motor...c-sg852k3.html

I also have a Spohn box stabilizer I got a decade ago just collecting dust:
https://www.spohn.net/shop/1994-1999...2500-3500.html
But I yanked it off when I put the first RH on as it didn't seem to do anything. Now that there's definitely deflection in the output shaft, should I try it again? I need a new bearing for it.

 

You go try it, I never had luck with them, doesn't hurt to try. I would be contacting redhead to see what they say. PSC has bad customer service I sent them a message and never got a response

 

Yeah, I would consider replacing the lower bearing on the pitman shaft, and install that brace, see how it goes. I doubt you have any warranty left on the RH box.

 

Just wanted to follow up PSC got a hold of me but $950 for a steering box is high.

 

I thought the PSC was only 700?

Yeah, there's no warranty on my box. I called their head tech a couple months ago when I was frustrated trying to bleed it still. He offered like 50 bucks off another one but that was it. Both boxes from them were super tight and were not easy to drive. Took literally years to break in and just recently felt easier to drive. But alas, there's now play in it.

I found a flange bearing at Grainger so I'll put the brace on tomorrow. Most likely will get a Napa box here in a few weeks though. I'm so done with RH. They can rot.

 

Watching this with interest. After my second 'redhead' failed, both had output shaft issues even with box stabilizer/braces, I went with a Bluetop last spring. Right now it's the tightest it's ever been, no dead spots. The rest of the steering system is tight. I have no lift with 35's, a borgeson steering shaft, the ram steering column shaft fix, steering box brace, and only have 150k on the truck so we'll see how long it lasts.

 

I should have clarified that yes its $650 for the box + shipping I am getting it ported for ram assist so its $890 + shipping

 

Ah, yes, that makes sense. That's a beefy box, though!

Good to hear from you, Jimyfan! I'd be interested in your bluetop experience. When you say it's the tightest it's been, is that the steering being properly good or the box is getting tight to turn? Both of my RH boxes were suuuuuper tight at first. Took forever to loosen up and be driveable. How was the BT from the beginning?

Got the brace installed. Of course, it was a much bigger job as one of the holes in the frame was mauled up from the previous install. Had to run to the store for a thread chaser and new bolt but it's on. The steering feels a bit better and seems to track better as well. There's still some "stretch" when giving left pressure into a turn, but it's a lot better. Will know more after a longer drive.
Obligatory pics: