Reman Steering Box

[JPVortex]

Assuming you have not tried to adjust the input shaft yourself, you should isolate the gear box. This will validate your claim with napa. It doesn’t matter how new everything else is. The people on the forum have gone down this road before and you are the benefactor of their failures and triumphs saving you time and money. So follow the yellow brick road and you will learn quite a bit. The GMT400 Forum is much like the land of Oz with many wizards trying to get the trucks back home..not saying i’m one of them.

I’ve tried to adjust the preload on the input shaft of the box, but the adjustment point was totally seized up. Couldn’t get it to move with a pin spanner wrench.

I don’t have the NAPA box anymore, I returned it and bought a used OEM one from marketplace.

Can also confirm it’s the steering box because there’s double the play in the used OEM box as in the NAPA reman box lol.

All the front end has already been replaced and was checked only a couple weeks ago. The ball joints and hub bearings were the only thing that had play in them, and it’s in the air right now, while I’m replacing those. Figured I’d address the steering box while doing those, and it’s turning into a nightmare trying to find one lol.

 

[JDGMC]

I’ve tried to adjust the preload on the input shaft of the box, but the adjustment point was totally seized up. Couldn’t get it to move with a pin spanner wrench.

I don’t have the NAPA box anymore, I returned it and bought a used OEM one from marketplace.

Can also confirm it’s the steering box because there’s double the play in the used OEM box as in the NAPA reman box lol.

All the front end has already been replaced and was checked only a couple weeks ago. The ball joints and hub bearings were the only thing that had play in them, and it’s in the air right now, while I’m replacing those. Figured I’d address the steering box while doing those, and it’s turning into a nightmare trying to find one lol.

I see. I thought you were dealing with the napa reman. Your plan with trying another another reman is your best bet with your budget.

 

[dlundblad]

I have no idea on these yet as I am new to the platform, but do they have a steering coupler on the steering shaft between the gearbox and steering wheel?

My 1997 S10 Blazer had one that was shot. Ended up replacing it and that did wonders to the steering. It's made of a reinforced rubber material similar to what you'd see on say snow blower augers or bush hog wheels.

 

[Caman96]

I have no idea on these yet as I am new to the platform, but do they have a steering coupler on the steering shaft between the gearbox and steering wheel?

My 1997 S10 Blazer had one that was shot. Ended up replacing it and that did wonders to the steering. It's made of a reinforced rubber material similar to what you'd see on say snow blower augers or bush hog wheels.

Yes, a rag joint.

 

[Erik the Awful]

I have no idea on these yet as I am new to the platform, but do they have a steering coupler on the steering shaft between the gearbox and steering wheel?

My 1997 S10 Blazer had one that was shot. Ended up replacing it and that did wonders to the steering. It's made of a reinforced rubber material similar to what you'd see on say snow blower augers or bush hog wheels.

OP has already stated he's replaced the rag joint steering shaft with a Jeep joint. I've done the same on my truck. It eliminates the slop. Note that you can't do it on the later GMT400s.

The only thing it could be is the steering box, for a fact.
Every single thing else is new.
Tie rods are new, ball joints I’m just replacing right now. Pitman arm, idler arm and bracket new.
XJ steering shaft swapped, upper steering column bearing is 6 months old and it’s a Wolff Engineering part.(the good stuff)
There’s nothing else to have play in it. And I can take the steering shaft and move the input shaft of the steering box a good 4 inches before it gets to the point the wheels want to start turning.

 

[dlundblad]

OP has already stated he's replaced the rag joint steering shaft with a Jeep joint. I've done the same on my truck. It eliminates the slop. Note that you can't do it on the later GMT400s.

I did no read all 10 pages of the thread. Lol

I’ll have to look into this swap for my 92.

 

[The_Family_Tahoe]

I’ve tried to adjust the preload on the input shaft of the box, but the adjustment point was totally seized up. Couldn’t get it to move with a pin spanner wrench.

I don’t have the NAPA box anymore, I returned it and bought a used OEM one from marketplace.

Can also confirm it’s the steering box because there’s double the play in the used OEM box as in the NAPA reman box lol.

All the front end has already been replaced and was checked only a couple weeks ago. The ball joints and hub bearings were the only thing that had play in them, and it’s in the air right now, while I’m replacing those. Figured I’d address the steering box while doing those, and it’s turning into a nightmare trying to find one lol.

Here's my $.02
I fought through three steering boxes on an old gbody. I absolutely loved the ride and feel of that car. The steering box seals went out and I thought a quick swap with a reman box from the local parts store would fix the leak. It fixed the leak but the box adjustment was way off. I swapped two more boxes via return to the store. Never got one that would meet my expectation. One had too much slop and the other two had WAY too much preload and would not return to center. I was so flustered I SOLD the car. I absolutely hate that I did that knowing what I know now.
Having been down this road, here are my suggestions:
Rebuild a box yourself, get all the necessary tools and replacement seals and get it right. Enlist the help of a local machine shop if needed, but be aware their ability to help will be limited to your instructions for them. So, be prepared and knowledgeable on exactly what you meed them to machine or press on/off, etc. This is the route I should have taken with the gbody.
The second, easier option is to save and just buy a red top for a gmt400, or potentially Borgesson, though I did read a bad review on them in this thread, I have had ZERO issue with the Borgesson I put on my C10 (it's not a gmt400)

I put a red top in my Tahoe and have been extremely happy. No play, no leaks, and an increased ratio over stock gives a great road feel.
Good luck. We're all routing for you to repair the steering and keep your truck on the road.
This is the tahoe with the red top and roughly 20k miles since the swap. No issues.

 

[Caman96]

I’ve never bought a Red Head, but it seems like what I read on this forum or digging through other forums, they seem to be hit or miss like all the other rebuild companies.

Red Head steering gear reveiws - Google Search

 

[JPVortex]

I’ve never bought a Red Head, but it seems like what I read on this forum or digging through other forums, they seem to be hit or miss like all the other rebuild companies.

Red Head steering gear reveiws - Google Search

That’s what I’ve been hearing! Lots of complaints of slop out of the box recently.

 

[JPVortex]

Just another update here. Been a while lol that’s because I ended up redoing the entire front end again.

New ball joints, tie rods, pitman arm, idler arm, and front hub bearings. Used Dorman Premium RD. Yeah yeah you guys will dump on me for that, but to be honest I’m extremely impressed by them so far. They are THICK and seem rugged. The boots are also super durable and have relief holes in case you are dumb and overfill them like me!


But that’s where the bad part comes in,
I had to figure out something for a steering box. So I decided to give a rockauto reman a try by VisionOE.

Took it out of the box and IMMEDIATELY noticed, it’s literally the same reman as the NAPA one I had before. Same color paint and markings that the NAPA one had. NAPA must be using VisionOE as a “rebuilder”.

And sure enough, it’s a piece of junk. Thing binds up when I’m at idle standing still trying to turn the wheels, it also doesn’t return to center. And worst of all, it has slop just like the rest of the steering boxes I’ve put in this damn thing.

Seems like the only option now is an expensive premium rebuild. Whether I try redhead(even with their apparent loss of quality) or a bluetop or something.

Here’s a video showcasing this absolute gem of a new reman steering box(sarcasm):

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That about concludes this posting, everything is great but the steering box. Shaking my head…. Lol.