Thanks decided to just buy the part.. got sick of spraying it everyday with little improvement. It's on its way and I'll install it this weekend. Found a parts dealer on ebay that had it for $160 including shipping.

 

One more question I just thought of... Are the Shafts notched to insure proper steering wheel alignment? or should I mark the upper shaft before taking the old shaft out so I can line up the shafts correctly when putting in the new shaft?

 

Sorry, was away for the weekend.
The upper and lower clamping bolts can only be installed one way. There are depressions in the steering shaft and rack ends that allow clearance for the bolts; as long as you don't allow the steering wheel to turn at all, it will inherently be aligned.
It can be installed with the steering wheel 360 degrees off, so it's best to just keep the wheel from turning in the first place...
But remember to free-it-up before driving away.

 

Got my part today from a dealer, $269 including tax. Only one dealer in the area had one left. Tried to order online at TousleyFordParts.com (which is now AutoNation) but it was backordered for a few weeks. Going out of town soon, so need to get it fixed. Hoping to install it this afternoon.

**** UPDATE ****

Finished installing the shaft in about 45 minutes. Hardest part was getting the bottom part of the shaft loose. Pictures above made a big difference. Thanks.

Here is my part number:

 

I installed my part last weekend as well. Agree that the hardest part was getting the bottom connection loose. Didn't have the bottom bolt facing completely straight forward and made it impossible to wedge a screwdriver in the slot. Had to tap on it from underneath and eventually wiggled it free.

 

There's so many of use having the same problem with the lower steering shaft u-joint's & I think there should be a recall because of poor engineering. I Pd. $30000 for my truck(still owe $16000) & don't have the money($200 just for the part)to fix it. It's a major problem for all of us. I want to (need owners to join a recall suit againest Ford to fix it)get a class-action suit to order Ford to replace this part. This suit will be filed with the Dept. of Transportation, Public Safety. e-mail me at netminderone@aol.com. It will happen to your truck,if it hasn't happened yet!

 

thank for that info will try it over the weekend,looking at it its rusty as can be,hopefully this will do it,thanks again

 

Did anybody here about the recall from Ford about corroded steering colums?? Look it up, that could be a fix to our problem with this stupid u-joint problem. Plus, I got a fix for the u-joint problem from a F-150 member without taking it out. Step 1, locate the u-joint,drill a small hole on each side of the shaft(the piece that holds the bearing), find something like a small straw & fill it with oil then put a sheet metal screw in the hole to close it. I'm going to try this instead of replacing the shaft. He say's it's been 3 months & no problems. What do you guy's think???

 

I wouldn't go drilling holes in my steering shaft. Just my opinion. It took my father and I about an hour to do this fix. Having done it once I could probably do it in half that time. Buy the part and get a buddy to help you; then just oil it on a regular basis and you shouldn't have any issues.

 

I lubed mine for now till I can get the money to replace... but thank you for the article man you saved me a ton of money.... I am mechanically incline but no where near a mechanic... but your how to was very helpful to help me visualize what to do

 

What do you do if you forgot to tie off the steering wheel before removing the lower shaft? I now have about 2"of free movement before the wheels react to turning the steering wheel. Need help quick can't really drive it like this.

 

Shopteacher,

If you've got 2" of "play", there must be something still loose.
The shafts aren't 'toothed', there are depressions where the bolts go through. Your steering wheel will either line up, or end up 360 degrees out, which would be very obvious.

IMO, have someone turn your steering wheel back-and-forth while you look at the flexible link. Your loose connection should be evident.

If everything is tight, the problem is elsewhere.
It's probably your steering rack, but could be steering linkage or tie rod ends.

Let us know how you make out.

 

I ordered one off fleabay for a total of $249.88 on July 24th and it arrived today(shipping included in the price). I'll try the tutorial I found for the re-placement and hopefully there isn't much trouble with the change out.

Question: Anyone use Loctite on the 2 hold down bolt's threads?

 

I followed the OP's advice but I had my wife turn the steering column
so that I could reach bolt head. Also after placing screwdrivers in the separation grooves,
I sprayed in PB blaster and let it soak ~1/2 hour
or so. A couple of taps with a hammer here and there the steering extension popped right off.
Again, I followed everyone's advice and I finished a tad under 2 hours. I'm thinking
I didn't have to spend a 100 bucks or so for labor with the local mechanic.

Thanks everyone.

 

Hi, big thanks to op and everyone that contributed here. I think ive found a much easier way to get to that lower 10mm bolt. I turned the wheel so the lower bolt faced forward and accessed it from benweath the truck with about a ten inch exstension on a ratchet with a univeral adapter on the end. i was able to remover and install the bolt in this fashion.

Shopteacher, i also have a little bit of play in my steering now. almost like a bit of a dead spot at the very center. I'm attributing this to worn steering components such as tie rod ends or perhaps the ball joints. I'm around 200 000 km's on my truck. I'm thinking it was always there and is just more noticable with the new smoothe steering shaft. You can also adjust the streeing "box" itself but from what i've read you can cause damage. I'm not an expert in this department so maybe others can shed light on this issue of play in the steering.