[Spridgets] Tight Steering

[Marc]

I need  some advice to work out the tight steering issue with my 73 
midget. The car had sat for at least 5 years before I got it. Maybe 
more... I got a bunch of receipts with it, someone spent a lotta bucks 
on it.

Among the items were rebuilt kingpins, which clearly have been installed 
in the car. I have no idea who rebuilt them, but they look nice anyway...

With the front wheels off the ground, it took much force to spin the 
steering wheel. I spent a while (hours!) flushing out the rack, and 
refilled it. Now you can turn it from lock to lock with one finger. It 
moves smoothly.

When driving, it still feels tight, and will not self-center. The wheel 
will just stay in a turn. A while ago, someone  mentioned that sometimes 
a washer or bushing is left out of the kingpins, and I should loosen up 
the kingpin nut to see if that helps.

I went to do that and found the kingput nuts were already loose. Way 
loose, actually. There's no way that they should be that loose.

I was also told to check/loosen the large nut on the rack, and also to 
check the shims. This I could use a little guidance with.

But it seems to me that if the steering is still tight with the kingpin 
nuts so loose, maybe it's not a kingpin problem. So I'm going to torque 
those nuts to spec (40 ft/lbs I think).

-- 

Marc