Death Wobble and Weak Hazards

[Ez1134]

Hello all,

I am brand new to this site, and have been scouring it for information on the death wobble my 86 1008 has. I also have an issue with my hazards. I have been through the manual and have not had a lot of luck as well as though Steel Soldiers resources.

Here is what Ive got:

Death Wobble
-Generally 30-50mph after I hit a bad stretch of road I will get some violent shaking in the front end. This happened once when I was being followed by a friend and they said it looked like my wheel was about to fall off. However Lugs are torqued appropriately. Steering seems to be tight no more than an inch or two of play before the truck turns. So, maybe not track bar? My next thought is king pins or wheel bearings. I don't get any hum that is detectable over the engine. From what I have found it seems that you need to lift the rig without placing load on axels in order to test both of the above. Is this true?

Hazards
-They work, however they are very weak, almost undetectable. I scrubbed the rear grounds as they were caked with mud, but the front were very clean so I didn't touch them. Potentially unrelated my interior left turn signal works sporadically and my right one does not(I figure the latter is due to a blown bulb). However the flashers all function as they should on the exterior of the truck. And I did notice today that when I turn the hazards on the Left blinker stayed illuminated.

Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[Evil Dr. Porkchop]

Welcome from Colchester. For the death wobble I'd look at the kingpins as well as the steering stabilizer. A new stabilizer on my truck seems to have stopped my deathwobble issue, I'm still planning on taking a look at the kingpins in the near future.
One thing to check for the hazards is the hazard flasher in the fuse box under the dash. One of my truck's had a very light duty flasher unit installed that couldn't handle the stock lights, a heavy duty replacement fixed it and works fine with the extra plow lights.

 

[snowtrac nome]

for the wobble check steering box mounting the square body chevys were prone to cracking the steering box out of the frame. Several manufactures make re enforcements and repair plates for the chevy frame. First however I would suggest tire balance, just because you don't feel the wobble all the time doesn't mean the tires don't need balance. I have seen wobbles come and go at different speeds or brought on by a bump and they were solved with a simple tire balance, while the tire is on the spin balancer this is also a good time to check the tire is round and not suffering from a bad belt.

 

[Ez1134]

Thank you both!

I am getting new tires put on it soon so they will be balanced etc with that repair. The tires don't look bad but I know that small inconsistencies can make big differences.

Is there a distinguishing part number between the light and heavy duty visible so that I can determine if I have a light duty version? I also have read that steering stabilizer replacement can mask the wobble but usually isn't the heart of the issue. Might be worth pulling it and seeing what condition it is in anyway.

 

[firefox]

change the springs and bushings on the top of the king pins.

 

[Chaski]

Kingpins, cracked frame, all really good suggestions.

Also worn / broke spring eyes and spring bushings can cause steering issues as the axle moves forward and aft.

Kingpin upper bushings / springs are not that bad to replace, if the lower bearing is bad it gets a little more involved as you must remove the brakes/hubs/spindles/ axleshafts.

Worst case the upper tapered pin is worn and needs replacement. That requires a 7/8” hex key socket, large breaker bar and a large person as it is torqued to 550 ftlbs.

 

[rustystud]

I would tend to agree with the king pins being bad. There are several companies making a new bushing for the Chevy king pins eliminating the "plastic" one with a solid "bronze" one. I plan on doing this fix this summer.

 

[eme411]

tire balance, condition of tires ie. out of center , out of round, rims, steering stabilizer , shocks , check wheel bearing tightness , kingpins, steering box to frame, spring mounts , has your truck been modded in any way or is it pure stock?

 

[dependable]

When one of mine gets a death wobble, the first thing I check is the drag link and tie rod ends. Even a little play in drag link can cause it. Balanced wheels, king pin springs, steering gear and it's attachment to frame and stabilizer good to check as noted by others. One other thing that casued it once for me was a binding steering U joint at knuckle.

Besides bulbs, grounds and the flasher unit iteslf, there is a ground wire inside front turn signal socket that can fail in the socket itself, that can cause signal symptom you described. You can screw with it and sometimes get it to work, but best thing is to replace the plastic socket.

