Pat
Supporter
In putting my steering rack together I decided to check on the ideal placement of the u-joints on the intermediate steering shaft. On end goes to the rack the other to the steering column. What I found are two contradictory schools of thought.
The one says:
STEERING U-JOINT INSTALLATION
The yokes at opposite ends of any shaft segment should be aligned with their bores parallel, at least within reason. Phasing or “clocking” of the universal joints is especially
important when welding u-joints directly to the shaft, since it will be impossible to re position them once you’ve done it. Any back-to-back pair should be aligned like the ends
of a driveshaft, as in the picture at the right. Please study it closely; the difference is not obvious unless you are looking for it. The more acute the operating angle, the
more critical the phasing. At around 45 degrees out of phase, the shaft will react to
applied torque with a wobble, with the condition being most pronounced at 90 degrees. A badly out-of-phase setup makes excessive u joint angles act even worse, and cannot
be improved by re timing the steering wheel. For reference, most stock car steering layouts will tolerate joints 20 degrees out of phase, and will not likely cause noticeable problems in steering, but 45 degrees out will be noticeable, and 90° will almost certainly cause problems.
And the other:
Contrary to common belief, and information supplied by some of the larger manufacturers of aftermarket steering components, steering universals should never be phased (or ‘timed’) in-line with each other like a vehicle drive-shaft. This should
be avoided at all costs, for the following two reasons:
1.Universal joints are not constant velocity joints, and will rotate with a fast and then slow rotation on the output side, with a constant speed rotation on the input side.
2.Universal joints do not rotate without the shaft lengths changing.
Correct installation of more than one cross-bores when timing universals is done by advancing either the top or bottom unit by 15° to 45° clockwise or anti-clockwise, depending if it’s a left or right-hand-drive application, or a steering rack or steering box, to prevent the fast/slow velocity, and the shafts from changing length while rotating.
Any thoughts here???
The one says:
STEERING U-JOINT INSTALLATION
The yokes at opposite ends of any shaft segment should be aligned with their bores parallel, at least within reason. Phasing or “clocking” of the universal joints is especially
important when welding u-joints directly to the shaft, since it will be impossible to re position them once you’ve done it. Any back-to-back pair should be aligned like the ends
of a driveshaft, as in the picture at the right. Please study it closely; the difference is not obvious unless you are looking for it. The more acute the operating angle, the
more critical the phasing. At around 45 degrees out of phase, the shaft will react to
applied torque with a wobble, with the condition being most pronounced at 90 degrees. A badly out-of-phase setup makes excessive u joint angles act even worse, and cannot
be improved by re timing the steering wheel. For reference, most stock car steering layouts will tolerate joints 20 degrees out of phase, and will not likely cause noticeable problems in steering, but 45 degrees out will be noticeable, and 90° will almost certainly cause problems.
And the other:
Contrary to common belief, and information supplied by some of the larger manufacturers of aftermarket steering components, steering universals should never be phased (or ‘timed’) in-line with each other like a vehicle drive-shaft. This should
be avoided at all costs, for the following two reasons:
1.Universal joints are not constant velocity joints, and will rotate with a fast and then slow rotation on the output side, with a constant speed rotation on the input side.
2.Universal joints do not rotate without the shaft lengths changing.
Correct installation of more than one cross-bores when timing universals is done by advancing either the top or bottom unit by 15° to 45° clockwise or anti-clockwise, depending if it’s a left or right-hand-drive application, or a steering rack or steering box, to prevent the fast/slow velocity, and the shafts from changing length while rotating.
Any thoughts here???