| This is the drag link setup AllPro initially put on. Bump steer you wouldn't believe and it failed the very first time it went off road... If you look at the drag link just above the Rancho stabilizer it appears to be in the initial stages of failure in this picture. Notice the Taco oil pan with the sump in front. |  |
| This image of that drag link setup taken 15 minutes later after it failed it's first time off road. It assumed a U shape, destroying a rod end in the process, then compressed and expanded rather than forcing the steering arm and tie rod to turn the wheels. |  |
| In order to run a straight drag link with the crossover steering the stock Taco oil pan (sump in front) needs to be swapped out for a 2WD T-100 oil pan which has a rear sump. Here is the hi drag link/lo tie rod set up I ran while waiting on Jon to get me the rest of the HySteer kit. It's hard to see, but you can just make out the 2WD T-100 oil pan with the rear sump that allows a straight drag link. |  |
| A HySteer kit including new steering knuckles and steering arms was installed next. The new knuckles seemed to have more castor and consequently improved steering feel. The steering stabilizer bracket now bolts to the U-bolt flip plate keeping the stabilizer higher and parallel with the tie rod. Notice the rusting spacers between the upper steering arms and the drag link/tie rod. The overall geometry of this set up works way good with no bump steer and full articulation without binding. |  |
| Heim joints, AKA rod ends, used on steering components are a safety concern unless mounted in double shear. In this image the rod end on the upper end of the drag link is effectively captured by the upper and lower sections of the pitman arm. If the ball were to separate from the rod end the steering would get real sloppy in a big hurry but control of the vehicle could be maintained. |  |
| The lower end of the same drag link, because of how the high steer arms on the knuckles are designed, are mounted in single shear. If this ball were to separate from the rod end it could easily rise above the retaining bolt. The drag link would no longer connect the steering wheel to the steering arms on the axle knuckles resulting in total loss of control. By using a safety washer a rod end can be mounted in single shear and yet effectively captured top and bottom. These particular safety washers were purchased from Pegasus Auto Racing Supplies. Be sure to use grade 8 bolts long enough to accommodate the added thickness of the washer. |   |
| This series shows decreasing drag link angles of different set-ups, with less bump steer at each step. A T-100 in Four Wheeler: |  |
| My first "S" shaped drag link: |  |
| My current set-up: |  |
| Once the steering links were set-up correctly there was still binding in the steering shaft which needed to be addressed. This is how the stock Taco steering passes through the fire wall. The u-joint enclosed by column hole cover and column hole cover 2 allows the shaft to dive towards the rack and pinion. For the conversion to crossover steering, and the required frame rail mounted IFS steering box conversion, the shaft comes straight through the fire wall then lifts up and over to the IFS box. This blurry pic from the driver's foot well shows the steering shaft passing through the fire wall by means of a greasable bronze bushing mounted to a steel plate welded to the stock column hole cover flange. That unlabeled red blotch in the center of the image is the zerk with a blob of Redline grease on it. The bronze bushing began giving me problems. It grinds through part of the shafts rotation. Rebuilding it helps for a shorter period each time. I had the bushing replaced with a sealed bearing. |   |
| This is the overkill roller bearing I had the bronze bushing replaced with. The bearing helped some but my steering was still grinding and binding. ARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!!! The steering column contains a tube that the steering shaft passes through. I sprayed silicone lube up into the tube and lots of grunge was washed out. The dry grinding went away but there was still a small amount of stiction/hesitation when turning the wheel, enough to be very annoying and prevent good return-to-center. I noticed that there was a plastic bushing at the end of the tube that, in the stock setup, supported the u-joint at the firewall. I pulled it out and things got only slightly better. I got out my manual and looked at pictures of the shaft and noticed that there is a bulge in the steering shaft about 4 inches up into the tube. Since the tube was used to support the shaft prior to there being a heavy duty roller bearing at the fire wall, I decided to cut it back beyond the bulge and see if it helped. I used a die grinder for the bottom part and a flexible shaft dremel tool to cut through the top part where clearance was tighter. With about 1/4 of the tube left I worked it back and forth until it broke off. It did the trick! My steering is silky smooth and even returns to center after a turn like it should. |   |