Chevrolet C60s - Front Wheel "shimmy"

[Mike K]

I have seen that type of thing before .

It can be caused by badly adjusted or incorrectly fitted king pin / swivel bearings . Does your vehicle have tapered roller bearings on both the upper and lower sides ? The pre load on the swivel bearings needs to be set according to the manual . Some of these older 4X4's used a bronze cone on one side, Dodges I think . Mike

[Ron King]

Yes king pin bearings worn or not enough bearing preload.
Check caster too and add caster spring wedges if nessary.

[rob love]

The jeeps have always been especially susceptible to that and it is common enough to have the nickname "death wobble". First time I have heard of it on a CMP, but the reason will be the same: worn and out of spec steering components. It won't necessarily be one thing, but more likely a combination of several.

The kingpin bearings on the CMPs are a chronic problem, and hard to find. But you can add to that the general wear through the system. It is usually only two of them that take the load (can't remember if it is the uppers or the lowers, but if you disassemble them that far you will know soon enough). You can be a bit inventive and repack them, although they are not meant to do so. Some here have replaced them with standard tapered bearings along with some adapters. Likely a better choice, although you will be cutting some shims to get the preload right.

I would suggest biting the bullet and taking it to a truck service center who can properly do an alignment. They very likely won't be able to do the alignment, but will give you a list of things wrong that need fixing first.

A bandaid solution to the death wobble is to give it a bit more toe in. Mind you, if you truly have 3/8 of an inch, that would seem to me to be quite a lot already. More toe in will of course cause more wear to the tires, but how many miles do you put on your truck anyway? Another solution is the installation of a steering damper, but that is of course un-original.

I don't like to suggest bandaid solutions to things like brake or steering, as the end results can be bad.

[chris vickery]

Another place often overlooked on MVs is the pitman arm ball as well as any other components like drag link etc.
The pitman arm ball end is often worn with flat spots and the bearings wear. Sometimes these are overly loose as well.
As Rob stated, things like steering and brakes are the most important.
Loss of control can mean loss of your life.
Do it right.