Troubleshooting & Correcting your Steering
TDHofstetter
Prefers carburetors & points
- Posts
- 1,003
- Thanks
- 4
- Location
- Bradford, Vermont
- Vehicle(s)
- '73 CJ5 232/T14/D20/D30/D44,
'74 CJ5 Renegade 304/T15/D20/D30/D44,
'85 CJ7 258/T5/D300/D30/AMC20,
(Not CJ: '68 M715 230/T98/NP200/D60/D70)
The torpedo level needs to stand vertical, so you're reading the little vial at one end that goes crosswise. There'll be one vial that goes the same direction as the level's body, then on one end there's be one at 45 degrees and at the other end'll be one that goes crosswise to the level's body. THAT is the one you should read. It should be at the top while you're reading it.
With the level spanning your yoke at the differential, that bubble should read dead level (which means the yoke is "plumb", or straight up & down. That means your axle is pointing straight forward, not rolled up or down.
Both axles need to point straight at each other, and the Transfer Case needs to be level. Then all the yokes will be in agreement. If they're not, it beats the heck out of the whole driveline. Someplace around here (on the forum) I've got a writeup that explains what happens at the u-joints when the two ends aren't in agreement with each other, walks through the geometry & shows how much they speed up & slow down with every engine revolution (they may cycle more than 100 times per second!)... suffice it to say that it's really really rough on 'em.
With the level spanning your yoke at the differential, that bubble should read dead level (which means the yoke is "plumb", or straight up & down. That means your axle is pointing straight forward, not rolled up or down.

Both axles need to point straight at each other, and the Transfer Case needs to be level. Then all the yokes will be in agreement. If they're not, it beats the heck out of the whole driveline. Someplace around here (on the forum) I've got a writeup that explains what happens at the u-joints when the two ends aren't in agreement with each other, walks through the geometry & shows how much they speed up & slow down with every engine revolution (they may cycle more than 100 times per second!)... suffice it to say that it's really really rough on 'em.