Power steering control valve play

danza said:

when I finished I noticed that there was still some play on the ball joint. The instructions that came with the kit say there should be no more than 1/16" of play but I measured about 1/2".

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If a balljoint has play, that means it is worn out.

Right off the top of my head, it sounds like you forgot to install either the spool bolt bumper or the adjusting nut spacer. Missing either of them will cause excessive play. Take it apart.

That's not a ball joint, per se. It's called a ball stud.

There is an adjustment on the outside end of the control valve. If not covered in the kit instructions, it can be found in the shop manual.

Basically, you remove the end cover from the control valve. Two screws hold it in place. Torque the nut on the end of the rod on the valve to 10 lb-ft. Then back off the nut 1/4 turn, alfter taking up the movement in the stud as you back off the nut. Then replace the cover making sure the o-ring is in place.

ALso make sure you grease the ball stud slider via the fitting on the bottom of the control valve.

By the way, the biggest caution given in all the manuals is to NOT overtighten the adjusting nut as this can snap the travel regulator stop pin.