1996 4.9L 2wd xl. Basic factory steering.
Soft steering has been bugging me for a while and the attached post exactly words it.
First reply says to make adjustment with "sector shaft adjusting screw".
Second reply gives the details of "adjusting meshload".
As I understand it:
1. since I'm going by what "feels" tighter, I can skip the steps 1 to 6 of adjusting meshload?
2. I shouldn't turn the screw for more than 1/8th turn and if it still feels loose, it's the gear box?

Btw, I plan to do this after other steering parts are checked, bushings replaced, balance and aligned.

Thanks in advance.

 

Very light steering can be associated with an out of spec alignment. Judging by your description the steering wheel is oversensitive to steering inputs which mean the steering gear is probably fine. You can do small adjustment increments to get some slop out but it will never be 100% gone, even with a brand new steering box it will still have a tiny amount of slop. Thats just the way these trucks were designed and build with this steering system.

 

Thank you for the reply. Just like that poster, I have almost no "slop". Quarter inch either way and I can see the direction changes. But over 60-65 mph and definitely on 70 mph, the steering sometimes feels like the truck is not attached to the road and not under my control. Could be I lost the feel for highway driving as well as the sudden drive feel with the new mounts. I'll definitely get it aligned, but it's about time the steering system is professionally checked.

 

Jack it up one side at a time, putting the jack right under the bolt that holds the radius arm to the i-beam. try and move the wheel top and bottom for the ball joints, front and back for the steering links to see if any of those parts have play. If so you can have someone watch the parts to see what moves. A little bit of play in both directions could be loose wheel bearings, which would need to be adjusted.
The other thing to check is toe-in. the wheels need to be toed-in about 1/8" to 1/4" or the truck will wander wherever it wants to. To check this find a flat area, put the truck in neutral, push it forward about 10 feet, back, forward, back, forward - without touching the brakes. This will unload the steering. Now measure (to the same spot, the same height off the ground) the distance between the tires at the back and then at the front (of the front tires). The front measurement should be slightly less than the back.
This makes both your tires want to push towards the center and makes your truck want to go straight. Too much toe-in wears the tread too fast.
Not enough toe-in or toe out and your tires are constantly trying to take off towards one ditch or the other, which is what makes your truck wander all over and feel really loose up front.
Toe in is adjusted by turning the sleeves on the tie rods to increase or decrease the toe-in. I personally set mine at 1/4" to 3/8" toe-in, but be warned - that much will wear your tires faster. I accept that trade - off because it gives my steering a nice tight feel and keeps it straight down the road, but you have to make your own call on that one