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1980 - 1986 Bullnose F100, F150 & Larger F-Series Trucks Discuss the Early Eighties Bullnose Ford Truck

Steering column slop

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Old Apr 28, 2016 | 12:39 PM
  #1  
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Steering column slop

Am new here and need help.
85 F-350 crew cab 6.9 banks turbo gear vendors o d
Truck is daily driver , has slop in steering. Have replaced all tie rods and
Steering components eliminated rag joint . Have taken tilt column apart and
Found "u joint " at top is very loose . Am told parts are not available to
Rebuild unit. Am thinking about column swap but don't know what is
Interchangeable . Forgot to tell it is automatic . Tilt wheel is not a must have.
Any info will be a great help.
 
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Old Apr 28, 2016 | 01:14 PM
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The non-tilt column doesn't have that u-joint, as shown in the illustrations here: Steering Columns - Gary's Garagemahal, and it is a direct swap.

However, the parts are available to fix your column, although I don't know the cost. On the second illustration in the link above you'll see that the shaft, u-joint, and some other bits are labeled "3524". Looking that up in the parts catalog I see that the original part number of E2TZ 3524-H was replaced by part # E9TZ 3524-E. Rear Counter shows only one of the originals in stock at a dealer. But 15 of the new ones are shown at Rear Counter. I would click on the Request Pricing link on several of the places shown and find out what the parts and shipping would cost. And, my personal preference would be to go with the new part as it will have been upgraded. But, the original part might be cheaper.

And, WELCOME TO FTE!!!
 
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Old Apr 28, 2016 | 04:21 PM
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Originally Posted by Gary Lewis
The non-tilt column doesn't have that u-joint, as shown in the illustrations here: Steering Columns - Gary's Garagemahal, and it is a direct swap.

However, the parts are available to fix your column, although I don't know the cost.

On the second illustration in the link above you'll see that the shaft, u-joint, and some other bits are labeled "3524."
Which part contains the U-joint, 3524 or 3B676?

1966 F100 4WD; 1967/79 F100/250 4WD: The u-joint is part of the lower steering shaft & coupler assy (3B676).
 
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Old Apr 28, 2016 | 05:02 PM
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Originally Posted by NumberDummy
Which part contains the U-joint, 3524 or 3B676?

1966 F100 4WD; 1967/79 F100/250 4WD: The u-joint is part of the lower steering shaft & coupler assy (3B676).
Bill - You are the master and I'm seeking to learn from you. And, while I realize the illustrations can be wrong, this one from a tilt wheel shows what looks to be a u-joint on the upper shaft - circled in yellow. Further, the non-tilt shaft doesn't have that u-joint.




And, this snippet from the text section says that there were different upper shafts for fixed vs tilt columns, but that the lower shafts didn't differ for fixed or tilt columns:



So, how can the lower shaft have the u-joint when the illustration shows it to be in the upper shaft, and the same lower shaft is used for both tilt and fixed wheels?
 
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Old Apr 28, 2016 | 05:49 PM
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The U-joint Bill is talking about - 3B676 - is the one on the lower shaft near the rag joint (which the OP says he removed somehow; I don't recommend that but it's his truck so it's his call).

If we are talking the U-joint located inside the cab (the OP says "Found 'u joint ' at top is very loose" so I would guess this is what he's referring to) where a tilt wheel tilts, that is the 3524 stuff.

If it were me, I would disassemble it and make dang sure what the problem actually is; steering columns are intricate devices with lots of tiny, little parts that all fit together correctly only one way.

A non-tilt column from a JY would work, too, I think all the way up to 1992 or someplace thereabouts - when they started with that multi-function stalk thing, those are different columns and can't be used here.
 
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Old Apr 28, 2016 | 06:00 PM
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Chris - Thanks. That makes sense. So, if ElectricFork is talking about the u-joint at the top of the column, which is specific to the tilt units, then my statement is correct. (I'm copying it here to ensure we know which one.)

Originally Posted by Gary Lewis
The non-tilt column doesn't have that u-joint, as shown in the illustrations here: Steering Columns - Gary's Garagemahal, and it is a direct swap.

However, the parts are available to fix your column, although I don't know the cost. On the second illustration in the link above you'll see that the shaft, u-joint, and some other bits are labeled "3524". Looking that up in the parts catalog I see that the original part number of E2TZ 3524-H was replaced by part # E9TZ 3524-E. Rear Counter shows only one of the originals in stock at a dealer. But 15 of the new ones are shown at Rear Counter. I would click on the Request Pricing link on several of the places shown and find out what the parts and shipping would cost. And, my personal preference would be to go with the new part as it will have been upgraded. But, the original part might be cheaper.

And, WELCOME TO FTE!!!
 
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Old Apr 28, 2016 | 07:15 PM
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I had lots of slop in my tilt steering column too. I thought i needed a new column. When I pulled it out I realized the problem was one of the bearings. There's an upper and lower bearing in the column, and the lower bearing had slid itself up, out of it's bore. I just slid it in by hand and all that slop was gone.
 
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