Gilderbeast
Full Access Member
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2019
- Posts
- 113
- Reaction score
- 77
- Location
- Fargo, ND
- First Name
- Brett
- Truck Year
- 1980
- Truck Model
- K3500
- Engine Size
- 496
1. Get a 88-96 XJ/Regular Cherokee shaft.
2. Unbolt rag joint from your stock steering shaft and remove the rag joint from the steering gear box.
3. Heat up your stock steering shaft where the two small holes are. Propane or Oxy Acetylene will work. This melts the plastic inside the shaft. Pull the lower shaft from the upper.
4. Take your 88-96 XJ shaft and heat it up at the two small holes until the plastic inside melts and seperate it like above.
5. Take off the dust caps on both universal joints of the XJ shaft. (I did this all in a bench vise)
6. Remove the end pieces of the 88-96 shaft and swap them around as you need the D shaped splined coupling.
7. Reinstall the dust caps.
8. You will most likely have to cut about 1" from the end of the 88-96 shaft for play/bodyflex. Cut if you have to. Test fit before cutting.
9. Slide 88-96 XJ shaft into the Squarebody upper steering shaft and then lower the D shaped spline coupling all the way onto the steering gear box and install bolt with locktight/threadlocker in the coupling.
This eliminated the steering slop in my truck for only $12. Below is the link for a video I have made to try to explain and visualize at the same time. Hope this helps.
2. Unbolt rag joint from your stock steering shaft and remove the rag joint from the steering gear box.
3. Heat up your stock steering shaft where the two small holes are. Propane or Oxy Acetylene will work. This melts the plastic inside the shaft. Pull the lower shaft from the upper.
4. Take your 88-96 XJ shaft and heat it up at the two small holes until the plastic inside melts and seperate it like above.
5. Take off the dust caps on both universal joints of the XJ shaft. (I did this all in a bench vise)
6. Remove the end pieces of the 88-96 shaft and swap them around as you need the D shaped splined coupling.
7. Reinstall the dust caps.
8. You will most likely have to cut about 1" from the end of the 88-96 shaft for play/bodyflex. Cut if you have to. Test fit before cutting.
9. Slide 88-96 XJ shaft into the Squarebody upper steering shaft and then lower the D shaped spline coupling all the way onto the steering gear box and install bolt with locktight/threadlocker in the coupling.
This eliminated the steering slop in my truck for only $12. Below is the link for a video I have made to try to explain and visualize at the same time. Hope this helps.
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