Steering Box - can I do this?

[the_engineers]

So, I put in my FF2 box and installed the pitman arm off by one wheel rotation.  I should be able to just pull the arm, center the wheels and re-install, right?

[Chryco Psycho]

the pitman arm is generally splined with 4 master splines 1/4 of the shaft apart so I doubt it will go on in any other position

[burdar]

I thought they had one larger tooth so you could only install in one way?   

[shadango]

Great question!

So what is the "right" way to reassemble to make sure everything is lined up and the wheel is right?

(I will be doing mine soon too)

[burdar]

The wheel won't be right until you have a proper alighnment done.  Setting the toe will straighten out the wheel.

[the_engineers]

Maybe I explained this wrong initially...I have 4 turns to the left and 1 turn to the right.

Can I just drop the pitman arm off, center the wheels and the steering wheel and put it back on?

[burdar]

Yep...

[shadango]

So if someone had their whole deal apart, sounds like installing the steering box, then the steering column/coupler and THEN centering the "turns" via the steering wheel, THEN installing the pitman/drag link would be the right process?

[the_engineers]

Actually, I think it should be as follows:
Assemble suspension, center link and steering box.
Center wheels
Install steering column/coupler.

I just f'ed up when I did mine and installed the coupler before tying it to the wheels.  If you center the steering box by looking at the output shaft under the car you'll be wrong because of the "offset" that the pitman arm has built-in.

[shadango]

Yeah but if there are 4 possibilities as far as how the p. arm can mount, how will you know if the shaft in the box is in he middle of the cycle or towards one end or another? cycle meaing lock to lock.

[the_engineers]

If the wheels are pointing straight forward, you're in the middle of the cycle.

[shadango]

  Got that....

But, I just looked at my pitman arm....it has 4 master splines, evenly spaced by 7 small splines. That means it can be installed at 4 different orientations on the output shaft of the box.

What I am saying is -- if the pitman arm can be put on in 4 different ways on the shaft of the steering box (4 different master splines), how do you know if the steering box is in the middle of its cycle ? 

Or does the steering box go either way indefinitely when the pitman isnt hooked up? I thought there is a definate "beginning/end" cycle.

 In which case you would connect the steering link between the tow sides first , center the wheels and then turn the steering box output shaft to any point where the 4 splines line up correctly with pitman arm so that its stud meets the steering link correctly?

**********update
Ok, just looked at the manual.

It says to center the cross shaft to its center positiion by hand and then install the pitman arm.

SO I guess there is an end to either direction internally in the box.

[the_engineers]

I just moved this today...although I didn't see any master splines on the pitman...I'll look again, I'm gonna take it apart again as it's still off a little.