Pitman Arms?

[Detonate]

Anyone else have problems with their Pitman arms?

Looks like mine is shot again after Katemcy, which was some seriously MILD off roading.

This will be the 4th Pitman arm for me now.

Literally every time I've been out with 37" tires one has shot to ****.

Not good.

[Detonate]

Anyone else have problems with their Pitman arms?

Looks like mine is shot again after Katemcy, which was some seriously MILD off roading.

This will be the 4th Pitman arm for me now.

Literally every time I've been out with 37" tires one has shot to ****.

Not good.

[Detonate]

Anyone else have problems with their Pitman arms?

Looks like mine is shot again after Katemcy, which was some seriously MILD off roading.

This will be the 4th Pitman arm for me now.

Literally every time I've been out with 37" tires one has shot to ****.

Not good.

[timgco]

Dunb question, but....
What do you notice with your rig when your pitman arm goes bad?

[Hummie2]

Jim...

Just curious, have you cranked your torsion bars up too? Is it the pitman arm or idler arm that is going out (or both)?

The only difference I can see between the H2 and my buddy's K3500 is that the H2 has a lot more angle on the tierods. That would definitely put more strain on the idler/pitman arms as well as the tierods.

Don

[Detonate]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by timgco:
Dunb question, but....
What do you notice with your rig when your pitman arm goes bad? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
It's been different every time for me. The first time it went out, when I would begin to go straight after a turn, my wheel would be stuck still pointing outwards as I accelerated. I could here it dragging before straightening out.

This time, when I take a left turn, I can here it snap inwards.

An easy way to check is to jack up one side of the front end and then grab your wheel and jerk it side to side. If you are able to get 15-30 degrees of turn in your wheel while the other remains straight, that is not a good thing.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Just curious, have you cranked your torsion bars up too? Is it the pitman arm or idler arm that is going out (or both)? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Yes. I cranked up my torsion bars around the same day I put 37's on my truck, and I've had nothing but problems ever since. I was blaming 37's for the problems, because a lot of people tell me the torsions bars shouldn't have anything to do with it. I think I'm going to lower my torsion bars down some before bringing my truck in again to be serviced.

Also, I'm not sure exactly which component is out. I have no idea how those parts work.

All I do know is what has been listed as fixed on my truck in the past, and it's always been the Pitman Arm (if I'm remembering correctly) and the control arms once.

[Hummie2]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> a lot of people tell me the torsions bars shouldn't have anything to do with it. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Jim...

Raising the ride height by cranking the torsion bars up (increasing the "Z" height) has quite a bit to do with it actually. Until someone builds a 2" lift kit that maintains the correct steering geometry what else are we going to do? I have increased my "Z" height by 1 inch over stock specs. 37 inch tires also increase the amount of strain on the steering. I expect GM to start refusing steering related warranty claims on trucks with lift or oversize tires.

Checking the steering linkage with truck jacked up by jerking on the wheel doesn't give a truly accurate indication of wear as it tends to twist the centerlink. Some twist of the centerlink is normal and you won't overcome it. I can move my tire atleast an inch with one tire off the ground and my idler/pitman arms are still good. Instead pull the skid plate and grab hold of the centerlink then try to shake the link up and down without twisting it and see if you can feel any slop in the linkage. If you can feel slop then one or both arms are bad. Idler arm is mounted on passenger side frame fail and pitman is mounted on steering gear.

If the dealer is replacing the arms under warranty let him have it. If you are having to pay out of pocket get the old parts back and bring to K-Rocks with you as I am interested to see where the wear is occuring at. I will try to explain better then.

Don

[BKLYNH2]

Jim-
Please keep us in the loop with your results. I'm looking to get a little edge in the clearance dept. and am curious which way to go. A 4" lift is out of the question. A 2" lift, if it is ever made and from what I've read may just not be feasable (doesn't seem like it's enough of a change to reconfigure things back to the right angles) may be too much for me as well given my parking situation.
So I am probably due for new tires soon. 37's would be nice if they don't rub as this would add true overall clearance. If they rub and cranking the torsion bars is neccesary but also creates a new problem than I might as well stay with stock tires. Maybe I could raise with the torsion bars only and leave it with 35's for a little edge and no problem.
Thus far I have been riding it stock and have had no damage to any steering components which is either lucky or nice. It would suck to try and improve things and only gain more headaches.
Finally Rancho has a sterring stabilizer upgrade. This basiclly looks like a shock on the steering system to offer forgiveness in situations which may ordinarily stress the steering components. Has anyone tried this yet? Does it sound like a good idea? It's a relatively cheap upgrade.

[FrgMstr]

Great information Don! Thanks for sharing.

I have 37 BFG Mud Terrains on my H2. They have gotten some very solid work outs in the last few weeks.

They rub in a couple of places in the wheel wells, but none I would considered bad. I did have one catch a peice of the fender flair and rip the edge but a bit of work with the dremel tool fixed it so that you cannot tell and will not happen again.

But back to the Pitman arms. Putting my AT tires back on for street use I did look and try to feel for pitman wear while doing the rotation. I did not find anything that I would have considered "wrong". Then again, I did not check in the way you have mentioned but I will next time I have the truck on the jack.

I know Jim has had his pitmans replaced since I installed my 37s and mine have never been replaced and the truch has 13K miles on it. 3K of that with 37s and three good off roading trips. I am not seeing the same wear that Jim is. Also I have never touched my torsion bars. They are still factory set.

Anyway, hope this helps.