 

[Chaski]

I would tend to agree with the king pins being bad. There are several companies making a new bushing for the Chevy king pins eliminating the "plastic" one with a solid "bronze" one. I plan on doing this fix this summer.

I have also had good luck with poly kingpin bushing springs instead of the steel springs.

 

[Ez1134]

Here is the update:
I replaced the hazard flasher with a heavier duty one and the hazards are flashing with appropriate strength. While inspecting the steering box and surrounding frame I found two bolts loose on the front end of the frame. I have since tightened and it seems that the wobble is gone. I guess Ill give it a few more days before I call it conclusive. Thank you everyone!

 

[cucvmule]

It is funny that at some point almost everybody has experienced "Death Wobble". Most all symptoms and reasons have been addressed.

Lift kits most times induce or "dramatize'' the effects, larger tires, puts increased stresses on all components and alignment is a critical part as toe in or out has a profound effect on drivability and tire wear. I start out at zero or even toe, check for Dog Tracking, then see how tires wear. Reading tire wear can tell you a lot.

Lastly from a prior lifted truck that I had purchased because owner was tired of replacing every part possible, I replaced the tires, and looked at the rear front spring mounting hangers on the frame and they both were worn oblong causing the springs to deflect where ever they wanted. Between new rubber and mounting hangers, new polyurethane bushings, never had another problem.

 

[Tracer]

Now that it looks like your on the right track with getting your problems solved. Welcome aboard from Nevada.

 

[rustystud]

Here is the update:
I replaced the hazard flasher with a heavier duty one and the hazards are flashing with appropriate strength. While inspecting the steering box and surrounding frame I found two bolts loose on the front end of the frame. I have since tightened and it seems that the wobble is gone. I guess Ill give it a few more days before I call it conclusive. Thank you everyone!

I would go and replace all the mounting bolts with new ones. Grade 8 bolts and lock nuts.

 

[CMPPhil]

Obvious but not always mentioned

Hi

Something not mentioned in discussions of the "Death Wobble"s is that when ever you get into the speed, bumb, or what ever causes them on road, the truck is litterally beating it's self to do death. Even a minor shimmy is causeing wear through out the suspension and steering.

Cheers Phil

 

[Ez1134]

Just wanted to let everyone now that. I resolved the issues with a new hazard relay and new tires. Apparently I had over looked a missing weight on one of the tires. Not to mention the new tires have made an incredible difference in the ride quality! Thank you for everyone’s input.

I do have one more concern however. When the weather drops down to single digits the truck won’t start. I usually plug it in for 2 hours in the morning, but when I go out the truck has maybe one strong crank for less then 10 seconds. After that it is a slow steady crank, that pops and pushes smoke out the exhaust but does not start. Because of the weak crank I replaced the batteries I had with two red top Optimas. That hurt the billfold pretty bad. I also checked all my plugs to make sure they are all good. But I noticed that when I turn the ignition the wait light only comes once and a couple seconds after it goes off I hear a loud click from what I assume is the glow plug relay. I’m not entirely confident that the glow plugs are doin their thing. I figure if they were I would get the truck to start in single digits more readily. Are their any more tests I can do to determine if I have something failing in my glow plug circuit?

 

[cucvmule]

Try going threw some of the sticky's and do some research and that will get you on your way.

There are a few upgrades that will improve your starting issues, as long as the required components are up to being serviceable.

Welcome and spend some time reading posts and research, and read some more. Lots of your problems are in the Steel Soldiers Forum Site.

The MV Equipment is unique and serviceable. Good Luck and enjoy your new adventure.

 

[rustystud]

Just because the relay is working doesn't mean the "glow" plugs are. You need to check them on a regular basis. Especially if you live in one of the colder regions.

 

[Tinstar]

Have you replaced the glow plugs before?
If not,’you need to.
Most guys here use the ACDELCO 60Gs

It could be several things, including starter.
Do the Doghead relay modification if you haven’t already.

Read the CUCV helpful stickies
Also, a good digital multimeter is a must have item if you own a CUCV.