Sky's Offroad Design Super Duty RSK Install

[ArdWrknTrk]

Yep.

As I bolted that box on I thought "Should I order a BlueTop?" It would have been so easy at that point since I didn't even have the 350 Pitman arm on yet and none of the hoses/tubes connected. Guess at this point I'll run it.

And we'll see if the review was an anomaly or an omen.

[Gary Lewis]

And we'll see if the review was an anomaly or an omen.

There's probably only about 5,000 miles on that box, and there was something "not right" about the steering. Plus it seemed to be getting worse. It was loose and there was a pop somewhere. Hopefully the loose Huck bolt, the loose driver's side perch, and other loose things I've found account for that.

[Bruno2]

Yep.

As I bolted that box on I thought "Should I order a BlueTop?" It would have been so easy at that point since I didn't even have the 350 Pitman arm on yet and none of the hoses/tubes connected. Guess at this point I'll run it.

I havent gotten my steering box back yet form Blue Top. When I spoke to Ryan the owner on the phone I discussed his competition with him for a brief second. A lot of people have the same complaints about his former employer. There is a cover with four bolts on the box. The bolts are coming loose and it destroys a seal making them leak. Someone at the facility is not torquing them bolts right or not using thread locker.

He also told me that place has around 30 employees now and seems to be having issues with QC. Ryan explained to me that when he started working there it was just him and the owner. Both of them did all of the work. Now that Ryan has his own business he has just a couple of employees. They tear down the units and clean the parts up. He does all of the machine work and building of the boxes. He also is the only one that tests them before they get sent out.

I like knowing Ryan handles all of those tasks himself. I believe he has a quality product.

[Bruno2]

I havent gotten my steering box back yet form Blue Top. When I spoke to Ryan the owner on the phone I discussed his competition with him for a brief second. A lot of people have the same complaints about his former employer. There is a cover with four bolts on the box. The bolts are coming loose and it destroys a seal making them leak. Someone at the facility is not torquing them bolts right or not using thread locker.

He also told me that place has around 30 employees now and seems to be having issues with QC. Ryan explained to me that when he started working there it was just him and the owner. Both of them did all of the work. Now that Ryan has his own business he has just a couple of employees. They tear down the units and clean the parts up. He does all of the machine work and building of the boxes. He also is the only one that tests them before they get sent out.

I like knowing Ryan handles all of those tasks himself. I believe he has a quality product.

It came in:

[Gary Lewis]

It came in:

That was Monday. Is it on yet? If so, how's it feel?

[Bruno2]

That was Monday. Is it on yet? If so, how's it feel?

Not yet. Ryan said it would feel tight.

[Gary Lewis]

Not yet. Ryan said it would feel tight.

Time for an update here. The ball joints are in the knuckles and the knuckles are installed on the axle. And the tie rods are installed.

Here's a shot of the driver's side knuckle on, although you can see an ear of the passenger's side knuckle to prove it is there:

And here's a shot of the steering linkage on, with all new components save for the one adjuster sleeve:

And, here's a shot of three of the adapters I used on the ball joints. In the middle is the 1 3/4" long one that came with the HF ball joint kit, and the one on the right is the 3" long one I made some time ago to remove the lower ball joint. And the one on the left is the one I made today that is only 3/4" long, used to install the lower ball joint. (Boy, is it good to have a stash of tubing, a band saw, and a lathe!)

 

[salans7]

Time for an update here. The ball joints are in the knuckles and the knuckles are installed on the axle. And the tie rods are installed.

Here's a shot of the driver's side knuckle on, although you can see an ear of the passenger's side knuckle to prove it is there:

And here's a shot of the steering linkage on, with all new components save for the one adjuster sleeve:

And, here's a shot of three of the adapters I used on the ball joints. In the middle is the 1 3/4" long one that came with the HF ball joint kit, and the one on the right is the 3" long one I made some time ago to remove the lower ball joint. And the one on the left is the one I made today that is only 3/4" long, used to install the lower ball joint. (Boy, is it good to have a stash of tubing, a band saw, and a lathe!)

salans7 likes this.

[Gary Lewis]

salans7 likes this.

Thanks, Shaun.

I neglected to say that I'm following Ford's instructions here for the installation procedure and torque values: Documentation/Driveline/Axles & Differentials, and then click on these tabs: Front Axles & Differentials, then Instructions, then Dana 60, then Ball Joint. The instructions there are from the 1995 factory shop manual and match the axle I'm using.

And it is important to use those instructions as using the ones in the Kingpin tab will have you confused and worried. Confused because several things are different between the two. And worried because there are things shown on the kingpin axle that aren't on the ball joint axle. For instance in the illustration of parts on the axle shaft the kingpin version has a bronze spacer and an axle seal that the ball joint version doesn't have. So if you are servicing a D60 axle you need to pay attention to which set of instructions you use.

Also, while this site doesn't yet have the instructions for the tie rods, the tightening torque for the stud nuts is 50 - 75 lb-ft.

[Gary Lewis]

Thanks, Shaun.

I neglected to say that I'm following Ford's instructions here for the installation procedure and torque values: Documentation/Driveline/Axles & Differentials, and then click on these tabs: Front Axles & Differentials, then Instructions, then Dana 60, then Ball Joint. The instructions there are from the 1995 factory shop manual and match the axle I'm using.

And it is important to use those instructions as using the ones in the Kingpin tab will have you confused and worried. Confused because several things are different between the two. And worried because there are things shown on the kingpin axle that aren't on the ball joint axle. For instance in the illustration of parts on the axle shaft the kingpin version has a bronze spacer and an axle seal that the ball joint version doesn't have. So if you are servicing a D60 axle you need to pay attention to which set of instructions you use.

Also, while this site doesn't yet have the instructions for the tie rods, the tightening torque for the stud nuts is 50 - 75 lb-ft.

Well, today I thought I might get the axles in, but pulled the tape off that was supposedly keeping the inside of the axle tubes clean. And, I was a bit surprised by what I found.

Here's the driver's side:

And, while that looked bad, here's the passenger's side:

So I spent quite a bit of time cleaning things up, gently so nothing was kicked back down the tube into the differential. Turned out that the stuff was hard, and it took a really long screwdriver to reach in and break the stuff loose. Then I fashioned a loop out of wire and reached in and pulled the debris out. Then I broke more loose pulled it out. Next I used a brass wire brush saturated in brake cleaner, with a stiff wire taped to it, and reached in and made sure I was pulling it out so anything kicked up would come out rather than in. And finally I wrapped a piece of a paper towel around the brush and wiped the tube down.

Here's the driver's side after Not perfect, but a bit better.

And here's the passenger's side, although I ran out of time today and will clean it up a bit more tomorrow before I put the axles in.