Truck Pulling to Right

[UPFINN]

Over the past few years my truck has been pulling to the right. It seems to be getting worse, but is hard to tell.

I did a alignment and found that the front was toed in 3/8, so I put it back to 1/8. I also changed out the right front tire to one with less cupping and more tread. The left front tire is nearly new titan T-Hawk, while the left is a older Goodyear. The previous tires were Denman.

Took the truck for a drive today and the problem was still there, maybe even worse! You let go of the wheel and it will start heading for the ditch. The steering wheel is always pulling.

I jacked it up and used the pry bar under the wheel and didn't seem to notice any movement. So I doubt it is tie rod ends or king pin bushings.

What else could it be? Wheel bearing, older tire (tread depth is matched between left and right), king pin bushings, shocks?

The next thing I could try replacing are the shocks, but can't tell if they are bad. Is it normal to be able to compress them by hand? When I loosen the bolts that hold them they contract by themselves, and I can press them down more. They also look like the original shocks.

If it is the king pin bushing, well I might just keep driving it. It looks like a pain to replace and the new bushings are not as good as the old. The process may also involve machining a grease groove and using a press to size it. I do not have the equipment.

I am going to take off the front hubs to repaint and grease bearings. I'll see what I can find.

 

[Kaiser67M715]

what is circumference of tires? same size group and same tread depth may mean nothing with two different manufactures, even if it is to a gov't spec.

the other thing to look at is rear suspension, a misalignment in the rear can cause the truck to turn one way or another(check the dog bones for loose bushings) just one axle starting to turn can push the truck where you don't want it

 

[73m819]

Check your inner hub seals on the front, look at the LEFT

 

[Hainebd]

To check circumference, take tire off, make ground and tire then roll till mark on tire is at the ground again. Now do the other tire. Also switch front tires. You can remove hub cap and check for free spin of wheel bearings.

 

[UPFINN]

what is circumference of tires? same size group and same tread depth may mean nothing with two different manufactures, even if it is to a gov't spec.

the other thing to look at is rear suspension, a misalignment in the rear can cause the truck to turn one way or another(check the dog bones for loose bushings) just one axle starting to turn can push the truck where you don't want it

The tires on the truck are 9x20ndts. Would a slightly different circumference cause pulling? The bushings on the dog bones seem good. They don't wiggle when I pull/pry on them, although that might not be the right way to test them.

 

[UPFINN]

Check your inner hub seals on the front, look at the LEFT

The right front wheel has a slight leak of some fluid under the boot. Don't know if it is gear oil or brake fluid. It is blackish brown. Kind of smells but my nose is plugged from allergies haha. The left wheel is good.

 

[UPFINN]

To check circumference, take tire off, make ground and tire then roll till mark on tire is at the ground again. Now do the other tire. Also switch front tires. You can remove hub cap and check for free spin of wheel bearings.

I am going to try switching the tires. By removing the hub cap I can figure out of a bad wheel bearing is slowing one side down?

 

[searls84]

Could one of the brakes be dragging?

 

[UPFINN]

Ok I went out again and I can slightly wiggle the dog bones by hand with a lot of force. I see a very subtle movement. Don't know if that is normal.

It seems like a worn kingpin bushing would cause the tire to wear on the inside according to my research. I am also wondering if the truck pulls to the right because the roads are crowned? When going 50 on the highway which seems flat, you let go of the wheel and it will start heading to the right.

What I am going to do:
Jack up truck and pry up on the wheel while someone watches for movement to check for bushing wear again.
Check tie rod ends again.
Switch tires, put good one on the right.
Replace shocks.
Repack and tighten wheel bearings.

If none of the above works:
Leave it alone and live with it.

If the problem gets worse:
Replace tie rod ends.
Take apart and inspect bushings. (can I take the plate with the 4 bolts and grease fitting above the kingpin off to inspect them without removing the hub, drum, and brake plate?)
If bad, locate a machinist to fit new bushings.
Replace dog bones if bad.

