Steer Safe

[Merlin]

Has anyone purchased and installed this brand of steering stabilizer on a bus?  I'm to the point where I think I want a less float and drift while driving on a breezy day.   Possibly there is some slop in my steering system due to age but the last mechanic that had it up on a lift said the joints are still good.

The Steer Safe add-on is not a "screen door closer" motion dampener like I have seen on many pick-up trucks.  Possibly its design is aimed more at preventing drastic wheel swerve from a tire blowout.

[Melbo]

That has been one of my "wants" that keeps getting put off.

I have planned to stop in Deming and have one installed on the way to Mexico but always want to get to Mexico instead.

I have talked to company reps and seen the units --- they seem to be a practical solution to wandering as well as if there is a steer tire blow out.

HTH

Melbo

[jackhartjr]

Before power steering came along where it was affordable we installed steer-safes on all of out cab-overs.  We did it to allow the driver to have control in front blow outs, and let me tell you it worked!  I don't recall that they prevented drift, however I don't recall any steering drift during the half million miles I drove with them.
Jack

[m-werx]

We have one installed it works great, we put ours on

[TomC]

If you have full power steering (in the steering box compared to the auxiliary hydraulic ram) the steer safes won't do much good.  If your steering linkage is tight, your steering box has slop in it.  I have the Sheppard steering box mounted directly on the axle.  I discovered that you just have to keep the steering wheel still and make small corrections.  Course in a side wind, it gets a little more exciting.  Still is a lot more direct then the old manual steering with air assist that it used to have (went from 7.5 turns to 3.5 turns lock to lock).  Good Luck, TomC

[buswarrior]

For the low mileage we do as busnuts, where we age out the tires long before we wear them out, why not dial in a little toe-in and watch it track like a slot car?

happy coaching!
buswarrior

[bevans6]

I basically eliminated wander by centering the steering box.  I think that gets overlooked a lot.  Sheppard type steering on an MCI, the drag link was an inch too long...     Just something to check.

Brian

[luvrbus]

 On the old buses the the caster setting is so limited is what causes wandering from the center some models 5 degrees is the most where on the newer stuff 10 to 15 degrees is not uncommon on trucks and buses

A good caster setting will stop the wandering and when you take your hands off the wheel it will return to center sounds easy huh


good luck


 

[Ericbsc]

Now Clifford, you know that the eagle company couldn't even spell the word much less make an adjustment!!LOL

[luvrbus]

That 5 degrees is tough to work with on a Eagle lol

[bevans6]

The castor  setting on my MCI is 1.5 degrees.  The highest castor on any vehicle I ever used was 6 degrees, and it was almost undriveable.  Are you sure 10 to 15 degrees is the modern thinking?

Brian

[Ace]

My ole buddy Gene Rochester was one of the designers of the steer safe. He told me they tested them at Charlotte Motor Speedway by putting charges on the front axles on semi trucks and remotely blew out tires.

I don't think they were ever intended to reduce sway unless you had a blow out.

I agree that caster will definitely help the sway IF you can get the adjustment.

One way to understand caster is to think of a basketball player. When he is on his toes, he can pivot and turn quickly. When he is on his heels, he can't as easily.
When you adjust the caster angle, its the same thing. When the front tires are ruining on the toe , it wil turn or sway quickly. When the angle is increased, the tire is now leaned back and running on the heel. That will slow things down!

I know, this is a silly way of describing caster but most people have no idea!

[luvrbus]

Yep most all the highway trucks now are 8 + the older H series Prevost left the factory with + 3.5 caster and people take those up to 5 or 6 degrees

good luck

[Paso One]

I know, this is a silly way of describing caster but most people have no idea!

Ace  46 years ago when I was taking my training as a licensed mechanic the instructor used the theory so we would never forget the difference between Positive and Negative camber.

It was simple  Think of a woman on her back.  " If her knees are touching that's negative"

If her knees are far apart that's " positive"

Of coarse you have to put some extra thought and words in to make it stick for 46 years but your basketball player on the toes comes in as a good way to remember.

[TomC]

Camber should be O on the left with a bit of negative on the right to combat road crown.  If you want maximum tire life-1/16" to 1/8" toe in is all you want.  More then that might make it track better, but then you're grinding down your tires and having to use a bit more power to push the bus down the road (even at 1/8" toe in, your tires are scrubbing 660ft every mile!).  On my first truck in 1980, it had only a 151" wheelbase to be able to pull a 45ft trailer and be legal at 55ft.  Being that short, the factory did not want to put on power steering.  Hence, my first truck didn't have power steering.  I learned that the front end settings were very important to ease of steering-plus keeping the king pins greased helped alot.  Now with the powerful power steering, massive amounts of caster needs to be applied in the hopes of getting some snap back of the steering wheel.  On my bus, when I changed it out from manual/air assist to full Sheppard power steering, I did not change the front end settings.  Hence, I have to steer the wheel back to center-not a big deal since I've never gotton into the habit of letting the steering wheel snap back with my hands off the wheel.  Good Luck, TomC