I appreciate the reply and apologize for not being clearer. I was referring to the lower half steering shaft that Cunningham Machine offers and possibly the intermediate shaft that they offer. I imagine that the one going into the firewall doesn’t need to be replaced? I suspect your K1500 and my K2500 have the same steering components in that area? We just rebuilt the entire front end last weekend, installed a new engine a couple of months ago and now I’m just trying to get that last little bit of wondering out of the steering. Could you tell a difference with the U-joint vs the rag joint?
The difference in feel between the U-joint and the rag depends in part on how much steering effort is required on your truck.
For instance, some of the 1995 trucks had heavy steering.
In 1999, particularly if you have EVO, you may not notice it as much at low speed where steering effort is light.
Probably what was most telling, for me, was when I clamped the input shaft of the steering gear in place using a vice grip, and then got in the truck and turned the wheel from side to side. In this situation the only play in the wheel is due to “give” in the rag joint, and I was surprised how little effort it took to overcome.
I will say that, in the vehicles in which I’ve installed a U-joint, I’ve noticed more “hiss” noise, inside the cabin, from the hydraulic system / steering gear. My assessment is the U-joint couples the hydraulic noise from the steering gear up into the steering shaft and wheel, rendering it more audible in the cabin. I don’t really notice the noise anymore, but I did when I first put the U-joint in. I guess now I’m accustomed to it.
Here’s a picture of mine with the OE shaft and replacement U-joint in place, but you can’t see the U joint because it’s hidden behind the protective cover.