 

[Kaiser67M715]

The right front wheel has a slight leak of some fluid under the boot. Don't know if it is gear oil or brake fluid. It is blackish brown. Kind of smells but my nose is plugged from allergies haha. The left wheel is good.

probably gear oil.

when was the last time oil/ bearing grease checked?

once you jack it up you can try to feel for play using the tire, best to have two people on the front, to make sure tie rods, kingpins don't have a lot of slop.

if your kingpin bushing is toast(more then 1/16" of play I would guess) then get it replaced, if not, you'll end up spending big money later-especially if the pin snaps off

 

[UPFINN]

probably gear oil.

when was the last time oil/ bearing grease checked?

once you jack it up you can try to feel for play using the tire, best to have two people on the front, to make sure tie rods, kingpins don't have a lot of slop.

if your kingpin bushing is toast(more then 1/16" of play I would guess) then get it replaced, if not, you'll end up spending big money later-especially if the pin snaps off

I do not know exactly when the axle got new oil and the bearings were greased. Probably several years ago. I tried moving the tire side to side to check the tie rod ends, and I could just feel the tire flexing on the rim, and the tie rod was moving the opposite tire a little. No clicking or anything. When I pried up on the bottom I noticed no movement except for where the tire was touching the pry bar. Today I will have my dad help me and watch the back of the drum brake plate for movement. It is hard to tell from the front. When you test tie rod ends, can you jack up one at a time and test, or do you need both wheels off the ground? When I tested it a month ago I just did one side at a time. I'm just wondering if the jacking angle makes the test unreliable.

Going to try diagnosing the issue today so I can fix it while the truck is down for repaint the next few weeks. Depending how it looks when I disassemble the front axle, I might change the axle seals. After more research it seems like if the kingpin bushings are bad, the pin is bad too, and will require machining round again and a custom fit bushing. Not an easy fix unless you buy a whole new knuckle assembly.

 

[73m819]

We had a M62 that started pulling to the right, at first not a big deal, just kept getting worse till it HAD to be fixed, I did EVERYTHING I could think of, even posted up on SITE, looking for answers, still nothing better, just worse, had the brakes so tight that the truck would not roll down hill, STILL pulled to the right, so bit the bullet, was going to pull BOTH front drums, just happened to pull the left first, saw that the inner seal had died, allowing grease to get to the lining, I could have tightened those shoes down as far as they would go (I did) and still they would not stop a kiddy car. SO again check for grease on the LEFT front shoes.

 

[tennmogger]

A tire going bad can cause pulling (the Denmans). Having mismatched tires can certainly cause pulling. Swap the tires as you said and see what changes. Crown on the road can effect some truck/tire combinations more than others but normally will not cause continuous pulling. IMHO you should put a good set of matched tires on the steering axle.

You didn't say whether these were radials or bias-ply tires. That is important in a 'pulling' issue. For sure never mismatch type of tires anywhere on the vehicle.

Grease and oil on a brake won't cause pulling as you drive, only as you stop.

 

[UPFINN]

A tire going bad can cause pulling (the Denmans). Having mismatched tires can certainly cause pulling. Swap the tires as you said and see what changes. Crown on the road can effect some truck/tire combinations more than others but normally will not cause continuous pulling. IMHO you should put a good set of matched tires on the steering axle.

You didn't say whether these were radials or bias-ply tires. That is important in a 'pulling' issue. For sure never mismatch type of tires anywhere on the vehicle.

Grease and oil on a brake won't cause pulling as you drive, only as you stop.

The tires are bias ply. The left side I'm running a Titan, and the right a old Denman. I have been running Denmans and Goodyears on the left because that is what I have. The tread depth is matched, but perhaps brands are different. I have 10 near new condition goodyears, but don't want to run them until I do some testing with the older tires.

