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How many of you have experienced the death wobble in fords?

Started by HemlockKing, June 18, 2021, 06:30:47 AM

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HemlockKing

Well I’m glad I’m aware of it now, I’m pretty good at being quick to replace worn components, especially bearings ball joints bushings tie rod ends anything to do with the rolling chassis or steering. This even further confirms why I should be on the up keep. That would scare the absolute crap out of me no kidding.
A1

Tacotodd

Mike is correct about powering out of it, if you want to do 80+mph. On all of the vehicles that it's occurred in that were mine, tire balance was the solution. Be sure that they spin balance the tire/wheel assembly (dynamic). BUT, when the tech operator sets up the machine he has to do it in the proper manner. If all of the weights are on the inside, that's the same as the old school bubble balance (static). When the machine is setup properly you will have weights in AND out, but not necessarily in matching locations. BUT, some of the newer wheels don't allow for this to happen because of the way that they are made (no outside lip for wheel weights. Aesthetics). That's one of the reasons that I like old school steel wheels.
Trying harder everyday.

HemlockKing

They have wheel weights that stick right on the rim now, no lip needed, I'm seeing the lip weights less and less 
A1

barbender

Hemlock King, even if it didn't scare the crap out of you, it may shake it out of you, no kidding😁  
In some instances one might be able to power out of it, in mine I don't think so. Once it started it only increased in magnitude until I got the truck stopped. I'm talking at 5 mph, you're barely moving but the truck is still thrashing violently. Come to a complete stop and take back off, like it never even happened. Until the next 65 mph bump. 
  Death wobble is not a "brand" thing, it's a solid front axle issue, especially with coil springs. Anything out of whack can contribute- worn out tires, ball joints, tie rods, track bar bushing, and in the case of my last "ride", simply a shot steering damper. I was a bit out of ideas, everything on my front end was tight, tires were good. Nothing out of order. I went to the local Buffalo, Wyoming NAPA, where the parts guy (probably half of his customers have solid front axle pickups 😁) said "try this first" and sold me a steering stabilizer instead of the ball joints I was trying to buy😁 That's all it was🤷🏽‍♂️
Too many irons in the fire

Southside

Barbender, I know Buffalo quite well. Still have my banking there. Nice town. 
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

barbender

Really?! It's pretty amazing really, all of the people I run into that know that little town quite well! My Mom grew up out there, all my family on her side is out there still. I was born in Sheridan, but we've lived in MN since I was 2. I asked my Mom why I was born in Sheridan when they lived in Buffalo, I thought maybe it would be an epic story about a storm blowing off the Bighorns keeping them from getting to Buffalo or something..."they had a nicer OB department in Sheridan" was her answer😂 Oh well, it's my story, I can tell it how I want😊 I still almost tear up every time I smell sagebrush, lots of memories of traipsing over the hills behind my Grandma on all the hikes she used to take me on. Spent a lot of time out on the Kendrick Cattle Company ranch where my uncle worked when I was a kid. When the ranch was broke up and sold off in the late 80's early 90's iirc, my uncle was able to buy one of the small outlying ranch stations called Cabin Crick. Dainty little spread of about 3500 acres😊 (it's really not much out there). Gosh, you got me rambling about Wyoming...not hard for me to do. If life situations changed and I were forced to take up residence in Wyoming, I would not be unduly distressed😁 So do bank at, is it First National? I can't remember the name, I just know it from the steel buffalo sculpture. My Aunt retired from there after about 15 years, after she moved into town after Kendrick sold. 
Too many irons in the fire

mike_belben

My first DW was 20 odd yr ago i guess.  in an 89 F350 idi 4wd srw.  I was in the center lane of a packed 3 lane highway going all of 58mph to the floor with people pouring around me on both sides. 

Bam.. Expansion joint. Apocolypse now.  Full blown 100% as bad as it gets wobble.  The nose rose up, tires were off the ground and i was certain the pitman arm was gonna shear any second.  Boy did i get some finger salutes stopping in the center lane.  
Praise The Lord

Southside

Yup - First Northern Bank of Wyoming.  Travis has called me at 07:00 eastern to discuss things at times.  What other bank does that?  I will never leave.  I would move there tomorrow, drag the sawmill, the cows, the dogs, and be happy.  Notice I didn't say the wife.  She won't go, we have discussed it.  

