Whatd they find?

 

I converted my 2000 Excursion from a Dana 50 and Sterling 10.25 using all leaf springs to a 2006 F-350 Dana 60 and Visteon 10.5 with accompanying suspension and steering. You would forever regret switching from coils to leaf springs. By upgrading to coils in front I gained a much tighter turning radius, almost perfect tracking without any wandering, a far smoother and more durable ride, larger and stronger steering parts, a wider track, and larger, more powerful brakes.

Nearly all of the mounting points are predrilled commonly on both older and newer Super Duty frames, though if you converted in retrograde you would run into lots of problems with holes needing to shrink for smaller hardware and trying to fabricate collars or sleeves threaded on both sides, helicoils which I wouldn't trust for suspension, or welding holes closed to drill and tap them to smaller sizes. I strongly discourage such an attempt unless you are a highly competent fabricator.

After my conversion I experienced some death wobble but mostly bump steer. Just so we're on the same page, death wobble is usually most prominent at certain speeds, recurring more frequently during deceleration, indicated by an extremely rapid, continued, and violently uncontrollable oscillation of the steering wheel left and right. Bump steer occurs when suspension or steering is cycled or deflected by terrain topography usually causing a single firm jerk of the steering wheel in one direction.

To solve the bump steer issue I had a new Panhard Rod or Track Bar fabricated by a mechanic who works on Big Foot and other high end custom vehicles. The solution simply requires matching the angle of the Panhard Rod to that of the Drag Link. Raising the mounting location of the Panhard Road on the axle matched angles. Using an adjustable Panhard Rod ensures the axle can sit squarely under the vehicle, not too far off to one side. In my case both the Drag Ling and Panhard Rod are close to parallel to the ground which also decreased the amount the front axle swings side to side during the suspension's articulation and up and down cycling.

I later experienced death wobble around the Teton Mountains in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. This problem was totally and immediately eradicated by new rod ends on the Tie Rod. Years later there has still been zero recurrence.

When there is a problem of tires wanting to dart in either direction without steering input this is usually solved through Caster not Camber. An increase in Positive Caster will tilt the pinion angle of your Dana 60 down and enhance the return to center characteristics of your truck's steering. You mentioned having an 8" lift. Most coil spring lift kits come with Caster Shims that tilt your pinion angle further down. While this may seem contradictory for your increased driveshaft angle, it is necessary to maintain proper handling of the vehicle if it is using oversized tires. On many lifted trucks running 35"-37" diameter tires it is common to increase Positive Caster to around +5 or +7 degrees. This will be way off spec at most shops trying to go by the book. The right and left sides should be within .5 degrees of each other for good tracking and handling. Positive Caster Increase relates more to tire size than lift height. Relatively this is one reason many modern coiled front trucks with massive lift have to clock their transfer case to maintain proper driveshaft angle.

You might want to check to see if your caster shims are still in place, if they were ever installed. Many kits use Radius Rod drop brackets for the same effect but this sacrifices ground clearance and increases leverage on the frame. Caster Shims mount at the top of the ball joints at the knuckle. Most aftermarket suspension companies offer Caster Shims of varying angles to match the amount of lift and estimated tire size such as ICON. Without a clear image of your truck it's hard to say but your leveling kit could be provoking the problem if there is no longer a rake stance lower in the front and higher in the rear. That alone would decrease the amount of positive caster, making your front end more likely to wander. Either raising the rear or lowering the front could help.

If you try changing all of these things to no avail you might also try adding a hydraulic assist. The ram would dampen steering shimmy and decrease steering effort. I use and recommend PSC but you can build a cheap system of your own. Mine is necessary because when I converted to updated steering, suspension, and axles I stretched my wheelbase by fabricating custom radius rod brackets from 3/8" steel that placed my front axle over an inch forward of the stock position. This required a custom Pitman Arm that is also longer than stock so I have far quicker steering lock to lock than stock but because of this and the large, heavy tire and wheel combination the ram assist is necessary. This step should be a last resort for resolution of your situation. I think if your problem is mainly bump steer the superdutywobble.com kit will solve your issue since it matches the angle of the Panhard Rod to that of the Drag Link.

 

they basically found that the issue is the ball joint on the passenger side end of the trac bar. the ball joint will rattle causing your front end to shake. they replace the ball joint with a fixed joint and give you an adjustable trac bar and a new alignment shim

 

This is my fix. Cheap too. I would about bet your joint is trashed from such an extreme angle when the truck was lifted.