Cool deal, sounds like a step in the right direction.

Sounds like getting the play out of the steering needs to be the next step.

Just so we don't over look anything, what size tires and what air pressures do you run ?

 

I'm running 285 75R 18 michelin LTX/AT2 50 lbs front 55 lbs rear mounted on Ford SVT rims

 

Great read
I had the 9000XL's and well they had adjustment issues
I have a new set to go on soon but put on Monroe Reflex now and they are a nice ride until you get on the Hwy and it seems that they don't hold the road, there is some wandering. Quick to move but they bounce and loose traction at times. My old eX I put on the Monroe yellow CL truck shocks and they seemed better for the ride and handling. I am going to go pick up a set of the KYB's and see what they do I think.......Anyone in salt county have luck or issues ith the Adjusters on the Rancho's Supposedly they are updated from the first few runs mfg's that I $$$

 

I dont know if this helps you any but I did discover my old rear shocks were Monroe Reflex. My experience with these was the feel of a vehicle that was not solidly in contact with the road. Good shocks will definitely moderate that problem. Wandering is a whole different animal which is also a different animal from rear steer all of which have been batted around here ad infinitum.I have distilled my thoughts down to the following.

Wandering--you're driving down a straight smooth road and you are constantly making corrections to keep the X in your lane.
Cause: Alignment-namely caster--see Pirate's thread on this
Worn front end parts-tie rods, ball joints etc etc etc
Worn steering gear -ideally replace with a Red Head steering gear
Tire pressures. X's are very finicky about tire pressure. The more wander you have, the more effect this seems to have
Sagging springs--many change to different codes of springs front and back for increased stiffness


Rear steering - you hit a bump going down the road and it causes the X to go off line. My personal experience is that it can be quite nasty. I hit a pot hole once in my first X on a 2 lane road and suddenly found myself in half of the oncoming lane. Also know as axle wrap.
Solutions:
Change springs to stiffer code
Consider radius rods
Consider Roadmaster Active suspension
Hellwig anti-sway bar


Wandering seems to be everyone's #1 pet peeve PIA. However, solving this stuff is what makes it all fun in the end. Not good on your wallet at times but I consider "X-ing" (my new term) my hobby. It keeps your brains working always and is a great source of exercise as you crawl over, through and under your beloved chariot!s

 

Weird, I have experienced none of these things..... My X must have good parts still as I have no wandering, no slop in the wheel,etc.... It does have rubber 2 inch leveling "lifts" in the front. After getting the RAS installed, it just seems like it is supposed to feel and handle this way. Towing this last weekend was effortless with cruise set til we hit the LA traffic.

 

Back to the spring-bumpstop distance, Mine had that same amount of distance when I bought it at 2 1/2 years old with 17k miles. I looked at other X at the time and they all had the same amount of space. it`s the way it was built. I used F250 rear bumpstops as replacements for my front stops. I just had to cut them down to fit properly. I also used the same bumpstops for the traction leave snubber in the rear springs. they work great.

 

I know you and I have a different opinion on this subject and I'll continue to respect yours. But I would also like to know more about the conditions this rear steer situation you describe happens.

You say it happens when you hit a bumps but knowing what kind of bumps will give clues to what the suspension is doing when that is causing lane changes.

Does it happen on all size bumps ?
Does it only happen on bumps that are raised above ground level ?
Does it only happen on bumps that are holes in the ground ?
Both raised bumps and holes ?

If it doesn't happen on every bump you hit does it happen most frequently when the front suspension bottoms out ?
Or
When the rear suspension bottoms out ?

Any other description or detail of the conditions that seem to cause the lane change would be helpful.

 

one thing we should be able to agree on is that "rear steer" is not "axle wrap" nor caused by axle wrap.

let me see if I can walk thru the process.

axle wrap occurs during periods of high torque such as full throttle acceleration from a dead stop or during a near skidding panic stop.

when you are driving the axle is always trying to wrap simply because it has torque running through it but it can only actually rotate when the torque is greater then the spring rate if there is enough traction.

however and here is the important thing to visualize about axle wrap as it applies to rear steer.

when axle wrap does occurs during very hard acceleration the entire axle is rotating, meaning that both sides of the vehicles leaf springs are being twisted the same amount. this is important to visualize because if both the left and right springs are twisted the same that means the tires are still pointed forward and not steering you off to the side.

axle wrap and rear steer are 2 completely separate issues.

the usually symptom of axle wrap is you may hear a clunk when the axle slaps back into its normal position as torque is reduced. the duration of axle wrap is usually only a few seconds or less. under low traction conditions the rear wheels will usually start to chatter or even violently wheel hop as they go through the grip and slip cycle. this usually occurs in deep sand, snow or loose dirt.

 

Rear steer on the other hand is a thing and I have a few pics that will help visualize it.

think of your axle being held squarely in place by the leaf springs at rest.

now as the axle cycles up and down it is being located by the spring, the front spring mount is a fixed location and this means the spring would rotate 360* around that point if the rear was not attached. obviously the axle does not rotate 360* around the front spring pivot but it helps if you can visualize the circle it would make. as the axle moves up and down the spring is still moving in that same arc even if it is for just a tiny tiny portion of the whole circle.

so if you have that circle and arc in your head,

as one rear wheel is compressed and the other one is NOT, because the one being compressed is traveling in a arc the wheel gets a tiny bit closer to the front of the vehicle. this is what the guy selling this "radius rods" is using as his sales tool to convince people of "Rear Steer"

what that guy is leaving out of his sales pitch is that his products rubber grommets are allowing for EXACTLY the same amount of Rear Steer as the vehicle had without the radius rods. the amount of rear steer in a traditional leaf spring vehicle with 5 inches of suspension travel is so minuscule that i will say you can not detect it without some specialized lazer equipment.

further more, the tiny amount of rear steer that would happen when one wheel is completely compressed and the other wheel is not would only make the vehicle Crap walk, meaning the rear of the vehicle would move over a smudge but it would not cause the entire vehicle to change direction.


So here are some pics.
pay close attention to where the rear wheels are point in the first and second pic.

note, that this is not a leaf spring setup it is a 4 link design that due to geometry is very prone to rear steer. but it helps to visualize the effect

the crux of the issue, rear steer causing a vehicle to radically change position when you hit a bump. even in this rig with crazy amounts of rear steer you could drive 50-70 mph through the desert hitting huge bumps and holes and it would not cause a change of direction due to rear steer. it just doesn't happen. why ? because the rear follows the front. now when you run out of suspension and bottom out...all bets are off, you are going for a wild ride and getting flung every which way. but that is a totally different cause