65 Cj5 All Over The Road.

1965 CJ5 Dana 30 axle with discs up front with power steering on 33s spring over. has a drag link that is factory bent with two bends (offset) Super squirrely. tried the cure which didn't do much to help.
There are shims installed at front leafs not sure about caster. dual steering stabilizers. Looking for some help to figure out how to make this easier to drive....any and all help greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance

 

Definitely get it to an alignment shop to see what caster and toe are set at. The toe is easy to do at home with a couple long strait edges and measuring tape. Also might want some to watch the front end and steering while you turn the wheel side to side to look for anything flexing under load.

 

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Include photos of your vehicle. Thanks.
Determining your castor angle is necessary. With the SOA conversion, I'm not sure how to direct you.
Post some photos of your front suspension for starters.

 

Hi, welcome Wild Will, lol...post pics of the steering linkage

 

Caster! So many times, people have posted similar problems on here, and once they get the caster set where it should be, all is well.

 

My '68 was absolutely terrifying to drive, but it was due to terribly worn frontend components, and I replaced/upgraded virtually all of it. After I pieced-in the final link, it was another vehicle completely. Drive down the highway with one hand. With new tires it'll be even better, and I'm on worn bulgy 35's right now. I do get some occasional rear-end sway from side-to-side, though, so have to keep an eye on that, despite new shocks. No sway bar back there.

Are all of your steering components tight, with no play? I assume you have no issues there, but if you haven't checked, stand up front and have someone turn the wheel slowly back and forth, but not so much that it turns the actual wheels. Motor not running. Is there play in the wheel? If so, find where it's moving. My steering shaft coupler was shot, as was the connector going into the steering box.

Next, with or without the motor running (power steering), slowly turn the wheel from side-to-side, and watch to see if one tire moves before the other, meaning a light delay from one wheel to the other. Worn ball and idler arm joints will cause that to happen. Check each component for play of any kind by moving it by hand.

Assuming all components are tight and functional, pics will tell the story...

 

Caster and Bump steer.
Put a socket on your upper ball joint nut. Place an angle finder on top of that to measure your caster angle.
Bump steer is next.
What is the angle like on your drag link?

 

I have spring over on 35s. Mine has always been a little squirrely on the highway and I gave up trying to make it perfect. I checked everything including caster, tow, bushings, joints and bearings. Mine has angled blocks used to compensate for the new spring perches and it's within a reasonable spec. Make sure you have caster blocks and they are installed correctly. I checked the caster and tow myself using and method I found here but can't remember exactly what the procedure was but it wasn't hard. Mine has flat Rancho springs with very few leafs. While very nice off road, I found there was quite a bit of left/right axle movement when turning the wheels while parked and spring/shackle bushings have to be in excellent condition. I'm not sure if a SOA mod maybe contributes more horizontal flex to the springs because the axle is sitting much lower than the frame. I added air shocks that I can inflate from dash for highway driving and it helped a lot but to be honest I got used to it and I can drive 60 with OD and I'm not too worried anymore. My drum brakes scare me more than the slight drifting while on the highway.

 

Yep. Mine has a Saginaw box and my damper was worn also. Oil leaked from the box onto the rubber bushing and turned to mush.

 

Don't even think about caster and other adjustments until you verify that each component is not worn or loose, including the steering box, drag link, shackles, and all mounting bolts or anchor points.

 

here are some pics

 

i just posted pics waiting for moderator approval

 

im trying to post pics from my saved files on my computer, cant get pics to show up, any help would be appreciated

 

Ages ago the site got hacked and ever since it has been best to host the pictures on a 3rd party site like beamingpix.com or Flickr.com then link the pictures to your posts.

 

OTH, I just drag and drop them, works fine for me.

 

An easy way to post pics from your phone is just text the pic to your own mobile phone number and copy the pic from the text message you just sent yourself and paste into your forum message.