I have 1984 Chevy k10 4x4, with about 136, 000 Miles on the chassis or it's 236,000 miles not sure, engine is a 1993 350 cid with 700R4 tranny rebuilt a few thousand miles on it. My question is. . Started driving the wifey to work and out of nowhere the front end started a very violent shaking like a wheel wobbling like it's going to fly off at about 30 to 35 mph, I was barely able to hold onto the steering wheel and get her stopped immediately, took it back to the house and jacked up the drivers side and checked the wheel out for up and down movement and side to side and is solid but this driver side tire is wearing the outside of tire telling me to get it aligned. Passenger side I jacked it up and no movement up and down but the side to side movement was pretty bad! While she shook the tire back and forth I saw the outside tie rod was really worn out. Could this bad tie rod end be the sole cause of the steering being so violent? I've installed the new tie rod end and concerned it's going to do it again at highway speeds ,so far had the truck up to about 35 to 40 mph with no issues yet. Thanks for your time and help!
OP should be providing all the details, such as he installed axle(s) from a bigger truck.
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/postid/239763/
Could this bad tie rod end be the sole cause of the steering being so violent?
You bet. The steering linkage is what keeps your wheels aligned and your truck going straight down the road. If each wheel is trying to go in different directions ... well you've experienced the result.
The shaking could have worn out other stuff too, so get a crowbar and check out the rest of the suspension. ball joints, control arms, wheel bearings etc. But since you worked on the steering, it needs to go to an alignment shop anyway.
Vehicles with solid axle front ends are prone to death wobble (what we used to call "shimmy" back in the day) as they age. Any loose parts in the front end can cause this, and that truck is just shy of 4 decades old so everything needs to be treated as suspect. That's a leaf spring suspension so you don't have to worry about things like control arm bushings or track bar, but all the steering parts need to be checked from the steering box and pitman arm out to the tie rod ends and ball joints and everything in-between. The wheel bearings should also be checked for excess wear.
With that kind of injury I'd see if you can get a friend or relative to help out if you're not in a position to take the truck to a mechanic.
haven't been able to check ball joints... just replace them? Financially limited need help!
If you don't have a lot of money to spend, then don't go changing random parts. Like I told you before, get your alignment checked (This is a must after replacing steering parts). It'll probably cost you less in the long run to just have the vehicle checked out by a good mechanic.
Have excessive wear on left front tire ,so would I be wrong to suspect it's Ball joints and just replace them?
Bad ball joints will cause the front end to shake, sometimes the steering wheel itself shakes. They will cause excess tire wear as well, since they have some control over camber (in and out positioning of the top and bottom of the tire). If a ball joint is worn, the car will want to ride more on the inner or outer edge of the tire.
In my case, I started feeling a slight vibration in my truck's steering wheel a little over a year ago on the highway going 65 or so. A year later, the once in a blue moon I hit 70-75 MPH the front end felt like it was going to shake itself apart. I took a wheel off and pried on the hub with a tire iron by threading a lug nut on a stud. Sure enough. Upper ball joints were shot.
Don't just guess with parts. Have someone jack up the truck and pull the wheels from 9 and 3 o'clock, then 12 and 6. The wheel should not move. If the friend feels any kind of movement, take the wheel off and look at the suspension. Pull on the hub with a tire iron, like I did with my truck, preferrably with a 90 degree bend for extra leverage and watch what moves. If anything moves, you'll see it right away when the tire is off.
would I be wrong to suspect it's Ball joints
there are a ton of good videos about how to check them
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62bVn7E8gyk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzwvijyQpdU
- Scotty I have a 1984 k10 4x4 solid axle and have the dreaded death wobble, found a worn out right tie rod end and replaced it,seemed to help. But it's back! Other tie rod ends have a little wear but doesn't seem excessive, haven't been able to check ball joints yet because my back is broken and can't do it. Have excessive wear on left front tire ,so would I be wrong to suspect it's Ball joints and just replace them? Financially limited need help!
It could be a mixture of things due to the age of the vehicle.
Bad wheel balance - weights can fall off.
Worn ball joints and front end parts.
Once the balance is off on a rim it will have a slight wobble but if your front end is worn it can multiply the effect.
