P/S Box Adjustment ?? Please Help

I have some play in my steering wheel. I have a 73 Bronco with a Saginaw power steering pump.

I have had everything relplaced as far as steering goes except for the P/S box i believe it is original.

My problem is the play in my steering wheel. Is some play normal?

Or can I adjust my P/S box in order to make it more responsive?

I have heard that one can damage the box if you adjust it to much.

My question is how do you know if it is in or out of adjustment?

While moving the steering wheel back and forth everything is tight with no movement except for where my lower steering shaft goes into the box. Should I adjust the screw on top? If so how much?

Thanks Guys

Likely causes:
1: Play due to rag joint play.
2: With engine off, have one person sit on ground looking down the frame at the powersteering box/pittman arm. have 2nd person turn wheel one way, hold tension and watch/check for:
a) frame deflection or rotation of steering box, maybe your frame is weak or the bolts aren't tight enough.
b) Check steering rod and tie rods to see if it is loose
d) Finally look down at the steering box and see if the output actually lags the input, (unlikely)

If that hasn't found the culprit, then it's time to check the alignment.

Most steering problems aren't the box, it something else..

I have the same question. My 71 is all over the road. I bet I look like a DWI going down the road. I took it in to a frame shop and they said I need a new or rebuilt steering box.

Anybody using something besides stock?

You can send your box to West Texas Offroad and they can rebuild/convert yours to a quick ratio steering box. It would be a nice upgrade if yours is a six turn stock box.

How much does that cost?

I am not real sure but I think 300-400 bucks. You should give them a call. I am sure they would quote you a price over the phone.

Good Luck!

I've had loose steering issues since I've owned my Bronco up until recently. I bought it with a very worn out manual box that I replaced with a "rebuilt" manual box from Autokrafters. After having the same problem and totally taking it in the ass from Autokrafters (they lost my business forever) I upgraded to power steering. What a shocker, I had the same problem. As someone else stated earlier in this thread, I began to believe my steering issues were not because of my steering box. Over the years I simply lived with the loose steering. I eventually swapped in a Dana 44 and installed seven degree C bushings at that time as well as brand new tie rods and drag link hoping that the additional caster and new components would solve my problem. Nope Finally, I picked up another Bronco with power steering that did not wander all over the road like my old Bronco did. Due to the tear down I ended up doing on the newly acquired Bronco, I ended up swapping steering boxes, and I finally had no more loose steering on the Bronco I'd had for years. So, I suppose this post is my really long winded way of saying get your steering box rebuilt. West Texas offroad charges $140 for a Steering Box Rebuild and another $150 to go from a six turn to a four turn box. Here is their website:

http://westtexasoffroad.homestead.com/index.html

Pricing is under the redneck ram link