3 X Steering stabilizer Excessive??

[Toyaddict71]

My '74 has 3 steering stabilizers. I've had it 17 years and it came with the setup. I always considered it excessive, but just didn't want to mess with what worked. It's always steered solid. The other day I noticed the steering get really loose at highway speed. I recent;y put tires on it and thought the new ones may be heavier. Same 35" BFG mud terrains, but a couple of generations newer. I eventually got under and noticed one of the stablizers was missing a bushing and not applying resistance. I replaced it and I'm good to go again. My question is why the need for three. I see other rigs with 35's and a single stabilizer. Seems to work for them. My steering geometry seems good. Drop pitman arm and drop brackets for the radius arms. No big deal. With three I drive great, just seems odd. Anyone else experience anything similiar?

 

[Yeller]

Just old school thoughts. The one with the missing bushing was probably the only one doing any work. There was a time the more shocks the better. Today we just use properly valve shocks and stabilizers and only use one

 

[Toyaddict71]

Interesting. Maybe I'll disconnect one by one to verify which ones are putting in work. Thanks for the thoughts!

 

[Broncobowsher]

In theory you shouldn't need any. Often they were put on to mask problems. Add in the excess of the 80s/90s where you installed as many of (anything) as you could to be cool. The days of double wiper blades, a dozen chromed shocks, I even remember once seeing double leaf springs (two at each corner).

Now Ford did put a single on. An old (and now lost) article stated it was done to protect the steering box. Kept the bearings from being pounded flat. And considering the frame likes to crack around the steering box, helps prevent that as well. So I do like to run one, simply because I like my steering box to survive. I did break a bracket once. On the street I never noticed it. On the trail, I did. The steering wheel got a lot more violent when a tire would hit a rock the steering would normally tug in that direction. With it disabled, that tug turned into a hard snap of the steering wheel. A lot more force was going into the steering box (and frame and steering wheel and the driver).

 

[Madgyver]

How is your steering linkage set up? Stock or aftermarket?
I don't use a steering stabilizer shock up front on a tie rod over ruff stuff steering set. it drives fine without it.
77 bronco swapped out inverted Y stock set.

 

[bax]

I also do not use a stabilizer. I have no issues, with the steering anyway.

 

[SteveL]

I've been running 35's for years without a stabilizer with no problems.

 

[abn373]

In theory you shouldn't need any. Often they were put on to mask problems. Add in the excess of the 80s/90s where you installed as many of (anything) as you could to be cool. The days of double wiper blades, a dozen chromed shocks, I even remember once seeing double leaf springs (two at each corner).

Now Ford did put a single on. An old (and now lost) article stated it was done to protect the steering box. Kept the bearings from being pounded flat. And considering the frame likes to crack around the steering box, helps prevent that as well. So I do like to run one, simply because I like my steering box to survive. I did break a bracket once. On the street I never noticed it. On the trail, I did. The steering wheel got a lot more violent when a tire would hit a rock the steering would normally tug in that direction. With it disabled, that tug turned into a hard snap of the steering wheel. A lot more force was going into the steering box (and frame and steering wheel and the driver).

Oh damn, I forgot about the double wipers I couldn't afford them then, but I did put those silly vanes on the wiper arms...hahaha...WTH, I was a teenager.
Yes, my 73 has the OEM stabilizer, I need to replace the shock part, with something to match the black Duff shocks, I always figured it was there to mitigate steering wheel kick back, but I have OEM power steering so not quite sure why it was needed, but protecting the box like you are saying makes more sense.