I dismantled my other box just to see what all it is comprised of:



I don't know if they went to a different design after '93; but this one had no thrust washer. Just a rubberized plastic tapered bushing that fits onto the tapered surface at the superior end of the shaft. The rest of the shaft was machined polished; but had no bearings/bushings/washers/etc. Also, on the inside of the case there is just one small grease passage about 1" long at each end. Doesn't do much for grease flow; but I guess on a 'non-serviceable' part that isn't a major concern once the initial charge of grease is pumped in.

This spare idler was just starting to pit where the spring contacts the top of the shaft. I didn't get a good look at the top of the shaft on the one I rebuilt since I just cut the very end off; but I suspect more extreme concaving was to blame for the laxity moreso than the spring losing tension. A hardened washer between the spring and the shaft with grease grease channels ground into it would be a good idea, IMHO.

I may go ahead and redo this one with the threaded pipe idea mentioned above 'just to do it'. Updates if/when that happens. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />

[edit]BTW, if someone did have access to a lathe, I think it would be pretty easy to machine down the taper to an appropriate parallel surface that matches the ID of a roller bearing with an OD that is a snug fit to the ID of the case. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cyclops.gif" alt="" />

Aw, you guys are just to sharp. I feel humbled when I see the stuff you do. I would like to stick my nose in here to ask a few questions. I have two 89 troopers. I am in the middle of a front end redo. The truck wonders. I have done two upper balljoints and an upper control arm bushing. Tierods are good. Had the front end aligned. Still wonders. Steering gear box seams good. No play. Today I checked the idler it has play in the part that anchors it to the frame. You are talking about this part in this thread I think. I took it out but don't know where to go from here. Wrecking yard, machine shop or parts house? Can play in this part cause wondering, maybe darting is a better word. You mention tightening up the steering gear box, I have read that problems in the front end should be fixed before any messing with the steering box. Any thoughts would be a great help. Thanks

Have you had it aligned? Aligned well?

The idler will have up and down free play. It may contribute to weird handling problems, but I would guess that alignment has more to do with wandering than the idler.

Michael

Thanks for the come back Micheal. Here is a little more detail. I watched them do the alignment, however I am not sure what's good or bad. They seamed to have some problems with the job. I think because the guy doing it was learning. He did have lots of help though. Even the owner chimed in. So I assume the issues got resolved. They attached parts to all wheels and used a computer screen to give them the info. I have the computer readouts. Looks impressive but would have to have someone read them. My steering wheel was off when they got done so I brought the car back and they adjusted the tierods. That helped but not perfect. Owner said there was so much play, it is very hard to get it perfect. Seems reasonable.

When I got the car home I jacked it up and started wiggling things. The idler arm moved when I pushed the intermediate rod up and down. Would this be normal? Right now I can't see any way to do this other then changing out one thing at a time, with the steering box last. Any other info you can offer well help. Thanks Stan

I will just say, in my experience trying to get my Troopers aligned, there was a world of difference between the guys who truly knew what they were doing and the guys just following directions on a computer setup...

A worn idler will definitely introduce play into the steering and can cause the darting you're describing.

The play in the idler is vertical. You can just push up on it from underneath and see/feel the shaft move up and down in the housing if it's bad. I used to get a good 1/4" of vertical movement in mine. That movement lets the passenger side tire wander a little on it's own. And because of the angle on the tie-rod, the more your t-bars are cranked, the worse the wander is.

Caster & camber shouldn't be affected all that much, but I can see setting toe being a bear with slop in the idler.

--Dan

That's interesting. The movement I notice is not up or down sliding in the shaft, but a looseness or wobble like a bushing was worn out. I picked up a wrecking yard idler today I think is going to be good. In the vise it dosen't have sideways movement like the other one. Its worth a try. $4 as opposed to $100 for a good one in an auto parts store. If that doesn't fix it I think I will take it back to the alignment shop and have it checked again. Thanks I'll let you all know how things turnout. Stan

I sometimes think that wheel aligners are over rated. You don't know (and sometimes they don't either) if it is correct or not. I have been doing my own, which on the Rodeo is quite easy as the camber spec is 0 degrees. A good quality spirit level will cover that. Don't think a computer is needed, the Isuzu camber tolerance on my vehicle is +/- 0.5 degrees, which is a whopping 12 mm from top to bottom of tyre. It is important to get the front trim height correct first. On the Rodeo there is an Isuzu procedure for this that uses 'a magnet, a spirit level and a length of kite string'. Works too.
For toe-in I use a laser level. Again the Isuzu spec is 0 +2 mm so not too difficult.
I have not tackled caster but this is the least likely to change with use. I'm still thinking about it...

Andrew.

Hey Thanks to all you guys. The skepicism about wheel aligners really helped. I got the truck home after it was aligned, after I complained about the steering wheel not centered, after I drove it and said it wanted to dive into the ditch, after I watched them adjust the tierods in the parking lot, after I knew the kid doing it was a trainee.

I parked the truck, never looked at the wheels, and went looking for a idler in a wrecking yard, found, installed. When I put the wheels back on I noticed a strange angle on the second wheel. Sure enough inch and a half difference on the tow out. I took the truck back to the shop this morning. The main guy did the work, he got it right. I left, came back and said why can't I have a straight steering wheel? He said we can do that right too. They did. I drove the truck up 75mph. I was 100% better. It still felt a little loose so I followed the treads on this site and found the guy on plantisuzoo that explains how to do the steering adjustment. Now it feels showroom fresh. Thanks guys. Stan PS Next is a strange sound around the engine. We think it is the distrubutor, maybe the cam, hope not. Will be a new tread. Stay tuned I will need help.

Hey I saw this a Bit ago and was thinking about it really hard. I went and bought a New One from NAPA ( I get a Discount on Parts Ie* Employee at work ) and I was Really surprised that the new MOOG part has a Grease Zerk in the top of it. I was Really Surprised to find this. The one in the Trooper is really bad, enough to knock around and the steering is Sloppy from about 11:00 to 1:00, lots of slack. I may Take the old one apart and look into your write up. Looks good. But, Just a Question: If you Replaced the ARM itself, where did you pick it up? I cant find one at NAPA, CarQuest, AutoZone, nor Checker. They show the Bracket but no Arm. Im curious if this even needs changing? Id like to put a new one on and leave it alone, done in one shot.

Robbie--