 

[Thunder in NWOR]

My pull-to-the-right story:
My friend recovered my M35A3 from Ft McCoy and reported a slight pull to right. When I picked up the truck from him, I did and alignment following TM string method. It did need adjustment to get it in spec. Also lifted front end and checked for wheel play and brake drag - nothing.
Drove it home to Oregon and the right pull got worse. In Wyoming parking lot, I again did TM string alignment. Checked out ok. Stopped at Idaho Motor Pool and Alex suggested checking wheel bearings. Repacked bearing. No fix.
At home, I took it to an alignment shop that specialized in aligning built hot rods. One tech was an Army mechanic. Everything was OK - EXCEPT toe was out of standard. Corrected. Drove home with pull to right. Started considering swaping axles and then decided to swap front tire/wheels. Done and AMAZING had pull to left. Replaced tires with new on front. Now have over 10,000 miles on the tires, NO pull, NO unusual wear.
Conclusion: Toe our of spec toe caused wear on tires that corrected alignment could not correct. Correct toe and new tires solved problem......

 

[UPFINN]

My pull-to-the-right story:
My friend recovered my M35A3 from Ft McCoy and reported a slight pull to right. When I picked up the truck from him, I did and alignment following TM string method. It did need adjustment to get it in spec. Also lifted front end and checked for wheel play and brake drag - nothing.
Drove it home to Oregon and the right pull got worse. In Wyoming parking lot, I again did TM string alignment. Checked out ok. Stopped at Idaho Motor Pool and Alex suggested checking wheel bearings. Repacked bearing. No fix.
At home, I took it to an alignment shop that specialized in aligning built hot rods. One tech was an Army mechanic. Everything was OK - EXCEPT toe was out of standard. Corrected. Drove home with pull to right. Started considering swaping axles and then decided to swap front tire/wheels. Done and AMAZING had pull to left. Replaced tires with new on front. Now have over 10,000 miles on the tires, NO pull, NO unusual wear.
Conclusion: Toe our of spec toe caused wear on tires that corrected alignment could not correct. Correct toe and new tires solved problem......

I am swaping tires right now. We shall see!

 

[UPFINN]

Well just got back in.

Here is what I found:
I used a pry bar between the dog bone/torque rod bushings and the points they bolt to. I did the test specified in the TMs and used a 3ft bar and pushed it 6 inches at the end. The bushings did not move much at all.

I also checked the spring seat beam between the axles on the rear. I saw no space between the leaf springs and the frame to signal that the spring seat bearings and lock nuts were bad. I also took the caps off last year and they were well greased and looked good.

I jacked up the front axle and turned the steering wheel quickly to listen for any play in the tie rod ends. They are tight. I also tried to shake the wheel back and forth and heard nothing.

I used a pry bar under the wheels and there was no movement or noise to signal the kingpin bushings were bad.

I spun both wheels and they both spin the same. I did notice the right wheel was making a rubbing noise from inside the drum housing in one spot of the rotation. Either a wheel bearing needs service or a brake shoe is dragging. I will fix this issue when I break down the front axle for greasing and painting. The right axle seal also has a very slow leak. The bottom of the boot has gear oil on it.

I switched out the Titan T-hawk with another Goodyear. Now both front tires are roughly the same. Will go for a test ride later after the rain passes and see if the pulling stops.

 

[Jeepsinker]

You need to replace both front tires with new ones that match each other.

 

[UPFINN]

Update!

Took the truck for a few mile ride on the county highway at 50mph and on some county roads between 20 and 40mph. Switching the tire stopped the pulling significantly, however it still wanders off to the right. On a empty stretch of road I drove in the left lane, and found the truck wanting to pull the wheel to the left! When I drive in the center, it does pretty good. I believe the steering pull is due to the crown of the road and extreme weight on front axle due to the winch, which was made worse by having mis-matched tires. I do find that over bumps the steering gets kind of wild. On a bumpy stretch it will seem to want to keep going to one side or change direction erratically. I believe this may be due to the shocks.

Seems that this problem has been solved for now. Truck will be parked for a few weeks while I begin my build!

 

[rustystud]

To properly check Tie-Rod Ends (and Drag-Links) you just have someone turn the steering wheel fast back and forth, while you lay on the ground looking for any play in the rods. No need to jack-up anything.