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Custom 2WD steering system conversion


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I was going to place some mud around them in good time Haha

 

We dont have to get a wof here every 6 mths

We get a roadworthy when we buy the car and dont have to get one till we

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heres what nissan nut has to say. heres a pic too.

Originally posted by vlsgmc:

From 91 to 04, did the spline change or only the taper for the TRE?

 

 

Yeah 91-94 show the same part number in FAST. 95 I guess is a different taper but same spline on steering box.

 

 

truck_pitmans.JPG

 

91-92 has the small taper but the same size spline/diameter of the steering gear box shaft of the later pitman arm

Edited by Nefarious
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Yeah I have that center one and my current 95 one must be the bigger hole. DERP! :headwall:

Why does Nissan have to do these things?

 

At least it's a good thing I kept the old stuff.

 

pitmans.JPG

 

Found that pic in the thread. Going to swap the arm now.

Edited by Tungsten
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Yes, it worked. The arm fit perfectly. Just took it off my old 91 box and put it on my freshly acquired 95 box. Now the truck is in the shop because the center link angle changed and it needs re-alignment. The only thing that went wrong is that the boot on that side seems to have exploded. I will just substitute that with more heavy grease around. Sure is better than losing control and dying because of one stupid joint!

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Awesome thanks for the quick reply tungsten. Just went to the jy and pulled a 91 pitman arm.

 

Just cleaned it up and gave it a heavy coat of rust paint. I'll swap it with my 95 one next time I have some more motivation and get it back in the alignment shop. My boot luckily has survived and is totally fine. Just did all of my ball joints and wheel bearings while I was at it. Phew....this thing is going to drive nicely after!

 

So for future reference to do this swap you must have a 86 to 92 model year truck (07/1986-06/1992 production date) or swap in a 91 or 92 (07/1990-06/1992 production date) pitman arm if you have a 93 (07/1992+ production date) or newer truck.

 

There are 3 types of pitman arms. One from 07/1986 to 06/1990 (small spines and small taper) one from 07/1990 to 06/1992 (large spline small taper, the one you want if your truck is made after 06/1992) and then one from 07/1992+ (large spline large taper).

 

It will of course fit fine on older trucks before 91 of course, but this is if you want to use a new model power steering gear box with the older smaller taper.

 

Just thought I would clarify for anyone doing the swap.

Edited by Nefarious
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You should swap it ASAP while your boot is still there. :lol:

You really don't want to drive with that joint being loose. It will get destroyed like that and cause you to lose control and possibly roll over.

 

That's right, all older steering boxes will work up to 1992. If you are using the 1993+ box, then swap the pitman arm from the 1991-1992 box.

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PICTURES PICTURES PICTURES

 

580049_10150852261984075_612879074_9714385_46201059_n.jpg

 

398348_10150852262384075_612879074_9714386_1438360279_n.jpg

 

556935_10150852263404075_612879074_9714392_1166693283_n.jpg

 

As you can see, the 91 pitman arm fit perfectly on the 95 box. Now I had a different problem. The damaged boot... To fix it I took a foam insulator and cut a ring off then wrapped it around the gap and secured it with a zip tie.

 

379172_10150852266669075_612879074_9714406_975707832_n.jpg

 

487359_10150852266914075_612879074_9714407_812915115_n.jpg

 

542158_10150852268314075_612879074_9714417_1337447306_n.jpg

 

317958_10150852268059075_612879074_9714415_1427310536_n.jpg

 

527701_10150852269134075_612879074_9714420_202189732_n.jpg

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Then I encountered another issue.

 

The stabilizer center link bracket was sliding on the frame.

 

380280_10150852262779075_612879074_9714388_2042836390_n.jpg

 

So I moved it down and found it to be interfering with the differential mount.

 

292224_10150852265444075_612879074_9714399_1736574043_n.jpg

 

After a bit of adjusting back and forth, I finally got it to be in the right place.

 

389199_10150852264894075_612879074_9714397_302125420_n.jpg

 

Away from the differential mount as well.

 

522912_10150852265674075_612879074_9714400_449937169_n.jpg

 

I also found out that by angling down the bracket I could put the stabilizer much more perpendicular to the frame. The law of physics is the more perpendicular the damper is to the force, the more effective it is.

 

541991_10150852264609075_612879074_9714396_992346396_n.jpg

 

That's it! The system works great. I drove over a bunch of broken roads today and found it to perform more than adequately. In fact it felt much nicer than the stock steering system.

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I also found out that by angling down the bracket I could put the stabilizer much more perpendicular to the frame. The law of physics is the more perpendicular the damper is to the force, the more effective it is.

Parallel, you mean? :)

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all 2wd center links use the small taper as far as I know, as tungsten used a 1997 2wd center link.. I believe anyways.. The 2wd center link I used was a 92-93 and it is the same tapers as well. If your truck is 87 you are good to go. It will fit in without any modification if your truck is 87-92. if your truck is 93-95 then you need to swap in a 91-92 pitman arm.

 

My setup is still holding up to 33x12.5 tires on very heavy 15x10 steel rims with aggressive back spacing (stick out the fenders about 5 inches) and there is no wear at all in the system yet. Still looks brand new and all the joints are still very tight. This is with the cheapest parts I could find as well! Tungstens inner tie rods are beefier than mine and should hold up even better.

 

I'm hitting the trails up stave lake and surrounding areas this weekend I will let you know how it holds up to some abuse!

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Considering this but need some clarification with the steering box pitman arm issue - if my truck is a 1987 and the donor D21 2wd center link is a pre-1992, I should be good to go?

 

Yes. You can even use a newer 2WD center link and the taper still works.

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Yeah probably but it did look sealed with that foam ring around. If anything I will just replace the center link. It's actually very easy to change it. I don't even have to worry about alignment.

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you can replace the boot with polyurethane replacement boot. any auto parts store can get them.. energy suspension makes em.

 

I noticed my boot was already slightly torn a bit on the bottom by the taper when i replaced my pitman arm with the proper one so I took the measurements and I am about to head to lordco to pick up the set.

 

ill let you know what part number it is when I return. 6$ for a pair of 2 with my discount. a lot better than a new center link!

 

http://www.energysus...og/tierodb.html

Edited by Nefarious
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The problem with that is on my center link the boots are not attached like they would be attached traditionally. They are actually pressed in as part of the assembly. It's not going to be easy to replace that one on the driver's side properly.

 

426036_10150613888404075_612879074_9150268_376143256_n.jpg

Edited by Tungsten
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