Is that ranch still in the family? 
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

barbender

I smoked a transmission in my third gen in a nice busy spot like that. Locked it up tight, skidded to a stop. I didn't even dare to get out and look at what the problem was, I thought about just jumping and running for it!😂 Thankfully a couple guys came pulling up in two pickups that did pilot car work, onepulled behind me with the beacon on and the other one threw me a chain from his F350 and drug me off the road. Good times🤦🏻‍♂️ I learned at that time that a NV5600 transmission will lose the rear seal, and pump all of its oil into the transfer case. No leak until the t-case starts to spit it out the vent, which is probably already too late. Fun fun. Sometime I will share how I learned that 3rd gen 4wd driveline are engaged at all times. I may save it for my book, "Time Me and My 3rd Gen Were On The Side Of the Road"😁
Too many irons in the fire

Southside

Ahh - don't forget that Dodge built in a "safety feature" to prevent the death wobble.  It was the 5th gear drop off.  You know - manual transmission, nobody thought to use a reverse thread to hold on the tail stock in the transmission so 5th gear would just no longer be there....  No 5th gear and that dually was not getting above 60, no sir, no way that was happening with both feet on the pedal and the 5.9 on the red line - thus no death wobble to worry about.  See - it was a safety feature...... >:(
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

barbender

Yep Southside, the ranch is still in the family. Actually, they were able to buy another small adjoining ranch (Squaw Crick) when a neighbor passed away, I think that got them in the area of 5500 acres. They used to run between 100-150 head of Angus, now uncle is a "gentleman rancher" he just runs feeder calves over the summer😊 And a small herd (about 6 I think) of Texas Longhorns that are just pets. They have an outfitting business that is most of their bread and butter, they have an exclusive lease on the Padlock Ranch (that's who bought Kendrick out) and some other surrounding acreage. I don't remember, it was in the area of 300,000 acres they have exclusive hunting rights on. It sits on both sides of the Wyoming/Montana border. Very good Mule deer, the elk are ridiculous. I think they are taking around 10 bulls a year (that's what the ranch limits them to) there's always several 350+ and a few over 400 over the years. The Powder River country out there is a hidden gem!
Too many irons in the fire

barbender

Haha I was only listing 3rd Gen issues🥴 I had a 97 as well, actually that truck treated me way better! "Why does this one break so much?"-my wife, regarding the 03😂
Too many irons in the fire

Southside

Oh - the Powder River.....wife / Wyoming, wife / Wyoming.....ugh!!!   :D
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

barbender

Would you like me to share some Powder River elk pictures?😁 
Too many irons in the fire

Southside

Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

barbender

Too many irons in the fire

barbender

My aunt and uncle are great folks to hang out with, so long as you can handle lots of hunting and ranching😁
Too many irons in the fire

Tom King

It can happen on a GM too, but maybe only after the steering system is "wo' slam out".

It did on my '01 dually.  The truck had 315k on it, and had been in, and out of a terrible path every day for a couple of years working on an old house.

I replaced every moving part in the steering system.  After all that, I didn't even want to drive it anywhere to get it aligned, so I set up some batter boards, and pulled lines.  I just used a tape measure, and a Wixey magnetic digital cube.  It drove great, so I took it to put a set of new tires on it.

After about a thousand miles, the right front was showing the slightest bit of wear on the outside of the right front, probably from driving on heavily crowned Virginia back roads.  I changed the camber .1 degree, with the Wixey cube, and no unusual wear, so far, for the next 30,000 miles.

It's back to driving like a Cadillac now.  Best alignment I've ever had.


 

barbender

I did the toe adjustment on the Dodge by scribing a line around the face of the tire with a sharpie. You hold the marker on a steady base and spin the tires so he mark is in the same orientation all the way around. Do that on both sides, then measure to the line side to side. I brought it in to the alignment shop to get it aligned "proper", they said they didn't even adjust anything🤷🏽‍♂️  Doesn't matter, dang thing still chews the front tires off in short order anyhow!
Too many irons in the fire

farmfromkansas

My dad had an old super H farmall, and it would do the death wobble.  Had a wide front end, think it was an aftermarket kit, and loose steering.  When I got the tractor, took it to a mechanic familiar with the old IH tractors, and he tightened it up significantly, but never could get the death wobble out of it, at certain speeds, and mostly going down hill, in road gear. 
Most everything I enjoy doing turns out to be work

barbender

Well if we're going to expand into other equipment, I used to run a monstrosity of an asphalt roller- an old Dynapac CA-50 iirc. That thing had a road gear, it would do about 15mph. That doesn't sound like much, but on a roller that is flying! Well it would develop a death wobble because the steering cylinders had a little slop in the pins, now that was scary trying to get that under control! You sat out on an open operator station that was about 6' off the ground, I always thought I was going to meet my end when that thing did that😬
Too many irons in the fire

mike_belben

In tractors i think it leans toward insufficient caster angle pretty often.  Not adjustable. 
Praise The Lord

Southside

Had a big Komatsu loader, with the fancy self gyro thingy that made the bucket go up and down just a tiny bit so she would not wheel hop. Worked awesome. 25 MPH with no bounce at all - UNTIL - that little thingy died at 25 MPH. HOOCHIE MOMMA! Whump, Thump, and we have liftoff! 

Now that is a full on death dance! 
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

barbender

Too many irons in the fire

Bradm

I had death wobble for the first time this past January.  2010 Sierra 1500 with around 90K miles.  Only showed up on ice but started at around 25 mph.  4x4 let me get up to 40 mph before it started again.  All 4 ball joints were shot as were the bushings in 3 out of the 4 control arms.  Now its just got the rear leafs that need to be replaced as the middle leaf is missing 3/4 of its length on both sides.

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