Well, I did a quick spray, and it helped out for awhile, so i'll use some good grease on it.
I'm not losing any fluid, so I"m guessing it's not the shafts, but i'll have to keep that in mind next time i'm under there.

 

I was driving a Gradall every chance I could get when I worked in Stucco/stone. Oh man it was awesome going through 3 feet of poop soup mud on those jobsites. Certified rugged forklift driver for hire!

 

I drive a lull everyday, if not every other. Those things are a blast lol

 

Ok, so greasing up the lower shaft does NOT solve the problem.
Does this mean my rack is bad? Is there any way to check for sure?

The steering goes back to normal once the truck is at operating temperature, which leads me to believe it's something with the fluid somewhere. I don't really see any oil coming out anywhere, however, the whole underside is covered cuz i left the oil filter a little too loose last time... fixed THAT right away, but everything got covered in oil over there.

Any suggestions on diagnosing the problem for sure before I buy a whole new rack or anything???

 

start your truck, get a long screwdriver and listen to the pump for any unusual noise.
whining, grinding, hissing

 

If your unsure, just go to a shop or the dealer, tell them you suspect the rack or the pump and they should be able to tell you right away.

It shouldn't cost much for them to do an inspection. Once you know the real problem, you can weigh your options.

 

Be sure to check your power steering fluid level; its possible the hose came off the bottom or is leaking.

If you take it to the dealer, they will tell you exactly whats wrong for $50 .... unless you can get them to do it for free. I spent the $50 to figure out where my rattling noise was coming from after I replaced everything that I thought it could be; IMO, it was worth it.

 

Well, like i said before, fluid is still topped, so I can't imagine that having this issue for 3 weeks and being topped that it would be leaking somewhere....

I just don't get why it would go AWAY after a little bit of time.
I'll see if i can find a shop to check it out... Usually me and my friend ARE the shop.

 

i brought my truck in today for this exact problem and they did a power steering flush because my fluid smelled burned and greased the shaft and now it is all good again.
They said that all the spots i already lubed up were okay but i missed one joint on the intermediate shaft and that was where the problem was.

now hopefully this fix lasts.....