Steering upgrade discussion

Fatdrew

Fatdrew

Test Drive
Location
Poquoson
So i just got my truck running again, and picked up a set of 33s. ive been doing a lot of research about the whole truck really, not too deep into any one think in specific, and noticed that the majority of people out there say that you need to upgrade the steering if you are going to be off road or run bigger tire. mainly to just keep it aligned properly. Most of the discussions i am finding though are old, and some of the parts or links/pics are not available anymore. I would like to start a new dialogue with some fellas that get some more current options and info out there for everyone in a first gen that wants to upgrade their steering, or make their own beefier. So, i am going to put out what i think about steering, and see how many times i can be corrected. its all about learning, having fun talking trash, and making your trucks cooler right??

First off, IAB should be done. its easy, and still available from AC and Calmini (right?) lol. that's a pretty self explanatory one i think.

Second, is tie rod adjusters/assembly. These i don't think make your steering any better, but they wont break as easily as the OEM ones would on the trail. Correct? so if you are going to be hitting rocks, change them out. if you are gonna drive back and forth to work....

third, is the center link. I don't know why grass roots charges $250 buck for this, or how its that different from an OEM one. mine seems strong already? i don't know about this one, can someone please help here?

now, i think these are the big 3 everyone always upgrades to. what else is left? pitman arm and steering box? do they need to be upgraded and all that jazz too?
 
Prime

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
Admin
Location
Denver Adjacent
Here's the deal with 1st gen steering.

It's the exact same steering setup that was on the older Pathys and 720 pickups.

Youre spot on with your mod list. IAB is first, then stronger TREs and adjusters. If you want to go balls to the wall (and you're lucky) you can find the old Total Chaos kit. It replaced everything with high strength steel and heim joints. Though I will tell you, you need a connection for getting state inspections done. Heims are illegal on steering components in VA. If you get a shop that is an asshole about it, they'll fail you in a heartbeat.

The Grassroots centerlink was a beast tho. If you do that (don't know if it's still a thing) you shouldn't have any problems.

I did see a few guys in the past that took a second steering box, gutted it, and used it to replace the idler arm with a second pitman arm. That was a strong ass setup.

All that said, I wheeled the piss out of my 1st gen with an IAB and upgraded adjusters on 33s and never broke anything.
 
Fatdrew

Fatdrew

Test Drive
Location
Poquoson
Prime said:
Here's the deal with 1st gen steering.

It's the exact same steering setup that was on the older Pathys and 720 pickups.

Youre spot on with your mod list. IAB is first, then stronger TREs and adjusters. If you want to go balls to the wall (and you're lucky) you can find the old Total Chaos kit. It replaced everything with high strength steel and heim joints. Though I will tell you, you need a connection for getting state inspections done. Heims are illegal on steering components in VA. If you get a shop that is an asshole about it, they'll fail you in a heartbeat.

The Grassroots centerlink was a beast tho. If you do that (don't know if it's still a thing) you shouldn't have any problems.

I did see a few guys in the past that took a second steering box, gutted it, and used it to replace the idler arm with a second pitman arm. That was a strong ass setup.

All that said, I wheeled the piss out of my 1st gen with an IAB and upgraded adjusters on 33s and never broke anything.
Click to expand...

Awesome, that’s exactly what I was looking for, someone who has done the still available mods that won’t break the bank, and can vouch for not breaking the rest. Thank you sir.
 
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